Brace yourselves for all the bikes, Birkenstocks and brews you could ever wish for—The Cinematheque’s annual European Union Film Festival is back. From November 21 to December 4, 27 countries will each showcase a film of their choice. The selection crosses languages as well as genres, promising to please documentary-buffs, thriller fans and rom-com lovers alike.
To save you some time and a lot of Google-translating, SAD Mag did some research to come up with a fool-proof list of this year’s festival must-sees:
Two-Seater Rocket (Austria). A classic love story with an astronomical twist: Photographer Manuel has the hots for his gorgeous best friend Mia, but can’t muster enough courage to tell her. But hen Mia falls for a dashing Italian pilot instead, Manuel decides win her back as any love-struck person would—by stealing a rocket ship and making Mia’s childhood space dreams come true.
F*ck you, Gohte aka Suck me Shakespeer (Germany). Sex, crime and…spelling tests? Zeki returns from a 13 month prison sentence only to discover that a high school has been built on top of where his stolen stash lies buried. In order to recover his money, he accepts a job as a substitute teacher at the school, with some hilarious consequences. Zeki isn’t just under-qualified for the job…he doesn’t even know how to spell Germany’s most famous poet’s name!
The Guilded Cage (Portugal/France). Maria and José are a poor Portuguese immigrant couple working menial jobs in a snooty Parisian neighbourhood. When José inherits unexpected riches, he and his family plan to move back to Portugal as they have always dreamed. But it turns out that the rich bitches they work for have grown fond of their underpaid labourers, and decide to do everything in their power to keep them from moving home and finally achieving happiness.
Vis-A-Vis (Croatia). A young director struggles to make his first feature film and a name for himself. Unfortunately, the script is hopeless, the lead actor is in the midst of an emotional crisis and the budget is nonexistent. Funny, clever and thought-provoking, Vis-A-Vis features Woody Allen-like characters, a soundtrack by Andrew Bird and absolutely breathtaking Croatian scenery.
Flowers from the Mount of Olives (Estonia). Ever wondered what it feels like to be an 82-year-old Russian Orthodox nun living in a cloister in the middle of the Arab Quarter? This is your chance to find out. In this award-winning documentary, Sister Ksenya reveals all—talking ex-boyfriends, Nazis and drug addictions—when she decides to tell her life story one last time.
17th Annual European Union Film Festival
The Cinematheque (1131 Howe)
November 21st to December 4th
Tickets & festival information