January 2019
FLIX PREMIERE Close-Up
this month’s UPCOMING PREMIERES
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Welcome Readers: The purpose of this magazine is to share with our movie-goers, the industry and our partners updates about what is happening at Flix Premiere each month. We aim to highlight and explore the upcoming month’s ďŹ lm premieres in each market, and occasionally announce new developments on our platform. Happy reading!
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IN THIS ISSUE:
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Chas ing Valen tine
January Premieres Snapshot Learn about our exclusive new premieres showing each week. US January Premieres Snapshot - pg. 3 UK January Premieres Snapshot - pg. 4
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Close Up: Premieres Feature Reviews A chance to immerse yourself in the wonderful stories premiering each week.
Love Stalk
Falling - Andriy Seletskiy, Dasha Plahtiy, Oleg Mosiychuk - pg. 5 Chasing Valentine - Adan Langton, Jen Pogue, Ryan Fisher, Gwenlyn Cumyn, Bobbie Phillips - pg. 6 Tula the Revolt - Danny Glover, Jeroen Krabbe, Deobia Oparei, Natalie Simpson, Aden Gillett - pg. 7 Love Stalk - Ines Laimins, Ronan Pak, Dada Lo, LaYing, Jae Leung, Angie Palmer, Rex Kwok - pg. 8 Fantail -Sophie Henderson, Stephen Lovatt, Jarod Rawiri, Jahalis Ngamotu - pg. 9
HOME OF AWARD-WINNING CINEMA AND MORE
“ It’s an atmospheric film“
US PREMIERE January 4, 2019 - 7pm EST
A fragile love story set in the young generation of today's post-revolutionary Ukraine.
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“Leinders tells an interesting story that needs to be told.” Dick Gilsing, Movie Scene
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US PREMIERE January 18, 2019 - 7pm EST
An account of the unequal fight for justice on the island of Curacao, a Dutch colony in 1795.
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US PREMIERES SNAPSHOT
Starring: Andriy Seletskiy, Dasha Plahtiy, Oleg Mosiychuk
JANUARY 4, 2019 - 7pm EST
Starring: Adam Langton, Jen Pogue, Ryan Fisher, Gwenlyn Cumyn, Bobbie Phillips, Brad Cowan
JANUARY 11, 2019 - 7pm EST
Starring: Danny Glover, Jeroen Krabbe, Deobia Oparei, Natalie Simpson, Aden Gillett
JANUARY 18, 2019 - 7pm EST
Starring: Ines Laimins, Ronan Pak, Dada Lo, LaYing, Jae Leung, Angie Palmer, Rex Kwok
JANUARY 25, 2019 - 7pm EST
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UK PREMIERES SNAPSHOT
Starring: Andriy Seletskiy, Dasha Plahtiy, Oleg Mosiychuk
JANUARY 5, 2019 - 7pm GMT
Starring: Adam Langton, Jen Pogue, Ryan Fisher, Gwenlyn Cumyn, Bobbie Phillips, Brad Cowan
JANUARY 12, 2019 - 7pm GMT
Starring: Ines Laimins, Ronan Pak, Dada Lo, LaYing, Jae Leung, Angie Palmer, Rex Kwok
JANUARY 19, 2019 - 7pm GMT
Starring: Sophie Henderson, Stephen lovatt, Jarod Rawiri, Jahalis Ngamotu
JANUARY 26, 2019 - 7pm GMT
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Close Up: Premiere Feature Review
Falling
US Premiere JANUARY 4 - 7PM EST UK Premiere JANUARY 5 - 7PM GMT
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hey fall into each other’s lives at an opportune time. Anton (Andriy Seletskiy) has just been released from rehab and is living with his grandfather in the woods in a post- revolutionary Ukraine and had just visited his well-meaning but listless mother. He goes to a club, but decides to just sit outside it, next to a dog. Intrigued, the beautiful Katya (Dasha Plahtiy) approaches him. She likes that he likes her stories; that he listens intently. And they can communicate so much even through their glances. Katya wants to meet again, but she’s there with a (bad listener of a) boyfriend and Anton doesn’t really have an address or a cell phone. But he tells her to meet him by the side of the road by the gas stop near his house, and one day, she does. He invites her to stay with him and his grandfather. He discovers her love of art. Over time, their relationship grows and becomes more precious. They’ve become so connected, but other forces seem to be working against them.
Beautiful, and heart wrenching, Falling is a master class in a meditative cinema.
This is Marina Stepanska’s gorgeous Falling. It’s an atmospheric film. The cinematography is sweeping and evocative, from eerie forests latent with political fears - and alienating cities, Anton and Katya seem to be navigating the world alone, but together. With the kind of dialogue you might see in a Linklater film, there is an ethereal quality to Falling. Everything is teetering to the edge and the two stars have cheekbones that could kill and a dreamy look in their eyes, but they are almost uncaring. The film skillfully combines political poignancy with breathtaking and poetic cinematography. It’s the kind of film you can watch and marvel at how beautiful it is, but the beauty lies in a certain melancholy.
Falling encourages the viewer to spend time with it. To appreciate the images, the feeling of time passing itself, and the imperfect relationships between Anton and Katya, the grandfather, and Anton’s mother. These are people who are thinking deeply about their identity, their purpose in life, and their country. They are not so much clamoring for a way out as they are trying to understand how to be. Falling is a film to watch slowly, paying attention to every gorgeous shot, to the star making yet subdued performances, its socio-politics, and the poetic dialogue. Beautiful, and heart wrenching, Falling is a master class in meditative cinema.
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Chasing Valentine
Close Up: Premiere Feature Review US Premiere JANUARY 11 - 7PM EST UK Premiere JANUARY 12 - 7PM GMT
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e’s chasing after a woman who is already gone. Chase (Adam Langton) is bereft, mourning the death of his ex-girlfriend Scarlet (Jen Pogue) while working a dead-end job as an editor for an adult film production company. He works, meets his friend at the nearby bar, and mostly just drifts. He clings to a chalkboard he made with his ex. It’s become like a shrine now, or a window to a better time. But one day he meets the beautiful Valentine (Gwenlyn Cumyn), a call girl who has created multiple personas for her work. Without a place to go, she asks to stay with Chase. He agrees. And the healing begins - as does a dramatic unraveling.
Enter the world of Navin Ramaswaren’s Chasing Valentine. The pacing is terrific. There is time to get to know the characters intimately, to really understand their desires and their fears and their stories. Beginning on that fateful night of Chase and Scarlet’s breakup - and her eventual death - we see Chase at his lowest point. But through every scene, the viewer becomes aware of his progression. His mood lightens and he invests more time into his friendships. But when he meets Valentine, his world begins to open up again.
A fantastic story about overcoming grief. Movie Blogger
Valentine, however, possesses some secrets. She gets into some trouble with her boss, and the sense of order that was newly established in Chase’s life begins to unravel. Chasing Valentine is part drama part romance, and it is infinitely gorgeous and entertaining. The performances, particularly Gwenlyn Cumyn’s, are viscerally wrought and impactful. The film packs a strong comedic punch too. But one of the aspects that stands out the most is the chemistry between the two protagonists. They are endowed with such emotional depth and that is supported by the strong writing the spectator can really understand the intimacy between the two characters, theirr friendship and what brings them together.
It is difficult to find such strong chemistry, but Navin Ramaswaren has gloriously succeeded. It’s a film that looks as good as it’s written - and performed - and has an air of bittersweet melancholy. It’s a tale of the difficulties of being in love and of loving that is not often told in the cinema. Chasing Valentine is an original, provocative yet astounding beauty that will leave the viewer breathless, and aching for more.
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Tula: the Revolt
Close Up: Premiere Feature Review US Premiere JANUARY 18 - 7PM EST
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istorical photographs of slaves toiling in the fields elide from the screen, flowing as a breeze from a window. Then the viewer is taken to a courtroom, where several slaves on Curacao are assigned agonizing and fatal punishments. Then the spectator is taken back in time, six weeks earlier, to understand their stories. Cinema is a window to brutal realities in Jeroen Leinders’ Tula the Revolt, which is based on the true story of the Curacao Slave Revolt of 1795. One woman Speranza (Natalie Simpson) hears that France has ended slavery in its colonies and her partner, Tula (Obi Abili), asks the plantation owner to hear his case on why the slaves on Curacao should be freed. The plantation owner tells him to make his case to the lieutenant governor de Veer (Jeroen Krabbé), but what started as a fifty - person movement to speak to the governor ends up being much larger, as the Dutch send in reinforcements and slaves from neighboring plantations join Tula. This gripping, powerful drama is told by master storyteller, Jeroen Leinders, who uses his medium to capture injustice and atrocity.
Leinders tells an interesting story that needs to be told. Dick Gisling, Movie Scene
Tula the Revolt is a narrative of one man’s courage and leadership - and an ode to the real historical figure. The writing is superb, with sharp dialogue, tender relationships, an odious betrayal, and some surprises: each moment is fraught and pregnant with meaning. The cinematography adds to the film a feeling of intimacy. The viewer feels so invested with the characters, especially the larger-than-life Tula and his fight for peaceful resistance. The cinematography is evocative, pairing visceral close ups with sweeping landscape and action shots.
The info graphics, too, work to tell the story in an impactful way. What stands out in Tula the Revolt is the characters. They are unforgettable; their writing is nuanced, and they are performed with expertize and craft. The film will have viewers on the edge of their seats - enthralled by Tula’s leadership, the tender romance with Speranza, the visuals, the music, and one especially haunting scene with women singing outside of court. The narrative is about a fraught journey, a quest for peaceful resistance that got bloodied, and a true story, and a name - Tula - to remember. Tula the Revolt will linger in the mind’s eye for a great while, and it’s a testament to the necessity of storytelling.
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Close Up: Premiere Feature Review UK Premiere JANUARY 19 - 7PM GMT
Love Stalk
US Premiere JANUARY 25 - 7PM EST
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haron Ong (Angie Palmer) is on the cover of magazines. She’s a social media star. She works in an elite PR firm in Hong Kong. She doesn’t quite have it all, though. She’s homesick for Singapore. And while her best friend Joan Wong (Dada Lo) shacks up with a new guy every week, Sharon is having trouble in the dating department. One night, while dining out, the wife of a man that she was dating finds them, and it becomes a viral video on social media - with remixes and all. So she’s smitten when, in a fantastic meet-cute, she bumps into a handsome man named Ryan Tam (Ronan Pak) who picks up the books she was carrying. After briefly seeing him again at a restaurant, she according to her friend - starts to “stalk” him on a social media app. She checks into whatever he does, going out of her way to almost - but not quite - run into him. She likes all of his updates. Until one night, at a bar, her friend encourages her to actually talk to him, and she does. They set up a date, and it goes well. But her friend has always harbored some doubts about him, even searching online for articles about “Ryan Tam creepy” to find out more.
Love Stalk is a film full of surprises: from characters who are not who they seem, to explorations of the pitfalls of social media.
One night, while working an event she planned, she unexpectedly sees him after not hearing from him for a while, and she begins to see him in a different light. Joe Fiorello’s Love Stalk is the most fun you’ll have watching a movie in a long time. It is dramedy par excellence, with memorable characters, especially the fun-loving, spirited friend, who tells Sharon the truth when she needs to hear it most. With its quick, jaunty editing, and millennial-obsessed references, it’ll be sure to delight. The dialogue is witty and hilarious, and the friendship between Joan and Sharon is moving and tender.
Love Stalk is a film full of surprises: from characters who are not who they seem, to explorations of the pitfalls of social media. It’s smart while hilarious, and effervescently engaging. You’ll want to get drinks with Sharon and Joan, who can entertain for hours. Even if romance is a central plot, the film also makes the case for being a strong buddy comedy. In the end, it’s a story of friendship, trust, support, and the lengths you’ll go for your friends - especially when the stakes are high. Love Stalk is a perfect film for any night, but is especially well-suited for a night with good friends.
Fantail
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Close Up: Premiere Feature Review UK Premiere JANUARY 26 - 7PM GMT
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ccording to Maori legend, the fantail - a small, brownish bird equipped with a large white tail that spans out like the wings of a fan - is a ghostly premonition. It foreshadows death. And it haunts and shares its name with the masterful film Fantail, shot on location in New Zealand. Directed by Curtis Vowell, and written by Sophie Henderson, who also stars as Tania, a young, blonde petrol station attendant who thinks that she is Maori. She cares for her ailing mother and listless younger brother Pi (Jahalis Ngamotu), with whom she is saving money to visit her father in Queensland, until Pi takes a job as a fruit-picker in the Bay of Pigs, and begins hanging out with the wrong crowd. Up until the film’s dramatic conclusion, the centrality of the film takes place during her dreamy, slipstream graveyard shifts at the service station. It’s where she faces misogyny, and also builds a friendship with co-worker Rag (Stephen Lovatt).
Fantail is gorgeously crafted and will weave an eerie yet resplendent spell.
Henderson delivers a deft and captivating performance as Tania, bringing to life her strength mixed with fear, her naivete combined with an air of being wise beyond her years. She is the emotional core of the terrific Fantail. The dreamy cinematography helps establish a sense of place: the station where she works, too, becomes a character, mirroring the characters’ own volatility and sense of wonder. It is like Tania is the gatekeeper of another word. This mythological quality is particularly fitting, as the film is undergirded by a Maori legend, and Tania herself is living with a particular family mythos. Fantail is both a closed circuit, a world of its own, yet reaches out to poignantly touch on social issues.
The film has an air of simplicity that belies its rich interior life, mirroring Tania herself. It also has a strong sense of comedic timing - but it is a kind of comedy that veers more towards self-preservation that slapstick or physical comedy. It’s comedy as a way of making sense of the world and Tania’s uncertain place in it. The station is quite literally a cage for Tania, as she peers out into the night through metal bars. Fantail is gorgeously crafted and will weave an eerie yet resplendent spell. A film about the complicated nature of identity and becoming, it will make the spectator think for days after watching. It is essential viewing.
HOME OF AWARD-WINNING CINEMA AND MORE
“Love Stalk is a film full of surprises: from characters who are not who they seem, to explorations of the pitfalls of social media.”
UK PREMIERE January 19, 2018 - 7pm GMT
Searching for love in Hong Kong, Sharon finds her dream guy, but as she follows him, she finds out the dangers of stalking a secret crush..
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“Fantail is gorgeously crafted and will weave an eerie yet resplendent spell”
UK PREMIERE January 26, 2018 - 7pm GMT Tania thinks she's Maori. She works at a gas station to save money to take her brother Pi to Surfers Paradise, but Maori legend intervenes.
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