RITA DI SANTO assesses the winners of the most politically charged festival to date
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Disappearing up its own black hole
MARIA DUARTE sees an initially intriguing space drama disintegrate into cliche
KATARZYNA KOSMALA introduces a retrospective by one of the most significant figures in contemporary US photography
MAYER WAKEFIELD is entertained but let down by an audacious production that, sadly, doesn't ring true
MARY CONWAY is disappointed by drama that, despite accomplished performances, cannot overcome an unfocused script
New releases from Sam Carter, Spell Songs and Les Thomas
High Life (18)
Directed by Claire Denis
A FATHER and his baby daughter battle to survive in complete isolation in this twisted space saga, which promises more than it delivers.
As the flashbacks slowly but surely unfold, you learn how Monte (Robert Pattinson) and the baby (an adorable Scarlett Lindsey) come to be on board a now empty spacecraft. He was a member of a crew of death-row inmates led by Dr Dibs (Juliette Binoche), who have agreed to go on a one-way trip to a black hole in exchange for their lives.
Evoking Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey and Tarkovsky’s Solaris, Claire Denis’s space drama is more space porn as the characters are violently attacked by their crew mates and defiled by the good doctor, all in the name of science and creation. Dr Dibs relieves her sexual tension in a special “play room” worthy of Fifty Shades of Grey, which makes disturbing viewing.
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