The eight films to watch out for at the 2024 London Film Festival
The annual BFI London Film Festival is back for another year of explosive premieres and poignant indie features.
The 2024 film festival will see some of the buzziest festival films (The Apprentice and Maria) make their way to the UK’s capital city.
As well as being the home to impressive European premieres (such as Brett Goldstein and Jenna Coleman’s All Of You) it’s also the place to find under-the-radar A-List movies like Jonathan Groff’s A Nice Indian Boy and Barry Keoghan’s Bird.
Or the next stop on the victory lap for award-winners such as Venice Golden Lion recipient The Room Next Door (starring Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore).
It’s a special time for film lovers to get ahead of the public and dig into the best of the best – and discover some hidden gems along the way.
So without further ado, here are eight top movies to keep an eye out for at the BFI London Film Festival 2024.
Blitz
No round-up highlighting this year’s festival would be complete without the headline movie – Blitz – from Steve McQueen and starring four-time Oscar nominee Saoirse Ronan.
But could this finally be the movie to bring her home the statuette?
The World War Two movie follows mother-son duo Rita (Saoirse) and nine-year-old George (Elliott Heffernan) who embark on a treacherous journey to be reunited after George is evacuated during the height of the London Blitz.
After its world premiere, Blitz will come out in UK cinemas on November 1.
Anora
Anora is a heartfelt romantic-comedy from acclaimed indie filmmaker Sean Baker which paints an intimate portrait of a relationship between Brooklyn sex worker Ani and the son of a Russian oligarch, Vanya in this ‘modern Cinderella story’.
The movie comfortable secured the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival which was Baker’s ‘singular goal as a film-maker for the past 30 years.’
Anora will release in UK cinemas on November 1.
Superboys of Malegaon
For Bollywood lovers out there, this one’s from you. From the creator of Amazon’s Made in Heaven – Reema Kagti and Zoya Akhtar – comes Supreboys of Malegaon.
The movie is based on the true story of Nasir Shaikh, an aspiring filmmaker from the titular poor town who rallies the community to create parody films thatget catapulted into the national spotlight.
The ‘ragtag group of fledgling filmmakers’, as described by Deadline, put on a feel-good drama that explores friendship, the joy of cinema and the power of a communal goal.
Joy
This upcoming Netflix feature stars Thomasin McKenzie, James Norton and Bill Nighy as three trailblazing British doctors who worked tirelessly across a decade to make in vitro fertilization aka IVF possible.
The central trio play nurse and embryologist Jean Purdy (Thomasin), scientist Robert Edwards (James Norton) and surgeon Patrick Steptoe (Bill Nighy).
This inspiring true story will also arrive on Netflix on November 22.
Bring Them Down
Barry Keoghan is one of the biggest movie stars of the past few years after his star-making turns in The Banshees of Inisherin and Emerald Fennell’s Saltburn.
Now he is appearing in Christopher Andrews’ debut film, Bring Them Down, opposite Christopher Abbott.
The film follows an Irish shepherding family who get drawn into a rivalry with a competing family that has disastrous consequences from Michael (Christopher) and his son Jack (Barry).
The Balconettes
Noémie Merlant, star of Portrait of a Lady on Fire and Tar – is the first-time filmmaker behind The Balconettes.
Set in Marseilles during a heatwave, the movie follows Ruby, Élise and Nicole who accidentally kill a man in self defence and are subsequently forced to hide the body in this ‘gloriously gory and funny’ feminist, feature.
Who doesn’t like gory revenge that spirals completely out of control?
We Live In Time
Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh’s highly anticipated romance, We Live In Time, is arriving in time for the festival.
The movie – which has been on everyone’s lips since it was announced- follows the relationship between an up-and-coming chef Tobias and divorcee Almut over the course of a decade.
It is guaranteed to make you cry and will arrive in UK cinemas on January 1, 2025.
The Piano Lesson
Last, but certainly not least, is another Netflix release – The Piano Lesson – helmed by Denzel Washington’s son, Malcolm Washington.
The star-studded film is set in 1936 Pittsburgh in the aftermath of the Great Depression as we follow the lives of the Charles family whose ancestry is reflected in the carvings made by their enslaved ancestor on the family piano.
The film features Samuel L. Jackson, John David Washington and Danielle Deadwyler and releases in cinemas on November 8.
Where is the London Film festival held?
The London Film Festival is put on by the British Film Institute and held in venues across the UK’s capital city from October 9 to October 20.
Venues include BFI Southbank, BFI IMAX, Curzon Mayfair, Curzon Soho, Institute of Contemporary Arts, Prince Charles Cinema, Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall and Vue West End.
Is there a dress code?
There is no dress code but for those attending a special screening, there is always the option to go glam.