CAHIERS DU CINEMA CROWNS TONI ERDMANN THE BEST FILM OF 2016

The leak was correct! Cahiers du Cinema, that most prestigious of centres of film criticism, has unveiled its choices for its ever-anticipated year-end poll, and they're precisely as yesterday's leaked list suggested. It looks like failing to win over George Miller's Cannes jury might have been the best thing to happen to Maren Ade's Toni Erdmann, as it can add first place on this poll to its already-hefty roster of accolades, including a FIPRESCI Grand Prix. Indeed, the entire top seven here is comprised of Cannes competition entries, not one of which claimed a jury award at the festival in May. Check it all out below, and, if you haven't seen any (or even some) of the films in this top ten, make sure to check them out too!

1. Toni Erdmann (Maren Ade)

2. Elle (Paul Verhoeven)

3. The Neon Demon (Nicolas Winding Refn)

4. Aquarius (Kleber Mendonca Filho)

5. Slack Bay (Bruno Dumont)

6. Julieta (Pedro Almodovar)

7. Staying Vertical (Alain Guiraudie)

8. La Loi de la Jungle (Antonin Peretjatko)

9. Carol (Todd Haynes)

10. The Woods Dreams Are Made Of (Claire Simon)

LFF 2016 REVIEW - AQUARIUS (KLEBER MENDONCA FILHO)

Real talk! Because the bullshit is real, the effects are real, and the struggle is real. Kleber Mendonca Filho and Sonia Braga are done holding back, and they together confront the literal rot seeping down from the top of Brazilian society in Aquarius. The apartment block in which Braga's character is the sole remaining resident is as the film itself is constructed - symbolic, maybe a little impractical, but a statement against the societal evils devised and perpetuated by elitist corporations. Aquarius hails the simple yet profound beauty of art, indeed striving to achieve the same in itself, and prioritizes the basic human needs of love, respect, common sense, sex, and the integrity of one's home above all else. It's a generous film, stressing the value of communal experiences of joy, and indeed of pain, and inviting its audience to share in those experiences, with elongated, intimate scenes, the film's essential energy maintained in Mendonca Filho's delightful way with dramaturgy. His more expressive details are arguably a little too overt, set as they are within a film that largely eschews excessive displays of affectation, but his grasp of character is exemplary - whether it's delineated through the direction, the writing, the cinematography, the editing. The boldness to which Mendonca Filho sporadically resorts may be an easy option for the emotional catharses he's equally inclined to resist as he is to indulge, but they have an appropriate power, given the nature of the narrative. And anyway, holding back is for wusses. This brash piece of termite art burrows its way to heavenly heights, and brings every willing viewer along with it on its joyous ascent.

LFF 2016 PREVIEW: AQUARIUS

'Expansive yet focused, Aquarius confirms Mendonca's commitment to Brazil's middle-class populace and asserts a newly evident skill for dramatic storytelling'

Jordan Cronk, Sight & Sound

'A deeply moving yet wry tribute to the resistance of small islands of human integrity'

Carmen Gray, AnOther

'Aquarius establishes [Mendonca Filho's] authorial voice as well as his place as one of the most eloquent filmic commentators on the contemporary state of Brazilian society'

Giovanni Marchini Camia, The Film Stage

Kleber Mendonca Filho made a big impression on many, myself included, with his remarkably accomplished debut narrative feature Neighbouring Sounds in 2012. This year, he returned to make an even bigger splash, showing in competition at Cannes to great acclaim with his follow-up, Aquarius. Both director and star Sonia Braga were lauded by critics for their portrayal of a woman stubbornly and provocatively refusing to vacate her apartment block, of which she is the sole remaining resident, to allow developers to put up a new resort. The political activity of cast and crew at Cannes in May has attracted much controversy to the film, including public criticism from prominent voices, the appointment of one of whom to the Oscar Foreign Language Film selection committee for Brazil resulted in some filmmakers officially withdrawing their works from consideration. Mendonca Filho is, by my judgement, a great filmmaker with a solid sense of moral responsibility, so I'm very much looking forward to seeing Aquarius at the London Film Festival this year. The fest kicks off tomorrow, and I'll be commencing my coverage on Friday!

CINEMA NOVO WINS CANNES' SECOND EVER L'OEIL D'OR

L'Oeil d'Or, a new prize at Cannes that originated at last year's festival, has been handed out. The award goes to the best new documentary screening in any section of Cannes. This year's choice is Eryk Rocha's Cinema Novo, which was one of the few contemporary titles in Cannes Classics. It profiles the work of some of Latin America's most important an influential filmmakers, and thus marks the second time - out of two - that a film from South America has received this award. What a fantastic way to celebrate this often underrepresented region for filmmaking, in a year that has also attracted considerable acclaim for fellow South American titles Neruda and Aquarius. There was a Special Mention for the highly-praised The Cinema Travellers, also from Cannes Classics and also a film about the medium itself, from debut directors Shirley Abraham and Amit Madheshiya.