The annual Europe on Screen film festival is always an exciting time for movie lovers in Indonesia, giving them a rare chance to enjoy European cinema on the big screen instead of the usual Hollywood fare.
This year’s festival will be taking place from April 29 to May 8 will include showings in six Indonesian cities: Jakarta, Bandung, Denpasar, Medan, Surabaya and Yogyakarta. And, as always, all showings are free.
With 78 different films on this year’s lineup, it won’t be easy to choose which ones to watch. So we’ve picked out a few of the film’s we’re most excited to see so you can check out the trailers below. You can check out the full list of films and schedule here. See you at the festival!
Viva La Liberta (Opening film)
This award-winning Italian political comedy about a veteran politician who can’t take the pressure before an election and disappears. Fearing a scandal, his desperate party uses the politician’s “crazy” twin brother to fill the gap. But his open mind and forthright talk actually helps the party starts to win the support of the people.
White God
This Canne Film Festival award-winning Hungarian drama is one of the most original animal movies ever made. After failing to find his beloved owner, an abandoned dog eventually joins a canine revolt against their human abusers. With striking imagery and very little dialogue, it is an absolutely mesmerizing film.
The Program
A tense and suspenseful thriller about the Irish sports journalist who uncovered one of the greatest deceptions in modern athletics while Lance Armstrong had convinced the rest of the world that he was a hero.
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence
A brilliantly surreal comedy from Sweden. It’s hard to describe but the trailer perfectly illustrates the film’s absurdist humor.
Accused
A searing Dutch drama based on a true story. Nurse Lucia was present at one inexplicable death too many. The hospital alerts the police. A young district attorney, Judith, gets involved and Lucia is sentenced to life in prison. But doubt hits Judith. She discovers inconsistencies in the witness statements and the suppression of lab evidence and Judith eventually teams up with Lucia’s lawyer to help find justice.
Battle for Sevastopol
The true story of Lyudmila Pavlichenko, a young Soviet soldier known as ‘Lady Death’. Considered as the best female sniper in history, she fought to defend Odessa and Sevastopol against the German troops.
Big Game
For some reason, Samuel L Jackson starts in this Finnish movie about a young teenager who helps rescue the President of the US (Jackson, of course) when Air Force One is shot down by kidnappers.
Geronimo
This French film was described by the Hollywood Reporter as, “Flemenco’ meets ‘West Side Story’ in high energy face-off between Spanish and Turkish communities”. In the south of France, Geronimo, a young social educator, tries to ease tensions between the youngsters in her neighborhood. The mood changes when a 16 years old girl of Turkish origin flees an arranged marriage, running to the arms of her gypsy lover. Their escape sparks hostilities between the two clans.
In Order of Disappearance
This Norwegian film about revenge is distinguished by its dark sense of humor. It tells the story of Nils, a snow blower driver who keeps the roads open in the remote mountains of Norway. When his son is mistakenly murdered he starts a private investigation that brings him into the middle of a drug war between the Norwegian mafia and the Serbians.
Sonita
A film about an 18-year-old girl Afghan refugee living in Iran with the unlikely dream of becoming a rapper. Even after her family decides to sell her off as a bride for $9,000, she fights to keep her dream alive against all odd.
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