Century of big screen fun at Kirkcaldy Film Festival

The five-day film extravaganza by OnFife, which runs from September 14-18, will celebrate a ‘Century of Cinema’ with a programme which has everything from children’s favourites such as The BFG, by Steven Spielberg, to Rocky, starring Sylvester Stallone, and classics from Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin.

The main highlight will be the Scottish premiere of ‘The Girl With All the Gifts’ starring Gemma Arterton as a teacher and Paddy Considine as a soldier trying to survive a futuristic wasteland while protecting a 10-year-old girl who may be the world’s only hope from a disease which turns humans into flesh-eating zombies.

And as with all the offerings on the programme, there is a local connection in the form of Edinburgh-born director Colm McCarthy of Peaky Blinders and Sherlock fame, and Angus Lamont the Glasgow-born director.

The film is based on the book by M.R. Carey, and following its screening, the author will be in discussion with Alan Morrison, artistic director of the festival, alongside director Angus Lamont.

The programme also includes an appearance by film critic Nigel Floyd who writes for Time Out magazine.

Before the screening of Aliens on the Saturday night, he will speak about his interviews with director John Cameron during the 80s, and the delights of that decade’s cinema blockbusters.

And Fife Youth Arts has also put together an hour-long programme of short films made in Fife and Scotland to showcase some of the up and coming talent in the industry.

There’s the chance to dress up as your favourite monster for the ‘Carry on Screaming’ show on the Friday night, while following the Friday afternoon showing of The Big Sleep – which stars Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall – Craig Russell, Fife author will discuss the film with Alan.

All the screenings will take place in the Adam Smith Theatre.

The programme was launched by OnFife this week and copies are now available in theatres and libraries around Fife.

It was devised by Alan Morrison, artistic director, who said the festival was going “all-out for a decade-by-decade celebration of everything that makes cinema great.”

He said: “One of the great successes we have had in past years has been when people come up afterwards saying it was brilliant that it was tied in with the anniversary screening of old films.

“People really seem to like the fact that they can see these old films on the big screen again, and I thought to myself how about trying to do an entire festival celebrating anniversaries of big films over the past 100 years?

“So we have an entire century of films dating back to 1916.

‘‘We are also ensuring that we cover all the big genres including drama, comedy, western, sport and romance. – it is like an entire century of what has been on the big screen compressed into just five days.

“I have had an absolute ball over the years, putting this festival together. To have had that opportunity to select films and put them on for such an appreciative audience has been an absolute treat,” added Mr Morrison.

All the films have been sourced and brought together by Evan Henderson, the producer and programme manager of the festival and OnFife.

“We have refined the programme and learned a lot from what audiences have told us they want to see,” he explained.

“A lot of it is about connections local to Fife or Scotland and we have had Richard Jobson, Billy Connolly and John McLean as well as Paul Wright over the years.

“We always have a gala fun night which celebrated landmark anniversaries, but this year we have taken it a stage further with the centenary of cinema.

“People who have 
never seen the likes of Rocky or Alien on the big screen will have the chance to see it where it was meant to be seen.”

Some of the must see films:

The Rink (U) :

Charlie Chaplin at his comic best as a clumsy waiter causing chaos at the local roller rink. This silent comedy is showing as a double bill with Buster Keaton’s The General

The Big Sleep (U):

Raymond Chandler’s crime novel provide the storyline for Bogart’s private eye Philip Marlowe getting entangled in both a murder mystery and the arms of a femme fatale played by Bacall.

The BFG (PG):

The latest Steven Spielberg offering is the most eagerly awaited family movie of the year, with breathtaking special effects and the heartwarming tale of the lonely giant.

Brassed Off (15):

Scotland’s own Ewan 
McGregor, who studied at 
Fife College, stars as a young miner keeping community spirit alive through his local brass band as the pits are closing around him.

The Lives of Others (15):

From German director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck about life behind the Iron Curtain when a Stasi officer leads a surveillance operation on a successful East German playwright and suffers a crisis of conscience when he realises his subject is a good man.