July Film Highlights
On 25 July the Filmhouse in Edinburgh is offering a rare chance to see notorious 1932 film Freaks. The director Tod Browning (Dracula), inspired by his own circus connections, employed real sideshow performers and wanted to create a sympathetic portrait of their lives. On its original release it was met with disgust by critics and audiences alike. It destroyed Browning's formerly lucrative career and was banned for over thirty years, one of the longest film bans in history. Now it is considered a cult classic, and remains to this day simultaneously haunting, horrifying and fascinating.
The Cameo is screening You've Been Trumped on 14 July, a documentary following a group of Scottish homeowners trying to preserve their local landscape from US tycoon Donald Trump, who purchased hundreds of acres in the Scottish North East with the intention of building golf courses, hotels and luxury homes. The clash is a contemporary David and Goliath story, displaying the differences between local community and big business. This screening is accompanied by a Q&A with special guests, which have yet to be confirmed. Check out the Cameo's website for more details.
In Glasgow the CCA is hosting Inhabitants, in association with Cryptic Nights, on 7 July. The event, which fuses film and live contemporary dance, features choreography by Abby Warrilow, whose previous works can be seen in The Wicker Tree and music videos for The Proclaimers. Inhabitants has been described as similar to a horror film, and the event promises to be an interesting and unique night.
The Filmhouse has collaborated with The MagicFest to bring Magic Cinema, a mini three-film season of magic movies between 1-3 July. The programme features Death Defying Acts, starring Guy Pearce, and two films called The Illusionist – one a love story starring Edward Norton, the other a beautifully animated tale of friendship between an elderly French magician and a young girl from a remote Scottish village. The latter, by director Sylvain Chomet, was nominated for an Oscar this year, and features stunning scenes of Edinburgh. All the screenings are introduced by magicians and illusionists, who are on hand to confuse and baffle everyone attending.
Anime fans should head to the Belmont in Aberdeen on 4 July for a special screening of Katsuhiro Ohtomo's 1988 film, Akira. The film, which introduced the Japanese manga style to a global audience, has influenced numerous American sci-fi films, including The Matrix. The Belmont has pledged to give a portion of the profit from this screening to The Japan Society Tohoku Earthquake Relief Fund, so you can see a great film and help a good cause at the same time.