Neo Ned

And the award for most implausible storyline of the film festival goes to... Neo Ned. The plot: twenty-something white meathead Ned falls for young black mother Rachael. Fine so far, except that he is a white supremacist implicated in a racial murder, and she believes she's Adolf Hitler. From this gloriously twisted conceit first-time director Van Fischer weaves a touching, surprisingly warm-hearted tale of star-crossed lovers that at times loses its darkly comic touch in favour of ill-advised earnest drama, but ultimately redeems itself. The brilliant lunacy of the script means that the opening exposition where Ned and Rachael meet in a mental hospital, appropriately is far from convincing: in repeated sketches Ned torments Rachael like a school bully while she barks back at him in German. But slowly Rachael and Ned manage to bridge their extreme differences and from here on the film engages steadfastly with the audience, as the two characters' basic humanity breaks through. At its tongue-in-cheek best, Neo Ned is a triumph, conjuring up priceless comedic moments such as Ned's 'Just because I'm a racist doesn't mean I'm not sensitive' or his mother's habit of appearing on sensationalist TV talk shows. Despite the demands it makes on the viewer and its tonal problems, Neo Ned is a worthy, intelligent film, destined to be a cult favourite.