ICA Season: The Best of 2014 in Film
The Institute of Contemporary Arts breaks down the best films of 2014 in these retrospective screenings.
Scarlett Johansson as humanoid alien in Under The Skin
If the last twelve months were a rather low-key period for art house cinema, in which France played a subdued role and big hitters like Haneke and Almódovar kept quiet, the year was nevertheless bookended by some great releases from talents both established and rising. In the last week of December, the ICA is offering us the chance to catch up on some of the best films of 2014 – plus a little-seen classic hailing from 1962.
In a strong year for British cinema, Under The Skin stood out as a bold, almost reckless piece of experimental filmmaking. Having honed his dynamic visual style in a string of music videos and two under-appreciated features, Jonathan Glazer applied his talents to this enigmatic tale of a humanoid alien (played by Scarlett Johansson) with a penchant for Glaswegian men.
A successful year for Johansson, 2014 also saw her appearing in another sci-fi hit, where she lent alluring voice to the computer operating system in Her. Spike Jonze’s zeitgeisty study of alienation in the digital age manages to fuse metaphysics, gentle humour and the aesthetic of an iPhone advert into a brilliant indie one-off.
While it’s tempting to claim Warsaw-born Pawel Pawlikowski as a British director – after all, he built his career on these shores – Ida is a Polish film through and through. Perhaps the most solemn road movie ever made, it follows a young nun’s exploration of her Jewish roots in postwar Poland.
A lighter chapter of history is treated in Elaine Constantine’s Northern Soul, a charming celebration of the very British musical phenomenon that seized the north in the late 60s.
The season is rounded off by the re-released Salvatore Giuliano, Francesco Rosi’s epic profile of the titular bandit and the Sicilian society of which he was a part. It’s a fave of the ever-reliable Martin Scorsese, whose Film Foundation was responsible for the film’s restoration.
To top it off, all films in the season are ticketed at the discounted rate of £6 (£3 for ICA members). Happy Saturnalia indeed.
In a strong year for British cinema, Under The Skin stood out as a bold, almost reckless piece of experimental filmmaking. Having honed his dynamic visual style in a string of music videos and two under-appreciated features, Jonathan Glazer applied his talents to this enigmatic tale of a humanoid alien (played by Scarlett Johansson) with a penchant for Glaswegian men.
A successful year for Johansson, 2014 also saw her appearing in another sci-fi hit, where she lent alluring voice to the computer operating system in Her. Spike Jonze’s zeitgeisty study of alienation in the digital age manages to fuse metaphysics, gentle humour and the aesthetic of an iPhone advert into a brilliant indie one-off.
While it’s tempting to claim Warsaw-born Pawel Pawlikowski as a British director – after all, he built his career on these shores – Ida is a Polish film through and through. Perhaps the most solemn road movie ever made, it follows a young nun’s exploration of her Jewish roots in postwar Poland.
A lighter chapter of history is treated in Elaine Constantine’s Northern Soul, a charming celebration of the very British musical phenomenon that seized the north in the late 60s.
The season is rounded off by the re-released Salvatore Giuliano, Francesco Rosi’s epic profile of the titular bandit and the Sicilian society of which he was a part. It’s a fave of the ever-reliable Martin Scorsese, whose Film Foundation was responsible for the film’s restoration.
To top it off, all films in the season are ticketed at the discounted rate of £6 (£3 for ICA members). Happy Saturnalia indeed.
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| What | ICA Season: The Best of 2014 in Film |
| Where | Institute of Contemporary Arts, The Mall, London, SW1Y 5AH | MAP |
| Nearest tube | Charing Cross (underground) |
| When |
26 Nov 14 – 25 Jan 15, various dates and times |
| Price | £3-£6 |
| Website | Click here for more information |