EIFF 2015 starts tomorrow. Here’s the films and events I’m looking forward to seeing most. 

Last Days in the Desert  Dir. Rodrigo Garcia

Films with a religious theme always intrigue me and Garcia’s film garnered rave reviews at Sundance.

Ewan McGregor plays both Christ and the Devil in this drama imagining the forty days and nights in the desert. 

The Burrow (Der Bau) Dir. Jochen Alexander Freydank

Contemporary reworking of Franz Kafka’s short story ‘The Burrow.’

Maggie Dir. Henry Hobson

You would expect carnage from a zombie film starring Arnie but the trailer suggests something more akin to the post-apocalyptic sadness of John Hillcoat’s The Road.

Rio I Love You Dir. Various

After Paris and New York it’s now time for Rio to get a cinematic portmanteau love letter. Of interest to me purely because Paolo Sorrentino is directing a segment. 

Beyond the Lights Dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood 

Despite the acclaim Beyond the Lights received on its US release it is apparently going straight to DVD in the UK so EIFF are providing a rare chance to see this romantic drama in a cinema. 

Turbo Kid  Dir. François Simard

Amusing looking Eighties post-apocalyptic pastiche with the great Michael Ironside reprising the kind of bad-guy role he played back in the day. 

Future Shock! The Story of 2000AD Dir. Paul Goodwin 

Documentary about the creation of the cult comic. There’s also a screening of the movie version of its most famous character Dredd (2012, Pete Travis).

Walter Hill: The Early Years

Deserved retrospective for one of the great unsung heroes of American cinema. Walter Hill’s first six movies, Hard Times (75), The Driver (78), The Warriors (79), The Long Riders (80), Southern Comfort (81), 48 Hours (82), and Streets of Fire (84), all get a showing here. 

In Person: Johnnie To 

EIFF also pays tribute to another great action director, Johnnie To, with an in person interview and a screening of his 2006 movie Exiled.