There’s almost always some kind of festival on in Edinburgh and every year in June the Edinburgh International Film Festival gives casual movie goers and film buffs alike a chance to see all manner of films from bona fide classics to modern blockbusters to tiny independent curios. There’s an absolute tonne of films on offer and there really is something for everyone; all you have to do is look. Over the last couple of years I haven’t really taken great advantage of the festival although I did manage to catch a couple of gems, namely Hunt for The Wilder People - a wonderful comedy set in New Zealand and starring Sam Neil (you can check it out on Netflix) and How to Change the World - a really great documentary about the rise of Greenpeace.

With my past failures to properly take advantage of EIFF weighing on my mind I decided that this year I would make amends. I got a copy of the programme early and went through all the films marking out what I wanted to see with the intention of writing my guide on what to see. Unfortunately life took over and I didn’t manage to write that guide up and before I knew it we were over a week into the festival and I hadn’t seen a single film. Cursing myself for failing yet again I went back through my list and promptly booked six films for the last three days of EIFF.

Those six films were, in order of appearance: The Decline of Western Civilisation (Friday night at The Filmhouse), Life After Flash (early Saturday afternoon at the Vue OMNI Centre), Calibre (late Saturday afternoon at The Filmhouse), Anna and the Apocalypse (late Saturday night at The Filmhouse), Zombillenium (Sunday morning at The Odeon) and Humor Me (early Sunday afternoon at The Odeon). Unfortunately I missed out on quite a few films I wanted to see due to having to work and also just being downright disorganised over the festival period. What I ended up with was a pretty decent mix of Documentary, Comedy, Thriller and Animation. So, how did I get on? Let’s get down to it.

The Decline of Western Civilisation

Part documentary, part concert film, The Decline of Western Civilisation provides a snapshot of the Los Angeles punk scene in the late 1970’s. Over the course of the film we are introduced to a number of bands: X, Black Flag, Fear, Germs, Catholic Discipline and Alice Bag Band and get an insight into their music and lives through concert footage, behind the scenes footage and interviews. For anyone with more than a passing interest in music it’s a highly entertaining film regardless of what you think of the music which is at times unlistenable. Concert footage is shambolic, hilarious, violent and often just moments away from a full on riot which was a common occurrence and led to some of the bands being banned from multiple venues due to the crowds they attract. Some standout moments are where we’re shown around the abandoned church that multiple members of the band Black Flag call home; they literally sleep in closets, we see the frontman of Germs so out of his mind on stage that he can barely stand or speak, let alone sing into the microphone and we are introduced to an audience member who describes fighting people as one of his personal strengths. I loved every minute of The Decline of Western Civilisation a fascinating, tragic, comedic, energetic and essential documentary and I recommend that you get yourself a couple of adult beverages and sit down and watch the debacle that is punk music unfold before your very eyes.

Life After Flash

Life After Flash is a documentary film looking back at the cult 80’s sci-fi fantasy movie Flash Gordon and what happened to the young actor Sam J Jones who played the titular role. We catch up with Sam in the present day as he attends a science fiction convention and through him and interviews with famous fans and members of the cast and crew we learn about the making of the film and how he ultimately faded into obscurity until a return to the public eye via a cameo in the 2012 film Ted. The interviews are extensive and there is a great deal of behind the scenes footage showing the costumes, props and sets. Many of the interviews are very entertaining; Brian Blessed in particular is at his enigmatic best and the insight from Brian May on the theme song (and the personality of Freddie Mercury in particular) is fantastic. Sam himself is an interesting character and the story of his rise and fall is told well; he is extremely candid about his Hollywood lifestyle including his numerous excesses and extramarital affairs. Personally I found the behind the scenes stuff on how certain scenes were filmed and the stories from the actors and cast on their colleagues and co-stars more interesting than the story of Sam J Jones. Overall I really enjoyed Life After Flash and for any fan of Flash Gordon it’s essential viewing. There was a Q&A with the director afterwards which I would have loved to stay for but unfortunately I had 20 mins to hot foot it from the Omni centre over to The Filmhouse in time for my next movie.

Calibre

Sweating profusely from my journey between cinemas and after disturbing some audience members to get a seat (I was 5 mins late) I finally got a moment to relax as Calibre gently eased us in to it’s tale of two old friends meeting up for a hunting trip in the Scottish Highlands. The first thing I noticed was the stunning cinematography which really showcased the mood and beauty of Scotland’s countryside. After the opening scenes of the two arriving in a sleepy town and partying all night with some of the locals we see the hungover pair venture into the woods to assassinate some wild deer. From this point on the tension ramps up as the shoot goes horribly wrong and the two friends make a decision to cover up an accident to protect themselves from the consequences. For the rest of the film our protagonists have to suffer the suspicions of the locals as they try to act normal following the horrific events of the previous days. Ultimately the building tensions all come to a head with a truly thrilling climax. Calibre is a genuinely exciting film that doesn’t mind taking it’s time to build suspense before blasting you with both barrels. It doesn’t have the most original of plot lines but it does have enough fresh ideas to keep things interesting all the way to the end. After it’s initial debut at EIFF it was uploaded to Netflix so for anyone who has a subscription I’d urge you to give Calibre a shot.

Anna and the Apocalypse

Described in the EIFF programme as a “wonderfully engaging horror musical comedy”, Anna and the Apocalypse immediately piqued my interest although admittedly I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. For the record I do have a love for a few horror comedies such as Shaun of the Dead, Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil and Evil Dead 2 but I’m really not a fan of musicals, I mean some of the classics are fine but I’d rather gouge out my own eyes with a copy of ABBA: Gold than watch Mamma Mia or The Greatest Showman. Fortunately Anna and the Apocalypse turned out to be a wonderful on point parody of High School Musical combined with the rom-zom-com elements of Shaun of the Dead. There are a lot of songs in this film and for the most part they are all funny, smartly written and brilliantly performed. A real highlight was a scene where Anna wakes up on a typical morning, gets ready and heads to school signing and dancing whilst completely oblivious to the zombie apocalypse chaos going on behind her. Of all the films I saw at EIFF this was by far the most original and whilst it wasn’t perfect it featured some great performances from a young cast, big laugh out loud moments and some genuinely horrific and gory set pieces. So, after all, that description from the programme was perfectly apt. If you ever get an opportunity to see Anna and the Apocalypse or spot it on DVD somewhere, don’t let the fact that it's a musical put you off, it might just end up becoming one of your favourite films.

Zombillenium

My penultimate film of EIFF was the only animation and also the only foreign language film I managed to see. Zombillenium is in French with English subtitles and follows a father who, after an untimely death, finds himself transformed into a demon and working in a theme park run by zombies, vampires, werewolves and other undead creatures. Sounds wonderful, right? Well, all is not well. With profits in decline, the park owner (the Devil himself) declares that the theme park will close and all the monsters will have to return to hell unless its fortunes can be turned around. Our unlikely hero turns up just at the right time and sets about improving the attractions whilst also trying to stop the park’s popular vampire heartthrob from taking over. Zombillenium is well animated and fairly enjoyable but I found some of the comedy moments fell flat and at times I felt my concentration slipping. Some of my lack of interest could have been down to the film being aimed more at children and maybe this is more suited to parents and their kids than a cynical man in his early 30s. Don’t get me wrong, I think Zombillenium is a well made and entertaining film but overall it probably just wasn’t for me. I’d recommend families do give it a shot as it may just prove to be a hit with the younger generation (if they are willing to read the subtitles of course).

Humor Me

For my final film of the festival I chose Humor Me (it’s an American film so I have to spell it that way) pretty much on the sole basis of the involvement of Jemaine Clement (of Flight of the Conchords and What We Do In The Shadows fame). It’s a comedy drama following a struggling playwright who, after losing his job and being left by his wife, has to move in to his father’s spare room in a retirement community. Something I didn’t expect was that Jemaine Clement would be doing an American accent and it was a little jarring at first, not that it was bad, just that I was so used to his deadpan New Zealand accent that it came as a real surprise. Another surprise was the involvement of Elliot Gould (who you may know as Ross and Monica’s father in Friends) as Clement’s joke cracking father. The film focuses on Clement’s character coming to terms with where his life is going and his relationship with his father but also sees him taking on directorial duties for the resident ladies amateur dramatic group who are putting on a version of The Mikado. Humor Me is a charming comedy with a lot of heart and a number of laugh out loud moments. It also has some heavy drama exploring how families and individuals cope with difficult times and tragedies in their lives. Whilst it’s really not the type of film I might normally choose to watch I did enjoy Humor Me quite a bit and it’s a fun film you could happily watch with most of the family.

So there you have it, those were the six films I saw at EIFF 2018, a mixed bunch which all had their merits. The Decline of Western Civilisation and Anna and the Apocalypse were definitely my favourites but all of them were entertaining and deserve to find an adoring audience.

Peace.