Some very sad news in world cinema this week with the passing of the great Indian actor Irrfan Khan at only 53.
Irrfan Khan turned to acting after failing at cricket but if his skill with a bat equalled his talent on screen he would surely have been as good as the great Kapil Dev. He mainly starred in TV soap operas in India before the Oscar-winning British director Asif Kapadia (whose lesser-known film Far North screened at the 2008 Inverness Film Festival) cast him in the BAFTA-winning The Warrior and his career took off both in India (Maqbool, a modern day Macbeth) and Hollywood (Slumdog Millionaire, Life of Pi, Jurassic World).
The Lunchbox (2013, Ritesh Batra)
He was an actor of vast intelligence, warmth and integrity – there are few in the world of film as talented as he was. My favourite of his films is the quiet classic The Lunchbox(available to watch on Curzon), it makes me cry every time I watch it and features not just a perfect performance from Khan but some of the most delicious looking food ever shown on film.
Ema (2019, Pablo Larraín)
Chilean director Pablo Larraín’s new film EMA is released on Friday, it is one that I was looking to programme at Eden Court but it will be available to anyone to watch for free, for 24 hours, from Friday May 1st. The screening will be followed by an exclusive Q&A with the star of the film, Mariana Di Girolamo. We didn’t screen Larraín’s debut feature at Eden Court, but since 2008 we have shown all of his films (Tony Manero, Post Mortem, No, The Club, Neruda and Jackie). He has become one of the strongest voices in cinema and someone who doesn’t shy away from the violent and controversial aspects of Chile. I would particularly recommend Tony Manero and Jackie.
This blog was written by:
On 29/4/20
