Watch out for . . .
ROBERT EGGERS, who directs Willem Dafoe, playing an old seadog turned veteran lighthouse keeper who’s joined by an apprentice (Robert Pattinson) in the wonderfully atmospheric The Lighthouse. Shot in black and white, cinematographer Jarin Blaschke’s cameras capture every crease and ridge of the actors’ faces, as if they’re part of the landscape. Set in late 19th-century New England (though filmed in Nova Scotia), it’s a maritime masterpiece with performances of such delicious dexterity that I saw it twice. It was shown in the Quinzaine section of the Cannes Film Festival.
ISABELLE HUPPERT, who gives a performance of effortless luminosity in director ira sachs’ film Frankie, about an actress who gathers with family and a close friend at the Portuguese resort of sintra for a poignant reunion. Ms huppert (above) told me that Frankie was her 22nd film to be shown in the official competition section of the cannes Festival.
FIONN WHITEHEAD, who stars with Leyna Bloom in director Danielle Lessovitz’s film Port Authority, about a disparate group of young folk on the cusp of being down and out in New York. Whitehead (below) is one of our best young actors (he was in Dunkirk and The Children Act). He plays Paul, who falls for a dancer called Wye (Bloom). They prove that love knows no boundaries.