7 THINGS TO SEE AT THE
70TH EIFF
Not sure where to start with EIFF’s
massive 70th programme? Here are seven top picks to get you on your way, whatever you’re into
FREE FOR ALL
Film Fest in the City This year’s programme of pre-festival outdoor screenings packs in 15 eclectic films, including Ant-Man, Mad Max – Fury Road, Minions, The Force Awakens,
and a dance-along Grease. St Andrew’s Square, Fri 10–Sun 12 Jun.
OPENING GALA
Tommy’s Honour The always-impressive
Peter Mullan (Sunset Song, Neds) stars as golfing pioneer Old Tom Morris in this new film from Jason Connery. Festival
Theatre, Wed 15 Jun.
PARTY TIME
Sound + Vision The most exciting addition to the EIFF lineup is this new strand at Summerhall, which pairs films with great live music. This year, Scottish
music doc Lost in France is screened alongside live music and DJs from
Chemikal Underground (Fri 17 Jun), and Badly Drawn Boy comes to town for a special gig-plus-screening of About a Boy
(Sat 18 Jun). FOR THE KIDS
Finding Dory In this sequel to Pixar classic Finding Nemo, Dory, Nemo and Marlin head off on another adventure, this time to find Dory’s parents. Festival
Theatre, Sat 18 Jun.
QUIRKY COMEDY
Maggie’s Plan The chemistry between Greta Gerwig, Ethan Hawke and Julianne Moore crackles in this New York-set rom com from Rebecca Miller. Filmhouse, Sat 18 Jun; Cineworld, Sun 19 Jun.
FINNISH FUN
Cheer Up Part of Focus on Finland, Christy Garland’s documentary follows the
worst group of cheerleaders in Finland and the tireless efforts of their coach. Odeon, Mon 20 Jun; Filmhouse,
Wed 22 Jun.
FEMINIST CLASSIC
Regrouping Leading EIFF’s experimental
Black Box strand this year is Lizzie Borden’s rarely screened Regrouping
(1976), a powerful and challenging look at the political activities of a women’s group. Filmhouse, Thu 23 & Fri 24 Jun.
■ EIFF runs Wed 15–Sun 26 Jun.
2 Jun–1 Sep 2016 THE LIST 19
that helped us to get the theme of the i lm. We worked very hard in the cutting room to get the right comedy tone. I remember Gregor asking whether he could drop the last line of a scene because he didn’t want the whole scene to be about the gag. Whisky Galore! is not something broad like the Dad’s Army reboot seemed to be; it’s got a more subtle rhythm.’ After taking such a long time to mature, the Whisky Galore! shoot proved to be smoother than a single malt; even the weather stayed unnaturally fair. ‘The truth is, it probably only rained for two hours during the whole shoot. We looked at the Outer Hebrides and Barra as possible locations, wonderful places to i lm but with complicated logistics, but when we went on a recce to Portsoy, I knew it would be perfect. You had the pub, the post ofi ce and the school,
all together in one place and all overlooking the harbour, almost like a set specially built for us.’ Making Whisky Galore! the closing i lm of the 2016 EIFF marks a happy return for MacKinnon, who premiered his Steve Martin i lm A Simple Twist of Fate there in 1994. Those who attended that night were surprised when Martin himself came out to enjoy some Vegas- style repartee with the audience. ‘I remember I’d phoned up Steve and asked him about it. He was driving and the last thing I heard was, “I’m just going into a tunnel . . . ’ So I was a surprised as anyone when he turned up. And to this day, people still ask me how I brought Steve Martin to Edinburgh. I wish I knew!’ Whisky Galore!, Festival Theatre and Filmhouse, Sun 26 Jun.