The stars were out for The British Independent Film Awards!

From Lizzie Pyle on December 6, 2011

On Sunday 4^th December, the very best in British talent turned out for the 14^th Moët British Independent Film Awards in London town. The star-studded ceremony, held at Old Billingsgate was hosted by actor/comedian Chris O’Dowd, and streamed live for the first time ever on LOVEFiLM.

Highlights of the awards included Lynne Ramsay picking up Best Director for the controversial We Need to Talk About Kevin, Michael Fassbender took home Best Actor for Shame, and I was so excited for Olivia Colman who won Best Actress for her stunning performance in this year’s big winner Tyrannosaur. The film’s director Paddy Considine was awarded The Douglas Hickox Award for Best Debut Director , and it also took home Best British Independent Film. It is a must see!

BIFA 2011Best Actor, Michael Fassbender

Two of our country’s most prestigious actors took home special awards; Ralph Fiennes recieved the coveted Richard Harris Award for outstanding contribution by an actor to British film, and Kenneth Branagh the Variety Award.

BIFA 2011 winner Kenneth Branagh

Joint Directors of The Moët British Independent Film Awards, Johanna von Fischer & Tessa Collinson said: “What a fantastic year for British film! This year’s nominees embodied a diverse range of genres and those walking away with awards tonight are representative of the high quality of outstanding talent we have in this country. Congratulations to them all.”

BIFA 2011 Moet Champagne

The awards were sponsored by Moët & Chandon, and all the stars that attended the ceremony supported ‘Toast for a Cause’, helping to raise thousands of pounds for their favourite charities by toasting with mini Moët & Chandon bottles! A great night for the British film industry!

Click here to read Glam’s reviews from this years 55th BFI LFF

Glam UK

REVIEW: ‘Tyrannosaur.’ A British Indie With Great Acting but a Bleak Tone.

 By Tim Grierson | The Projector – Tue, Nov 15, 2011 4:00 PM EST

Strand Releasing

"Tyrannosaur" is very much an actors' movie, which turns out to be as much of a mixed blessing as you might expect. Written and directed by Paddy Considine (the star of "In America"), the film brings together a small collection of superb performers (including Peter Mullan and Eddie Marsan) to deliver sensitive, tough material in an honest, affecting way. But while you get pulled in by the drama and the unflinching performances, "Tyrannosaur" is never more than its unlucky characters milling about in their misery. You long for a story as interesting as the cast.

The movie's despairing tone matches the gray British skies hanging over the characters. Joseph (Mullan) is a drinker still reeling from his wife's death about five years ago. He's a violent cuss and it appears that his rundown home hasn't been cleaned up since his spouse passed. Then one day he meets Hannah (Olivia Colman), a religious woman who runs a secondhand clothing store. Joseph doesn't want her prayers, but he does become concerned for the woman's welfare after realizing she's in a physically abusive relationship with her husband James (Marsan).

This is Considine's feature directorial debut, although he made a short film ("Dog Altogether") that starred Mullan and Colman and focused on the Joseph character. While I haven't seen the short, it's not surprising that "Tyrannosaur" builds around Joseph since he's clearly the story's anchor. Recalling the aging, angry men in "Gran Torino" and "Harry Brown," Joseph isn't someone we're supposed to savor as some adorable old crank. No, Joseph is a mean, cruel person -- he takes particular joy in telling Hannah how little he cares about God -- and his sad situation isn't meant to entirely rationalize his gruff behavior.

But while Mullan, who's been in "Trainspotting" and the forthcoming "War Horse," doesn't make you love Joseph, he does give the character a taciturn consistency that at least allows you to understand him. Joseph's attempts to help Hannah are in some ways predictable -- the old meany finds redemption by helping the young, good-hearted woman -- but Considine doesn't make anything easy on anybody in his movie. The three principals in "Tyrannosaur" are all stubborn and frustrating in their own way, and while Hannah is easily the most sympathetic she too has issues that threaten to destroy her. There's no clear-cut happy ending for these people, and "Tyrannosaur" makes you understand that reality in often poignant ways.

Considine has largely starred in dramas over his career -- although he has done cheeky comedy in "Hot Fuzz" and "Submarine" -- and "Tyrannosaur" has its moments of dark humor amidst the despair. What it doesn't have, sadly, is a lot of forward momentum. Considine invests in his characters, and he and his actors work to make them as lived-in as possible. (There are several scenes that feel like they'd be good acting showcases for aspiring thespians to study in order to learn subtlety and nuance.) But the movie's unrelenting misery can start to feel like a crutch, as if Considine and his cast equated bleakness with truth. It's hardly a debilitating problem, but it does keep "Tyrannosaur" from being as absorbing as it could be. Considine has made a movie about people living on the margins, so it's unfortunate that it's only marginally effective.

Grade: B

 (sorry agaiu about the advertisement in the beginning - can't seem to get away from them)

The Projector