The LFF Closing Gala

After a whopping 180 feature films, 122 shorts, 403 public screenings and 7 world premieres, the wonder that is the London Film Festival drew to a suitably prestigious close last night with the gala screening of period drama The Heart of Me starring Britain's own Helena Bonham Carter, Olivia Williams and Paul Bettany. Set amid the stifling conventions of middle-class life in the 1930s, this passionate tale follows that ever-reliant staple of romantic drama, the love triangle. One lucky fellow – played by Paul Bettany – marries the beautiful, confident Madeline (Olivia Williams) but can't help being drawn to her bohemian, quixotic sister, Dinah (Helena Bonham Carter), and lo and behold a full-blown, tempestuous affair is kicked off with the inevitable disruptive consequences that would make any episode of Eastenders proud. What's really startling about the movie, however, is the distinct lack of melodrama floating up from this soap-opera clich All you get with this film is just damn fine acting. As the director, Thaddeus O'Sullivan, explained to Empire Online, "What was interesting was what the characters discover about themselves in the process of falling in love, a part of themselves which is completely unknown. And the reason it's so difficult for themselves to unearth these sensations or give vent to them is because of the restrictions of their class." Perhaps more well known for his madly comic roles as Chaucer in The Knight's Tale and Russell's 'room-mate' in A Beautiful Mind, Paul Bettany was also keen to point out the quiet quality of this particular movie. "I'm terribly pleased with the film, I'm very proud of it," he commented. "If you read the tagline which is 'Man married to one sister, has an affair with the other,' it could be terribly…ghastly, really. But Thaddeus has done a remarkable job, because life is as complicated, I guess. Thaddeus has managed to make a very gentle, poignant film." Helena Bonham Carter's take on what the movie was all about, however, had a slightly different ring. "Come off it" she said, "It's all about death and vaginas really!" Turning up on the arm of her current beau Tim Burton, Bonham Carter did however mention the importance of character in the script – which was what convinced her to take on the role of Dinah. "And to be really indulgent and selfish, it's all about the acting and about character. They're masters of their own plot and create it by their own behaviour. So it was a luxury for any actor." And what a necessary luxury the London Film Festival has become for any serious filmgoers lucky enough to live near our dear capital. Over 110,000 souls have sat their fortunate bottoms down in their cinema seats these past sixteen days to watch some truly fantastic movies from some truly wonderful filmmakers and stars. And long, Empire Online hopes, may it continue.