LFF Looks At London Life

Once again the time draws near when we, along with the rest our capital's film fans, bow down and give thanks to the polluted, crime-plagued city we call home. For this November sees the return of the London Film Festival and a sneak peak of this year's fantastic line-up was presented to journalists at the official press launch this morning. With American projects edging into the opening and closing spots over the last few years, it's good to see a pair of British filmmakers bookending this year's festival. Stephen Frears' Dirty Pretty Things will kick off proceedings on 6 November, starring Amelie's Audrey Tautou, the film is a seedy tale of moonlighting, the illegal organ trade and immigration as Tautou's Turkish immigrant tries to build a life within London's seedy underbelly. Thaddeus O'Sullivan's The Heart of Me, starring Helena Bonham Carter, Olivia Williams and Paul Bettany will close the festival on 21 November. "We are pleased to be opening and closing the festival with new British films, both of which give very particular visions of London life, but both of which deal with universal themes," said Sandra Hebron, the festival's artistic director. The festival will also feature a superb selection of British, Hollywood and international films including: Shekhar Kapur's The Four Feathers, starring Heath Ledger; Peter Mullan's Venice and Toronto-conquering The Magdelene Sisters; Steven Soderbergh's Full Frontal; PT Anderson's Punch Drunk Love; Roman Polanski's Palme d'Or-winning The Pianist; Aki Kaurismaki's The Man Without a Past; Roger Avery's The Rules of Attraction and Eminem's movie debut, 8 Mile. Empire Online simply can't wait until November rolls around and the 46th Regus London Film Festival kicks off and, as usual, we'll be bringing you daily updates and reports on all the festival events as they occur. So make sure you log onto Empire Online from 6 November for the most comprehensive LFF coverage on the Net.