Unicorns
Tender and uplifting, director Sally El Hosaini follows up her award-winning film The Swimmers with Unicorns, a love story between a single dad motor mechanic and an Asian drag artist who lights up the night.
It's hard not to be drawn in by the subtle majesty on display as El Hosaini weaves an engaging tale that offers conflict and comfort in equal measure.
The story revolves around Luke, a pretty ordinary bloke who works alongside his dad as a mechanic while bringing up his young son on his own.
Luke, to be honest, is a bit of a lost soul, but all that changes when he goes out for dinner on his own and, when looking for the bathroom, stumbles upon a private party playing out behind the scenes.
It's at this party he discovers Aysha, a beautiful dancer who immediately strikes sparks with the fascinated Luke. One passionate encounter later, Luke realises Aysha is not all as she seems on the surface, and hastily retreats into the night.
Not one to let a good thing slip through her fingers, Aysha tracks Luke down and soon Luke finds himself making a little extra cash as her driver, and the bond between the two begins to grow.
Sensitive and unwaveringly honest, don’t get fooled into any sensationalist headlines about Unicorn's subject matter on religion or gender identity – this is simply a beautiful drama with great performances and an engaging story, directed with verve, passion and unassuming confidence by a blossoming auteur.
Rose
Directed by The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo's Niels Arden Oplev, and starring the absolutely terrific Sofie Gråbøl from The Killing, you'd be forgiven for thinking there's an element of Nordic Noir at play with Rose, but you'd be wrong.
With moments of profound sadness, you'll also find yourself laughing out loud at this heartfelt drama that follows Danish sisters Inger and Ellen who embark on a coach trip to France to take in the tourist sites in and around the beautiful city of Paris.
PROFOUND: Sofie Gråbøl stars in the affecting and emotional Rose
The twist? Well, Inger lives with schizophrenia and is on release from the psychiatric clinic where she lives. Her sister Ellen hopes the trip will do Inger some good, but a coach load of fellow tourists aren't quiet so sure, especially when Inger casually shares her illness with the entire bus over the speaker system. It’s a journey that will see Inger and her fellow passengers discover that the strangers we meet as we go through life are so much more than the label society insists on placing on them.
With a stunning central performance from Gråbøl, Rose is a delicate and affecting drama that will challenge any dated preconceptions about mental health with a simple yet profound and at times uplifting story.
Rose is screening at the QFT in Belfast until Thursday, July 11.
