Glenn’s Pick – Glenn Webb, Director of Programs – The device of an untrustworthy narrator is often used in cinema, perhaps never more masterfully than Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon. In that film, several characters tell contradicting versions of a story, even from beyond the grave. Who is lying, or can some aspects of the tale be reconciled as just differing perspectives? In DISAPPEARANCE AT CLIFTON HILL, we learn that the main character has a history of telling fibs, but she may be a sole witness to an event that some want to cover up and some want to expose, but no character’s credibility is beyond doubt. It’s the kind of distorted objectivity that we find in several films by David Cronenberg, which makes his appearance as an actor in this film all the more delightful. As is the choice of Niagara Falls as the setting, in its fading glory as a used-to-be glamorous destination. Our main character, played by a very likable Tuppence Middleton, would be easy to write off, but you really want her to be vindicated, whether she deserves it or not. This romp down the rabbit hole is exactly the kind of movie that makes Friday Night Weird such fun. Stay up for a good movie and sleep in on Saturday. It’s worth it.
