Julia

Tilda Swinton is more than imposing in an undeservedly lesser known role as a manipulative, sexy, alcoholic woman who regularly wakes up in a strange man’s bed. When Julia runs out of her first AA meeting, the Mexican Elena embroils her in a cunning plan to kidnap her son who lives with his millionaire father. Instead of carrying out the plan, Julia takes the boy for herself, demanding an even higher ransom from Elena which turns out to be a really bad plan.

Julia leaves a bloody mess in her vodka-soaked wake. Swinton – alternating between hateful and loving – is initially entirely unsympathetic and self-destructive, however, in the end, Zonca's impressively unruly film is a wonderful redemption tale.

Once again, Swinton’s piercing gaze pins you to your seat. There aren’t many actresses who can embrace the extremes of beauty and ugliness quite like Tilda Swinton. Erick Zonca loosely based his English-language debut on John Cassavetes' Gloria, which featured the other actress with the same skill, Gena Rowlands, who also flees with a child.

Pre-film

Before Julia, you will see the American short film A Bad (K)night by Frank S. Armitage (1899, 1’) in which a man is punished for his alcohol abuse, with a new score by Thijs Havens (Eye). Tilda Swinton hand-picked a short film, either from her rich oeuvre or from Eye’s collection, to precede all feature films.