Cornwall Film Festival // The Party

Having premiered at Berlinale to critical acclaim, British director and screenwriter Sally Potter's (Orlando, Ginger & Rosa, Rage) eighth feature - a political comedy wrapped around a tragedy about a dinner party gone very wrong - features a spectacular cast including Kristin Scott Thomas, Emily Mortimer, Cillian Murphy, Timothy Spall and Patricia Clarkson. 

 

Janet (Scott Thomas) has just been appointed Shadow Health Secretary, the crowning achievement of her career, and decides to celebrate by hosting a few close friends. But as the guests arrive her husband Bill (Spall) makes a shocking announcement, leading to a cascade of explosive revelations and unravelling the soiree even before the canapés are served. 

As people’s illusions about themselves and each other - whether romantic, political or existential - go up in smoke. A night that began with champagne ends with blood on the floor. 

Described by Potter as an anti-Brexit statement about a 'broken England', it's a savage satire of the middle-class, exploring the deeper truths behind seemingly liberal convictions with insight and a killer wit.

 

"Gleefully nasty, zinger-packed [...] Sally Potter's dark drawing-room comedy is her zestiest work in ages" - Guy Lodge, Variety

 

"The most purely fun film ever made by peculiar British experimentalist Sally Potter" - Guy Lodge, Variety 

 

"The Party is a short, sharp, funny shock of a movie" - Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian