This film is part of Rentals
I Am Belfast
Mark Cousins’ dreamlike evocation of his home city discovers a capital of rich history and startling beauty.
Director: Mark Cousins
Overview
Mark Cousins’ dreamlike evocation of his home city drives far beyond its overfamiliar political story to find a capital of rich history and startling beauty.
Our guide is not Cousins himself, but a 10,000-year-old lady who claims to be the spirit of the city itself, taking us on a journey through the city’s rich, complex and often tragic history. Cousins’ talent, in collaboration with cinematographer Christopher Doyle, is in finding visions of beauty amid the seemingly mundane, composing painterly pictures interspersed with film clips and archive footage. The evocative soundtrack by great Belfast DJ and film composer David Holmes (Ocean’s Eleven, Hunger, ‘71) mixed with Cousins’ poetical narration give the film its dreamlike quality. From wandering through the streets, meeting jaunty pensioners Rosie and Maud, to the horrors of the Troubles, I Am Belfast is an impassioned, politically engaged and inventive love letter from Cousins to his hometown.
Related
Four Daughters Four Daughters
Drama-documentary 2023 103 mins Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
The mother-daughter relationship is explored to cathartic effect in this complex and poignant hybrid documentary about a woman and her missing daughters.
Occupied City Occupied City
Documentary 2023 251 mins Director: Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen’s cinematic commemoration of the Holocaust offers a multidimensional experience full of gravity and sublimity.
Your Fat Friend Your Fat Friend
Biopic 2024 96 mins Director: Jeanie Finlay
A powerful and moving documentary exploring body image, diet culture and anti-fat bias through the life and work of Aubrey Gordon.
In the Company of Men: The Brotherhood In the Company of Men: The Brotherhood
Documentary 1995 60 mins Director: Molly Dineen
This third and final film in Molly Dineen’s three-part series builds towards the ‘The Prince of Wales' company of the Welsh Guards’ symbolic victory parade in Brussels.
In the Company of Men: Commander In the Company of Men: Commander
Documentary 1995 59 mins Director: Molly Dineen
The first episode of Molly Dineen's three-part series follows Major Crispin Black as he considers the course his life could have taken if he hadn't joined the army.
Sound Business Sound Business
Documentary 1981 57 mins Director: Molly Dineen
Molly Dineen’s directorial debut presents a fascinating look into sound system culture, as well as an important document in the history of Black British music.
Night Moves Night Moves
Thriller 2013 113 mins Director: Kelly Reichardt
Jesse Eisenberg and Dakota Fanning star in a taut political thriller about radical environmentalists planning to commit an act of eco-terrorism.
My Name Is Alfred Hitchcock My Name Is Alfred Hitchcock
Documentary 2022 120 mins Director: Mark Cousins
Mark Cousins re-examines the vast filmography and legacy of one of the 20th century’s greatest filmmakers, through a new lens: the auteur’s own voice.
The Story of Film: A New Generation The Story of Film: A New Generation
Documentary 2020 160 mins Director: Mark Cousins
Mark Cousins returns with another journey across the landscape of film, examining what changes the 21st century has brought.
The Story of Looking The Story of Looking
Documentary 2021 87 mins Director: Mark Cousins
Mark Cousins’ personal meditation on the power of looking.
Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema Part 5 Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema Part 5
Documentary 2019 122 mins Director: Mark Cousins
The journey ends with the biggest themes of love, death and the meaning of life.
Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema Part 4 Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema Part 4
Documentary 2019 178 mins Director: Mark Cousins
Melodrama, memory, classic genres and tense emotions come under the spotlight in the fourth part of Mark Cousins' sprawling opus.
Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema Part 3 Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema Part 3
Documentary 2019 178 mins Director: Mark Cousins
Sex, religion and politics are among the themes in the third part of Mark Cousins' monumental documentary on women's cinema.
Late Night with the Devil Late Night with the Devil
Horror 2023 93 mins Director: Colin Cairnes and Cameron Cairnes
Like Ghostwatch reimagined as a cheesy 1970s chat show, this deviously clever found-footage horror has scares to spare.
Drifter Drifter
Drama 2023 79 mins Director: Hannes Hirsch
A scintillating portrait of a young man coming to terms with life, love, sex and relationships in contemporary Berlin.
Boys on Film 24: Happy Endings Boys on Film 24: Happy Endings
Anthology 2024 174 mins Director: Jason Bradbury, Jesse Ung, Diego Alvarez Parra, Itai Jamshy, Fabia Martin, Alejandro Sandoval Bertín, Sara Larrota, Benjamin Belloir, Jeremy McClain and Arthur Cahn
A compilation of new gay short films showcasing unashamedly positive stories of love, sex and romance to move, inspire and uplift.
Four Daughters Four Daughters
Drama-documentary 2023 103 mins Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
The mother-daughter relationship is explored to cathartic effect in this complex and poignant hybrid documentary about a woman and her missing daughters.
Her Last Affaire Her Last Affaire
Drama 1936 68 mins Director: Michael Powell
Michael Powell's 'society drama’ involving suspicion, clandestine romance and presumed murder, and glorious comic double-act from Googie Withers and John Lurie.
She Will She Will
Thriller 2021 96 mins Director: Charlotte Colbert
In Charlotte Colbert’s strikingly gothic film, an ageing actor recovering from a mastectomy taps into a mysterious power at a remote Scottish retreat.