THE OBENSON REPORT

Covering Cinema From All Across The African Diaspora

SCREENING SIGHTING - Hunger

screening


I've written about this film previously on this blog.

It's called Hunger - first-time "helmer," Steve McQueen's critically acclaimed feature about Irish Republican Army (IRA) member Bobby Sands' last six weeks of life during a hunger strike in prison in 1981.

Adjectives such as "riveting" and "spine-chilling," amongst many others, have already been daubed onto the film by critics, accompanied by countless servings of praise from audiences who have been lucky enough to see the completed feature at the festivals its screened.

The film first premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last year, where it went on to win the coveted Camera d'Or award (best first film), beginning a course on which it would later garner several more nominations and awards at other festivals and independent film organizations.

You're probably wondering why I'm bothering to mention a film about an IRA member who died almost 30 years ago, on this blog; I do so because the writer and director of the film (Steve McQueen) is black (that's his picture above).

This wasn't just some director-for-hire job for McQueen. It was very much a labor of love, and a story he really wanted to tell, and thus devoted quite a bit of his life to it - a feat that should be commended!


The film opens in New York at IFC Center on the 20th of this month. I plan to see it!

Here's the trailer as a reminder:

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