Last year we reported on the launch of the inaugural Eaglehawk Film Festival, which annually takes over one of the regional Victoria’s most beautiful cinemas (it placed in our list of the country’s prettiest theatres, in fact).
Visitors to the historic, somewhat hipsterfied town of Eaglehawk could choose from a lineup of films all titled the exact same thing—‘Gold’, for 2022’s very first program. And this year we’re happy to see that the very niche festival selection has become a tradition, with films titled ‘Alone’ taking over Eaglehawk’s Star Cinema from Friday January 13th to Monday the 16th.
The short festival’s opening night sees Oscar winner Chris Cooper and four Oscar nominees (James Earl Jones, Piper Laurie, Hume Cronyn and Frederic Forrest) in Michael Lindsay-Hogg’s Alone, not to be confused with the award-winning Spanish drama of the same name that premiered a few years later. Nor the French dystopian fantasy of the same name, suitable for younger audiences as well as adult comic books fans.
And please don’t get any of these titles confused with the German, Turkish, Soviet Union and Chinese doco films of, you guessed it, the exact same name. The astounding diversity and quality of each of these familiar-sounding films makes the ingenuity of Eaglehawk Film Festival’s programming only more apparent: watch how talented filmmakers take the same idea or theme into wildly different, powerful directions.
“Over the years, the state of being alone has been called upon time and again by writers and film makers”, the festival’s official website explains. “It’s an evocative theme and is not necessarily synonymous with being lonely. For 2023, we have put together a selection of films from all over the world that explore this theme via a range of genres and eras from the 1930s to the 2020s.”
Here at the session times for the upcoming festival, held at Star Cinema in Eaglehawk:
…and tickets to the hyper-focused lineup can be bought here, via the fest’s official website, with a pass to every dang film setting you back $70.
Victorians in the mood for a road trip could make the journey…alone…or weave any of this charming festival’s screenings into a weekend away with friends or family over the summer. We’re sure you won’t be alone in enjoying the stately cinema or its quirky, multi-national offerings.
