You could say that writer/director/actor Kenneth Branagh has a facility easing between high and low art. That is to say, he’s known to make delightful capers and mysteries for more mainstream audiences like “Thor,” “Murder On The Orient Express,” “Artemis Fowl,” and “Death On The Nile,” but he’s also obviously known for his stage work, his expertise with Shakespeare and more personal indies like Focus Features’ upcoming drama “Belfast” which has its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival tonight.
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Starring Caitríona Balfe (known for STARZ‘s “Outlander“), Judi Dench, Jamie Dornan, Ciarán Hinds, Colin Morgan, and newcomer Jude Hill, Branagh’s coming-of-age tale is set amid the tumult of late-1960s Northern Ireland. Here’s the official synopsis:
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Written and directed by Academy Award® nominee Kenneth Branagh, BELFAST is a poignant story of love, laughter, and loss in one boy’s childhood amid the music and social tumult of the late 1960s. Starring Caitriona Balfe, Judi Dench, Jamie Dornan, Ciaran Hinds, and Jude Hill. Belfast is in theaters on November 12.
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The film will also screen in Toronto, and TIFF has a little bit more to say about it:
A coming-of-age drama set during the tumult of late-1960s Northern Ireland, the film follows young Buddy (Jude Hill) as he navigates a landscape of working-class struggle, sweeping cultural changes, and sectarian violence. Buddy dreams of a glamorous future that will whisk him far from the Troubles, but, in the meantime, he finds consolation in his charismatic Pa (Jamie Dornan) and Ma (Caitríona Balfe), and his spry, tale-spinning grandparents (Ciarán Hinds and Judi Dench).
“Belfast” premieres tonight at the Telluride Film Festival, screens at the Toronto International Film Festival next, and then opens in regular release via Focus Features on November 12. Watch the new trailer below.