Family reunions and holiday get-togethers have been fodder for films for decades. These stories have stood the test of time in film because everyone has experience at one of these events, where it just feels like no one is happy but everyone fakes it as best they can. Ultimately, they’re miserable affairs. And that’s exactly the type of ground covered in Ben Wheatley’s latest film “Happy New Year, Colin Burstead.”
As you might surmise from the title, ‘Colin Burstead’ follows a family gathering around New Year’s Eve, where Colin brings his family together to celebrate the holiday. However, as these sorts of things tend to do, the New Year celebration devolves into a bit of chaos as family infighting rules the day.
“I will go to my grave waving the flag for ‘High Rise‘ as a masterpiece, even I will acknowledge that this is the most pleasing and accessible thing Wheatley’s made since at least ‘Sightseers‘ as a result,” our reviewer wrote out of LFF last year.
‘Colin Burstead’ stars Neil Maskell as the titular character. He’s joined by a cast that includes Richard Glover, Peter Ferdinando, Mark Monero, Sam Riley, Asim Chaudhry, Joe Cole, Charles Dance, Alexandra Maria Lara, Doon Mackichan, Sinead Matthews, Bill Paterson, and Hayley Squires.
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As mentioned, ‘Colin Burstead’ opened at last year’s LFF, and quickly made the rounds throughout some of the late fall festivals, before debuting on BBC right around New Year’s. Now, the film is beginning to roll out worldwide. Make sure you check it out when the film comes to your location.