London Film Festival welcomes audiences back to the movies

By JILL LAWLESS
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Movies from 77 countries will screen at the 2021 London Film Festival, as Britain’s leading cinema showcase welcomes mass audiences back to movie theaters after a pandemic-disrupted year. The festival program, announced Tuesday, includes 158 features, down from 225 at its last pre-pandemic edition in 2019. The festival opens Oct. 6 with the world premiere of Jeymes Samuel’s Western “The Harder They Fall” and closes Oct. 17 with Joel Coen’s “The Tragedy of Macbeth.” Other gala screenings include Jane Campion’s Montana-set family saga “The Power of the Dog” and Edgar Wright’s swinging-60s horror romp “Last Night in Soho.” Some 37% of the features are directed by women. Festival director Tricia Tuttle says that figure is “heading in the right direction.”