Belfast Film Festival announces line-up

The 8th Belfast Film Festival (April 10th-19th) will open with Reservation Road, from Hotel Rwanda writer- director Terry George, a native of Belfast and the festival's new patron.

The film is a taut psychological thriller in which a college professor (Joaquin Phoenix) becomes obsessed with finding the man (Mark Ruffalo) who killed his young son in a hit-and-run accident.

The festival's closing film will be the European premiere of Buy, Borrow, Steal, a comedy shot in Belfast and starring Heather Graham as a young executive seeking the perfect man to father her child. Another premiere on the diverse programme is Macdara Vallely's urban drama Peacefire, which was shot in Craigavon, Co Armagh and features John Travers.

Documentaries on show will include Joel Conroy's Waveriders, which won the audience award at the Dublin festival last month; an extended version of At Home with the Clearys, Alison Millar's controversial, Ifta-winning TV drama; Grant Gee's picture of a seminal rock band in Joy Division; and Barbet Schroeder's Terror's Advocate, dealing with the lawyer who defended Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie.

New international features will include Catherine Breillat's The Last Mistress, François Ozon's Angel, Volker Schlondorff's Ulzhan, and George Ratliffe's creepy US horror-thriller Joshua, starring Sam Rockwell, Vera Farmiga and Dallas Roberts. www.belfastfilmfestival.org

© 2008 The Irish Times