Bebia, mon seul désir, The Year Before the War and Friends and Strangers: The 2021 International Film Festival Rotterdam

Chiaroscuro is as good as a drug in Bebia, mon seul désir, the striking debut feature from Russian-born, London-based writer-director Juja Dobrachkous, which premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) last week, in the Tiger competition. The impressionistic drama feels as if conjured out of smoke, dead leaves and rain clouds. Perhaps more to the point, its camera relishes the contrast between the pale skin of teenage model Ariadna (Anastasia Davidson), strutting the catwalk i...