The opening gala has faded into oblivion and we’re now four days into the 27th Leeds International Film Festival. We’ve seen some cracking films so far but here are three that really caught our eyes:

My Sweet Pepper Land

Set in Kurdistan and subverting the traditional western with aplomb, My Sweet Pepper Land follows a resistance fighter after the fall of Saddam Hussein. Check out our full review here.

Mistaken for Strangers

The lead singer from The National’s brother is indifferent about The National. He gets invited on tour with The National. He makes a film partly about The National, partly about himself. It’s fantastic. So are The National.

Computer Chess

This mumblecore extravaganza is an epic man vs machine movie, turning the Super 8 camera on a computer chess tournament in the mid eighties. At its best it’s like a Tim and Eric sketch gone oh so sweetly right. Great job.

Dominic O’Key