This film is part of Rentals
Touched with Fire
Two young poets with bipolar begin a highly passionate, volatile relationship that threatens both their futures.
Director: Paul Dalio
Overview
Carla (Katie Holmes) is a young poet whose erratic behaviour lands her in an institution for bipolar patients. There she meets a likeminded soul and they embark upon an intense relationship. But Marco (Luke Kirby) is ambivalent about taking his medication, believing the pair’s artistry and romance will flourish further if unburdened by chemical restrictions. As their volatile relationship continues, much to the chagrin of people around them, they come to the realisation that only as fugitives will they manage to stay together – unless they tear each other apart first.
Katie Holmes will surprise many a viewer with her work here, a far more committed performance than any seen from her to date (with shades of Claire Danes’ work in Homeland), while Kirby is just as impressive. But while strong acting anchors the film, Touched with Fire is equally impressive as a visual spectacle. Taking its cues from the works of Van Gogh, with whom the lovers are obsessed as a fellow bipolar artist, director Paul Dalio presents the frame as an expressionistic canvas, which transfigures according to its characters’ emotional states. It may not be surprising to learn that Dalio is bipolar himself, which only serves to make this debut feature an even more commendable achievement.
strong language, suicide referencesRelated
Four Daughters Four Daughters
Drama-documentary 2023 103 mins Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
The mother-daughter relationship is explored to cathartic effect in this complex and poignant hybrid documentary about a woman and her missing daughters.
Her Last Affaire Her Last Affaire
Drama 1936 68 mins Director: Michael Powell
Michael Powell's 'society drama’ involving suspicion, clandestine romance and presumed murder, and glorious comic double-act from Googie Withers and John Lurie.
She Will She Will
Thriller 2021 96 mins Director: Charlotte Colbert
In Charlotte Colbert’s strikingly gothic film, an ageing actor recovering from a mastectomy taps into a mysterious power at a remote Scottish retreat.
Shoshana Shoshana
Historical drama 2023 121 mins Director: Michael Winterbottom
A young Jewish woman’s relationship with a British policeman stationed in British Mandatory Palestine has lasting consequences for the region in Michael Winterbottom's powerful thriller.
The Peasants The Peasants
Drama 2023 115 mins Director: Hugh Welchman and Dorota Kobiela
Using an advanced oil painting animation technique, The Peasants is a visually thrilling rendering of Władysław Reymont’s Nobel Prize-winning tale.
The Iron Claw The Iron Claw
Biopic 2023 132 mins Director: Sean Durkin
Zac Efron, Harris Dickinson and Jeremy Allen White lead this brilliant, bruising true story of wrestling glory and family tragedy.
Vertigo Vertigo
Thriller 1958 128 mins Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Hitchcock’s timeless thriller about a former detective with a fear of heights who is hired to follow a woman who seems possessed by the past.
Sightseers Sightseers
Comedy 2012 88 mins Director: Ben Wheatley
Young lovers Chris and Tina turn their first holiday together into a rural killing spree in Ben Wheatley's priceless black comedy.
The Lovers & the Despot The Lovers & the Despot
Documentary 2016 98 mins Director: Ross Adam and Rob Cannan
Discover one of cinema’s strangest stories: a film director and his star are kidnapped by Kim Jong-il to make movies in the world’s weirdest state.
American Translation American Translation
2010 115 mins Director: Pascal Ascandes Arnold and Jean-Marc Barr
A sexually ambiguous Frenchman tours his native countryside with his naive American lover in pursuit of the ultimate thrill.
Racer and the Jailbird Racer and the Jailbird
Thriller 2017 130 mins Director: Michaël R. Roskam
Adèle Exarchopoulos (Blue is the Warmest Colour) and Matthias Schoenaerts (A Bigger Splash) are lovers entangled in a world of crime in this tough, twisty thriller-romance
Mulholland Dr. Mulholland Dr.
Thriller 2001 142 mins Director: David Lynch
David Lynch’s beautifully baffling, surreal psychological thriller.
Four Daughters Four Daughters
Drama-documentary 2023 103 mins Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
The mother-daughter relationship is explored to cathartic effect in this complex and poignant hybrid documentary about a woman and her missing daughters.
Her Last Affaire Her Last Affaire
Drama 1936 68 mins Director: Michael Powell
Michael Powell's 'society drama’ involving suspicion, clandestine romance and presumed murder, and glorious comic double-act from Googie Withers and John Lurie.
She Will She Will
Thriller 2021 96 mins Director: Charlotte Colbert
In Charlotte Colbert’s strikingly gothic film, an ageing actor recovering from a mastectomy taps into a mysterious power at a remote Scottish retreat.
Rynox Rynox
Crime 1932 46 mins Director: Michael Powell
Michael Powell’s earliest existing film is a twisty thriller crafted with a bold visual style that is unmistakeably influenced by Fritz Lang.
Hotel Splendide Hotel Splendide
Comedy 1932 53 mins Director: Michael Powell
Music hall veteran Jerry Verno stars as a lowly clerk who gets more than he bargained for when he inherits a hotel, in Michael Powell's charming comedy.
The Night of the Party The Night of the Party
Crime 1934 61 mins Director: Michael Powell
Michael Powell’s fun stage adaptation about a murder at a society party, with characterful performances from its fine ensemble cast.