The 16th annual Beloit International Film Festival is taking place online and as a drive-in Feb. 19-28. I accepted an offer to review one of the movies, “Touch.”
Directed by Aleksandra Szczepanowska, “Touch” (97 min.) features a married Caucasian western woman (played by Szczepanowska) living in China with her family. Due to the stresses of her marriage and attempting to gain citizenship, she begins an affair with a blind Chinese masseur. However, he becomes obsessed with her after she tries to break it off.
It’s not a unique story, but it does take place in a unique setting. Szczepanowska does a good job of making you feel how trapped the woman is in her situation. The movie certainly has an element of suspense–“Cape Fear” is the first thing that came to mind, though “Touch” is definitely not that scary.
Of note, I was impressed with Szczepanowska’s fluency in Mandarin. The New York-based writer and director also speaks Polish, French and English. Her film “Naked Soles” won Best Short Film on Polish FilmWeb in 2012.
Individual tickets to the film festival cost $10, which gives you five days to watch your movie online. Festival passes are $100 for BIFF Film Society members, $120 for non-members. Drive-in events include a “Wizard of Oz” sing-along and a screening of “Sixteen Candles.”
