Premiere Screening: Queen at Sea

When a concerned woman returns to London after years with her teenage daughter to care for her ailing mother, she finds herself unwittingly embroiled in a conflict with her stepfather, Martin. What begins as an attempt to provide care quickly escalates into boundaries that are broken. Daughter Amanda and stepfather Martin each have their own views on what is best for Leslie, but who ultimately decides: a husband, a daughter, or an institution? As Amanda and Martin are faced with increasingly difficult choices, they become more entangled in a painful conflict over intimacy, care, and autonomy. Can even the most loving intentions inadvertently cause harm? Queen at Sea is an intimate family drama that explores the reality of dementia and the painful dilemmas it brings for families and loved ones. Directed by Lance Hammer, who consciously refrains from judging his characters, the film confronts the audience with questions that have no easy answers. The result is a poignant yet urgent film featuring outstanding performances from Juliette Binoche, Tom Courtenay, and Anna Calder-Marshall. Queen at Sea had its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival, where it won the Jury Prize and Best Supporting Actor (shared by Anna Calder-Marshall and Tom Courtenay).