Yesterday brought with it the incredibly welcome news that Sofia Coppola’s Venice-triumphant Somewhere will be playing at this month’s London Film Festival. The non-appearance of the film on the initial line-up for the festival sparked debate, with many, Hope Lies included, surmising that as it wasn’t on the advertised line-up it must be the legendary “Secret Film” of the festival. Alas that obviously isn’t the case now, and while we will ponder the films that potentially could be the secret film in a separate blog, the announcement that the UK premiere of the film will take place as a part of the regular line-up is just about the single most exciting announcement of the whole festival for Hope Lies at 24 Frames Per Second.

With Lost In Translation Sofia Coppola cemented her reputation as a legitimate filmmaker, following her exemplary debut piece, The Virgin Suicides. While not the most popular of follow-ups, 2006′s Marie Antoinette proved that Coppola had a distinct enough vision to produce a unique and interesting spin on the turgid genre of the costume drama. Four years on, and Coppola returns with Somewhere, the story of a hard-living actor faced with responsibility. Both Stephen Dorff and Elle Fanning have won high praise for their turns as the “hard-living actor” and the “responsibility” respectively, with talk of Academy awards not far away from many reactions to the piece. The trailer for the film suggests that Coppola has approached Somewhere in a manner not dissimilar to Lost In Translation, and reaffirms the fact that Coppola has a great ear for music, which in turn shapes a beautifully affectional tone.

Somewhere receives its UK premiere on 27th October. Check back at Hope Lies at 24 Frames Per Second on the 28th for our verdict.