Red Road

As video surveillance becomes common practice, concerns about security and the assault on civil liberties continue to be important topics of debate for Americans. Red Road examines the presence on the other side of the cameras and centers on Jackie, an operator of Glasgow’s arsenal of security cameras, who remains emotionally disconnected from her nightly observations of street life—until a face from the past appears on the screen. First-time feature director Andrea Arnold (best known for her Oscar-winning short Wasp) creates an intelligent and unusual voyeuristic thriller. Her uncompromising command of atmosphere and tension has been compared to the work of Michael Haneke. Red Road was awarded the Jury Prize at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival and is the first film in the trilogy Advance Party. 2006, Scotland, 35mm, 113 minutes.