Friendship’s Death (1987)

Friendship’s Death is a sci‑fi drama illuminated by Tilda Swinton, who embodies a peaceful, curious extraterrestrial visitor, revealing the absurd violence, egoism and unruly passions that shape our war‑torn world.

An alien‑android named Friendship (Swinton) is sent to Earth to liaise with politicians and scientists and help avert human extinction. Her mission goes awry when she lands not at MIT, but in Jordan during the 1970 Black September riots, amid violent conflict with Palestinians. Stranded in a hotel, she forms a bond with Sullivan (Bill Paterson), a cynical journalist who becomes her guide to humanity. In this liminal space, intimate philosophical conversations about sexuality, technology, AI and power are deepened by the lived reality of stateless Palestinians. Swinton’s mesmerising, otherworldly presence anchors this ahead‑of‑its‑time film, confronting genocide, political injustice and the unbearable contradictions of human progress.

– Saulė Savanevičiūtė

This screening is presented in collaboration with Imagine Fantastic Film Festival