51st London Film Festival starts its work

51st London Film Festival glittered with Wes Anderson, Ang Lee, and Halle Barry.

Photo: 51st London Film Festival starts its work

The festival opens Oct. 17 with David Cronenberg's "Eastern Promises" which stars Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts. It closes Nov. 1 with Wes Anderson's "The Darjeeling Limited," starring Jason Schwartzman, Owen Wilson and Adrien Brody.

British directorial talent is represented by Nick Broomfield's "Battle for Haditha," an investigation into the killing of 24 civilians in Haditha, Iraq, and Richard Attenborough's "Closing the Ring," about a young man's quest to find the owner of a ring belonging to U.S. World War II bomber pilot.

The festival will host 184 full-length films and 133 shorts from 43 countries.

Discussing their lives and work in question sessions will be actor Steve Buscemi and directors Paul Greengrass and David Lynch. Other expected guests include David Cronenberg, Tom Cruise, Robert Redford, and Halle Berry, organizers said.