December
Thu 1 Dec 7.45pm
MIDNIGHT IN PARIS (12A)
A romantic comedy from Woody Allen, divided between contemporary Paris, and
its fabled 1920s literary scene, where Cole Porter plays his own songs at the
piano and F. Scott Fitzgerald and Hemingway dispense wisdom. Owen Wilson leads a
stellar cast as Gil, an unemployed Hollywood screenwriter working on his first
novel. Already the highest grossing Woody Allen film of all time it presents a
whimsical nostalgia for the the city and Allen's early work, particularly The
Purple Rose of Cairo.
Spain/USA, 2011, 94 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
:: Top of Page ::
Fri 2 and Sat 3 Dec 7.45pm
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN (15)
Lynne Ramsay returns to the screen a decade after Morvern Caller and
Ratcatcher, with an exquisite adaptation of Lionel Shriver's bestselling novel.
Tilda Swinton is brilliant as Eva, the mother whose life changes beyond all
recognition, when her son Kevin's teenage rebellion has tragic consequences.
Beautifully composed and hauntingly powerful, the film also includes an
exquisite score composed by Jonny Greenwood.
UK/USA, 2011, 112 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
:: Top of Page ::
Mon 5 Dec 7.45pm
RARE EXPORTS: A CHRISTMAS TALE (15)
Christmas Films
Rare Exports is an offbeat fantasy thriller from Finland, where an
archeological dig unearths Santa Claus deep in the Korvatunturi mountains. Soon
after, children start disappearing, in a black comedy sure to put you on your
best behaviour when Santa is around.
Finland (subtitled), 2010, 82 mins
Free Admission
:: Top of Page ::
Tue 6 Dec 7.45pm
THE SILENCE (15)
The
Silence is the feature debut of Baran bo Odar, centred on Krischan Mittich, a
careworn detective about to retire after 44 years. Old wounds are reopened on
the day of his retirement, when a young girl's abduction eerily mirrors an
unsolved case which has haunted him since 1986. Terrifically acted by an
ensemble cast, this film twists its knife relentlessly in the wound. 'This icy,
gripping police procedural thriller is easy to recommend for fans of The
Killing, and indeed for anyone else, too', (Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian)
Germany (subtitled), 2010, 118 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: Total Film ::
:: Top of Page ::
Thu 8 Dec 7.45pm
POST MORTEM (15)
A
dark tale from the director of Tony Manero, a love story set amid one of Chile's
darkest and bloodiest periods, Pinochet's military coup of 1973. Post Mortem
follows Mario, a morgue assistant who is obsessed with his cabaret dancer
neighbour Nancy, whose life is endangered when protestors take to the streets
and her family is kidnapped.
Chile (subtitled), 2010, 93 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: Total Film ::
:: Top of Page ::
Fri 9 & Sat 10 Dec 7.45pm
ANONYMOUS (12A)
An
Elizabethan thriller exploring the life of Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford, whom
conspiracy theorists claim as the true author of Shakespeare's plays. Rhys Ifans
and Vanessa Redgrave lead as De Vere and Queen Elizabeth I, whose succession
provides a backdrop to political intrigue.
UK, 2011, 129 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: Total Film ::
:: Top of Page ::
Mon 12 Dec 7.45pm
BAD SANTA (15)
Christmas Films
Terry Zwigoff's black comedy about Willie T Stokes (Billy Bob Thornton), a
drunken, foul mouthed, loser, who poses as Santa each Christmas in order to rob
a department store. The Coen Brothers' role as producers is evident in the
film's deadpan, quirky humour.
USA, 2003, 95 mins
Free Admission
:: Top of Page ::
Tue 13 Dec 7.45pm
IN A BETTER WORLD (15)
The
2011 Best Foreign Language Film Oscar winner is a brilliantly acted drama about
violence, revenge and the power of forgiveness. Susanne Bier’s drama centres
on one family who are split across two continents; in Africa where Anton is a
doctor working in a refugee camp, and in a quiet Danish suburb where his family
is slowly falling apart and his eldest son Ellias is badly bullied at school.
Bier sensitively explores these two inextricably linked worlds, evoking the
disturbing question: is violence sometimes necessary?
Denmark/Sweden (subtitled), 2010, 117 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: Total Film ::
:: Top of Page ::
Thu 15 Dec 7.45pm
TEXAS KILLING FIELDS (15)
Texas
Killing Fields is an atmospheric police thriller from Ami Canaan Mann, produced
and co-scripted by her father Michael Mann, centred on the hunt for serial
killers who dump bodies in the Texas bayous. Sam Worthington and Jessica
Chastain play the local homicide detective and the New York City cop who team up
to investigate the unsolved murders.
USA, 2011, 104 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: Total Film ::
:: Top of Page ::
Fri 16 Dec 7.45pm
THE GUARD (15)
The
Guard returns to the Film Theatre by popular demand. Brendan Gleeson stars in a
nicely dry, pleasingly black comedy, set on Ireland’s west coast. Gleeson
plays Gerry Boyle, an anarchic, small-town policeman with a subversive sense of
humour, who is less than impressed when he’s teamed up with straight laced FBI
agent Wendell Everett (Don Cheadle). An enthralling tale of murder, blackmail
and rural police corruption ensues as they attempt to tackle an international
cocaine-smuggling ring.
Ireland, 2011, 96 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
:: Top of Page ::
Sat 17 Dec 2.30pm
A MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL (U)
Christmas Matinee
The Muppets' charming reinvention of Dickens' classic tale of
redemption on Christmas Eve. Michael Caine takes the central role of the old and
bitter miser, Scrooge, surrounded and haunted by Brian Henson's puppets.
USA, 1992, 85 mins
Free Admission
:: Top of Page ::
Sat 17 Dec 7.45pm
TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY (15)
In
a brilliant new adaptation of John Le Carre's novel, George Smiley, a former MI6
agent is brought back into the fold to find a mole in the upper echelons of the
British Secret Intelligence Service. Let The Right One In director Tomas
Alfredson distils John Le Carre's labyrinthine spy plot into a richly rewarding
thriller like no other, with a superb cast including Gary Oldman, Colin Firth,
Tom Hardy, John Hurt, Mark Strong and Benedict Cumberbatch. 'Skin-crawlingly
atmospheric, uncompromisingly cerebral... more gripping and involving than any
crash-bang action picture... What a treat this film is, and what an unexpected
thrill.' (Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian)
UK/France/Germany, 2011, 127 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
:: Top of Page ::
Mon 19 Dec 7.45pm
SCROOGE (U)
Christmas Films
A classic adaptation of A Christmas Carol, in which Alastair Sim
plays the definitive Ebenezer Scrooge. The cast includes George Cole as a young
Ebenezer Scrooge, and Michael Hordern as Jacob Marley.
UK, 1951, 86 mins
Free Admission
:: Top of Page ::