December
Tue 1 Dec 7.45pm
THE ARMY OF CRIME (15)
The compelling true story of the wartime resistance fighters depicted by the
Vichy French and German authorities as The Army Of Crime on the Affiche Rouge
propaganda poster, led by Missak Manouchian, an exiled Armenian poet and
pacifist at heart. Robert Guédiguian directs a powerful chronicle of a brave
and bloody battle against the Nazis and their collaborators by a partisan
resistance made up of immigrants and Jews, risking everything for the country
they loved.
'Guédiguian manages to make this a worthy companion piece to Melville's resistance classic Army in the Shadows; the same remorseless dread stalks both.' (Andrew Pulver, 'The Observer')
France (subtitled), 2009, 138 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Times ::
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Thu 3 Dec 7.45pm
RUMBA (PG)
Best described as 'Strictly Jacques Tati', Rumba is an extraordinary almost
wordless comedy that flirts with tragedy without becoming morbid; directed by
and starring Dominique Abel and Fiona Gordon, as a pair of schoolteachers with
passion for entering Latin American dance contests are subjected to the
vicissitudes of life.
'Writers/ directors/actors Dominique Abel and Fiona Gordon prove worthy heirs to the gangly genius of Jacques Tati in this surreal comic gem about two primary school teachers with a passion for rumba.' (Sam Wigley, 'Total Film')
France, 2009, 76 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Times ::
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Fri 4 and Sat 5 Dec 7.45pm
ADVENTURELAND (15)
A coming of age comedy set in 1987 in following James, an uptight college
graduate, obliged to work at the rundown local amusement park, Adventureland
after his father is made redundant; receiving valuable life lessons along the
way.
'Greg Mottola, the director of Superbad, has here given us a tremendously funny and touching coming-of-age story, which he has set in the 1980s with a sprinkling of nicely chosen cultural references.' (Peter Bradshaw, 'The Guardian')
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Times ::
USA, 2009, 106 mins
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Mon 7 Dec 7.45pm
MY MAN GODFREY (U)
Screwball Comedies
A
chance meeting between Godfrey, a tramp living at the city dump and Irene
Bullock, a socialite in search of a 'lost man' for a scavenger hunt, leads to
him becoming the butler in the idiosyncratic Bullock household. William Powell
and Carole Lombard lead in Gregory La Cava's comedy.
USA, 1936, 89 mins
Free Admission
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Tue 8 Dec 7.45pm
JOHNNY MAD DOG (15)
A fact based verite-style drama acted by real-life former child soldiers
following the lives of child soldiers fighting in an African civil war; led by
the 14 year old Johnny Mad Dog as they proceed through villages and towns,
terrifying the populace, press ganging the children into their ranks and
stealing food and money.
'Brutal but thrilling, this is an astonishing insight into a conflict waged by feral children.' (Peter Bradshaw, 'The Guardian')
France/Belgium/Liberia, 2009, 98 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Times ::
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Thu 10 Dec 7.45pm
GOODBYE SOLO (15)
An irrepressible Senegalese cab driver agrees to convey a craggy 70 year old
passenger on an unusual one way journey to a remote and dangerous beauty spot in
the Blue Mountains. Ramin Bahrani's quietly persuasive drama draws a commendably
likeable performance from Souleymane Sy Savane as Solo, the taxi driver, while
Red West plays the potentially suicidal William.
'Skirting cliché miraculously, it's a quiet gem.' (Tim Robey, 'The Telegraph')
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Sunday Times ::
USA, 2009, 91 mins
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Fri 11 and Sat 12 Dec 7.45pm
THE MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS (15)
A chance meeting in a Kuwaiti bar between British journalist, Bob Wilton and
Lyn Cassady, a former member of the U.S. Army's First Earth Battalion and
soi-disant Jedi, leads Wilton to a group of soldiers trained in psychic warfare
to resist the Russians' parapsychology for combat applications research. Grant
Heslov adapts Jon Ronson's novel, directing Ewan McGregor, George Clooney, Jeff
Bridges and Keven Spacey in a highly entertaining army satire.
USA, 2009, 93 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Times ::
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Mon 14 Dec 7.45pm
THE PHILADELPHIA STORY (U)
Screwball Comedies
George
Cukor directs Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant, James Stewart and Ruth Hussey in a
stellar comedy of manners in which reporters from Spy magazine gate-crash the
wedding preparations of Philadelphia socialite Tracy Lord, aided and abetted by
her ex-husband.
USA, 1941, 112 mins
Free Admission
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Tue 15 Dec 7.45pm
THE COVE (12A)
A gripping expose of Japan's dolphin trade that is as much a thriller or
heist film, as it is an environmental documentary. Louie Psihoyos' documentary
follows Richard O'Barry as he assembles a team of divers, film-makers,
electronic experts and others, and their infiltration of the port of Taiji.
USA, 2009, 90 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Times ::
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Thu 17 Dec 7.45pm
THIRST (18)
A selfless catholic priest develops a thirst for blood following a failed
medical experiment in Oldboy director, Park Chan-Wook's take on the vampire
genre, loosely based on Emile Zola's 1867 novel Thérèse Raquin. Park traces
Sang-hyeon's struggles as he attempts to retain his morality even as his
condition leads to despair and depravity. Park's stylish aesthetic and
atmospheric cinematography includes characteristically gory scenes.
Korea, 2009, 133 mins
Further information regarding scenes used to determine the BBFC classification may be found here. Please note that this page contains spoilers.
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian ::
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Fri 18 and Sat 19 Dec 7.45pm (and 3.00pm Saturday)
FANTASTIC MR. FOX (PG)
A traditional stop-motion animation directed by Wes Anderson, lending his
trademark wry dialogue and whimsical characterisation to Roald Dahl's fantastic
tale of Mr. Fox and his quirky band as they outwit the evil farmers Boris, Bunce
and Bean. George Clooney voices Mr. Fox, assisted by Meryl Streep, Bill Murray,
Michael Gambon and Jarvis Cocker et al.
USA, 2009, 87 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Times ::
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