September
Mon 12 Sep 7.45pm
THE FALLEN IDOL (PG)
Graham
Greene
The much anticipated screening of the first of director Carol Reed’s three collaborations with Graham Greene. The Fallen Idol is a thriller from a child’s point of view adapted from his 1935 novel The Basement Room. The story concerns the young son of the French Ambassador, who is left to explore the huge embassy during his father’s frequent absences. While his father is away he is cared for by the butler, whom he comes to idolise.
UK, 1948, 91 mins
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Tue 13 Sep 7.45pm
THE BIG PICTURE (15)
Paul Exben is a successful partner in a Parisian law firm, whose life is
seemingly complete with a glamorous wife and two sons. However the only problem
is, as an aspiring photographer, this really isn’t the picture perfect
lifestyle he has been dreaming of. When a moment of madness presents an escape,
Paul decides that a new identity will enable himself to live out his life more
fully. A taut character-driven thriller featuring excellent performances by
Romain Duris, Niels Arestrup and Catherine Deneuve.
France (subtitled), 2010, 115 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
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Thu 15 to Sat 17 Sep 7.45pm
THE TREE OF LIFE (12A)
Terrence Malick's impressionistic story of the trials of a mid-western family
in the 1950s; in particular following the eldest son Jack (Sean Penn) through
the innocence of childhood to disillusioned adult life and his attempts to
reconcile with his father (Brad Pitt). Winner of the Palme D'Or, The Tree of
Life presents Jack as a lost soul in the modern world, seeking answers to the
origins and meaning of life while questioning the existence of faith. Notably
the film's audacious, visually arresting sequences in which Malick explores the
origins of the cosmos, are responsible for the return to the big screen of
Douglas Trumbull.
USA, 2011, 138 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
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Mon 19 Sep 7.45pm
GOOD BYE LENIN! (15)
Europe Loves Cinema
Wolfgang Becker's inventive satire on German reunification updating Washington Irving's story Rip Van Winkle. Irving's tale is transplanted to late 1980s and early 90s Berlin, where Alex Kerner's mother, an idealistic communist, goes into a coma after suffering a heart attack while watching a demonstration in East Berlin. When she wakes up eight months after the Wall has come down Alex is warned that any shock might be fatal, leading to ever more elaborate schemes to hide the truth.
Germany (subtitled), 2003, 121 mins
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Tue 20 Sep 7.45pm
POETRY (12A)
An elderly lady in her 60s, Yang Mija works as a carer for a disabled man
while raising her grandson alone. She has to endure the onset of Alzheimer's
disease and also learns that her grandson was involved in a junior high school
girl's suicide. Through all of this and to fulfill her lifelong dream of
becoming a poet the elderly woman starts to take a poetry class and starts
writing. Winner of the Best Screenplay Award at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival,
Lee Chang-dong’s follow-up to his acclaimed Secret Sunshine is a masterful
moving study of the subtle empowerment of an older woman who refuses to give up
on life.
South Korea (subtitled), 2010, 139 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
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Thu 22 Sep 7.45pm
POTICHE (15)
A satirical comedy from Francois Ozon starring Catherine Deneuve as Suzanne,
the wife of a despotic company director taken hostage by his own downtrodden
workers. Managing the company in his absence Suzanne proves herself to be more
than a mere trophy wife and blossoms as a competent and confident leader. Her
husband's return to health and her relationship with the workers' leader, played
by Gérard Depardieu, lead to unforeseen complications.
France (subtitled), 2010, 98 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
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Fri 23 & Sat 24 Sep 7.45pm
BRIDESMAIDS (15)
The comedy hit of the summer, Bridesmaids stars Kristen Wiig as Maid Of
Honour Annie, as she plots the path to the wedding day with a bunch of oddball
bridesmaids. More than a women's Hangover, while occasionally straying into its
gross comedy territory, the film concentrates on the women's relationships with
each other, retaining a charming spontaneity in the genre's set-piece scenes.
'Subtlety and character lift this hilarious comedy above the rest', (Jason
Solomons, 'The Guardian') 'Bridesmaids is a terrifically funny, smart and tender
ensemble comedy' (Peter Bradshaw, 'The Guardian')
USA, 2011, 125 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
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Mon 26 Sep 7.45pm
PAN'S LABRYNTH (15)
Europe Loves Cinema
A gothic fairy tale set against the postwar era of Franco's Spain from Guillermo del Toro. Pan's Labrynth unfolds through the eyes of Ofelia, a young girl uprooted to a remote military outpost by her new stepfather. One night she meets a fairy who takes her to an old faun in the center of the labyrinth. He tells her that she's a princess, but must prove her royalty by surviving three gruesome tasks or else never see her real father, the king, again.
Spain (subtitled), 2006, 119 mins
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Tue 27 Sep 7.45pm
A SEPARATION (PG)
The story of Nader and Simin, a middle class couple in Tehran. While Simin is
determined to leave the country in search of better opportunities for their
daughter, Nader refuses to go, in order to take care of his father who suffers
from Alzheimer's. An outstanding, morally complex domestic drama that outlines
the repressive nature of Iranian society and its social taboos.
Iran (subtitled), 2011, 122 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
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Thu 29 Sep 7.45pm
LE QUATTRO VOLTE (U)
Le Quattro Volte is a poetic and hypnotically meditative study of a quiet
Calabrian village and the people, animals and vegetation that populate it. The
films title relates to Pythagoras' meditation that each of us have four lives
within us, a philosophy woven through its near wordless observation. A young
goat kid, an elderly man and a dog particularly captivate in Michelangelo
Frammartino's enchanting film. 'Probably the most accomplished piece of cinema
you'll see this year . . . Witty, wondrous and profound' (Wendy Ide, 'The
Times') 'Meditative, calm, and profound, Le Quattro Volte offers a momentary
respite from the bustle of contemporary life.' (Jason Wood, 'Little White Lies')
Italy (subtitled), 2010, 88 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
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Fri 30 Sep & Sat 1 Oct 7.45pm
SARAH'S KEY (12A)
Adapted from Tatiana de Rosnay’s best selling novel, Sarah's Key alternates
between two parallel stories, the first set in 1942 where 10-year-old Sarah is
caught up in the Vel'D'Hiv Roundup, the second following Julia, a journalist in
contemporary Paris researching the tragedy at the velodrome. Kristin Scott
Thomas delivers a compelling performance as Julia, whose investigation leads to
self discovery and an unsettling family history.
France (subtitled), 2011, 110 mins
Reviews: :: The Observer :: The Guardian :: The Independent ::
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:: October ::