2009-2010 Season
 
2009:
6th October:

Everlasting Moments  
US  
Dir: Jan Troell   2008   110 mins   15

Maria is a young mother married to Sigfrid, a charming but boorish dockworker who cheats on her and drinks heavily. Her unlikely escape comes through photography, as she secretly takes exquisite photos of the world around her with a camera won in a lottery. Based on a memoir by the directors wife, this evocation of working class life in early 1900's Sweden has both an epic sweep and an intimate, even mythical feel. Ravishing and picturesque without being overly quaint, the film also carries echoes of some of Bergmans works. We are delighted to open our season with the film of a 5 times Academy Award nominated craftsman
 
20th October:

O'Horten  
Norway  
Dir: Bent Hamer   2007   90 mins  

67-year old loner Odd Horten is reluctantly due to retire after having spent a quiet life as a train diver in the Oslo-Bergen line. But with just one more trip to makes, life still has a few suprises in store. From the award-winning director of Kitchen Stories and Factotum, this is a warm-hearted tale with a tender message about seizing the day. With nods to the work of fellow scandinavian Aki Kaurismaki, O'Horten is a brilliantly pitched excercise in quirky, desert-dry comedy
 
3 November:

Hunger  
Uk/Ireland  
Dir: Steve McQueen   2008   96 mins  

Turner Prize winning artist Steve McQueen's astonishing feature debut is a visually stuning evocation of the hardships faced by both guars and IRA prisoners duting the 1981 hunger strikes. With a minimum of historical scene-setting or relief from the hellish intensity of the Maze prison, Hunger glides though three clear movements - Life, Debate and Death - each with its own mood and method of enquiry. rightly feted, McQueen's film represents a sublime leap from visual art to cinema, with images that are in turn ravishing, and haunting. Featuring and extraordinary performance by Micheal Fassbender as Bobby Sands, Hunger was voted as Sight and Sound's film of 2008. A masterpiece.
 
17 November:

The Good, The Bad and The Weird  
South Korea  
Dir: Kim Jee-woon   2008   130 mins   15

In 1930's China, a trio of Korean outlaws battle local bandits, the Japanese army and each other over the fate of a mysterious treasure map. Another stylistic left-turn for Kim Jee-Woon (A Bittersweet Life, Tale of Two Sisters), this blatant homage to Sergio Leone's most famous film is also South Korea's most expensive film ever made. With a convoluted plot, oddball comedy and some of the most satisfying action sequences to be seen in years, this is a wildly entertaining, unpredictable and often deliciously insane ride.
 
1 December:

My Winnipeg  
Canada  
Dir: Guy Maddin   2007   80 mins   12a

A fantasy documentary in which Maddin (The Saddest Music in the World) muses on his hometown of Winnepeg - its history, architecture, and inherent sleepiness - and tries to understand his relationship with the sity by revisiting childhood memories sidtorted with imagination and downright lies. Funny, touhing and personal, this endlessly inventive, deliciously eccentric and suprisingly accessible snowbound film is probably the best introduction to the weird and wonderful world of the Canian auteur-archaeologist. An utter delight throughout, My Winnepeg is like a David Lynch directed version of Michael Moore's Roger & Me.
This film will be followed by the Society AGM
 
15 December:

El Bano del Papa  
Uraguay 
Dir: César Charlone/Enrique Fernández   2007   98 mins   15

On hearing the announcement that the Pope will be visiting the poverty-stricken village of Melo, family patriarch Beto decides to cash in on the potential flurry of activity by building a first-class latrine which the congregants can pay to use. Dazzlingly directed and written by City of God cinematographer César Charlone, alongside first-timer Enrique Fernández whose own memories of growing up in Melo are brought to life in subtle documentary style. An emotionally rich and tender film, this charming and beautifully played colourful work is likely to be one of the sweetest films you'll see this year
 
  2010:
5 January:

Far North  
UK  
Dir: Asif Kapadia   2007   89 mins   15

Two women, Saive (Michelle Yeoh) and Anja, rescue a man named Loki (Sean Bean) who has fallen through the ice. After bringing back to their camp, both women compete for Loki's affections with tragic consequences for their relationship. Shot in the freezing but beautiful Norwegian Arctic and in the extreme northern archipeligo of Svalbard, the landscape is the films true subject. This dazzling, breathtaking fairytale often hits a note of genuine mystery and otherworldness, and the shock ending establishes Kapadia (The Warrior) as one of our most interesting storytellers

 
19 January:

8˝ (Otto e Mezzo)  
Italy 
Dir: Federico Fellini   1963   138 mins   15

Marcello Mastroianni stars as Guido, a successful director working on his new film where he encounters many struggles with his wife, mistress and hired help, and retreats into his dreams to cope and find inspiration. A complex and honest study of a man in a personal and professional crisis, 8˝ is a fantasy chronicle of Fellini's attempts to sustain his reputation as a cinematic genius. Daydreams, memories, nightmares and frustrating confrontation merge as a beautiful array of imagery is conjured in this rare opportunity to see Fellini's Oscar-winning classic on the big screen, nearly to the day when Fellini would have celebrated his 90th birthday.
 
2 February:

Crimson Gold  
Iran 
Dir: Jafar Panahi   2003   95 mins   12a

Hussein is a Tehran pizza deleivery rider sharing his aimless existance with future brother-in-law Ali. After being insulted by a store owner, the war veteran becomes increasingly conscious of the economic split in Iran before atttempting a doomed jewellery heist. Jafar Panahi ( The Circle, Offside ) offers tantalising images of contemporary society impressively scripted by Abbas Kiarostami, and with a soulful saxophone score from Peyman Yarzdanian, Crimson Gold is a powerful and engaging tale providing further evidence of the continuing vitality and evolution of Iranian cinema
 
19 January:

Silent Light  
Mexico 
Dir: Carlos Reygadas   2007   136 mins   15

Johan is a deeply religious family man living in a Mennonite community with his wife Esther and their brood of children. But his two year affair with Marianne slowly crushes the trio with the apparent impossibility of finding a resolution to their predicament. Their mesmerising accumulation of images is consistently striking and pulsing with symbolism, none more so than the audacious opening shot of a starry sky slowly giving way to a rural dawn. Slow-paced it ma be, but those willing to submit to Reygadas' astonishing vision will find themselves entranced and ultimately uplifted by the incredible transformative power of his filmmaking
 
2 March:

Jar City (Mýrin)  
Iceland 
Dir: Baltasar Kormákur   2006   93 mins   15

When an aging loner is found dead in his home, neither the motive nor identity of the killer is clear. The only clue is an old photo showing the grave of a girl who died three decades earlier. Based on the 2002 novel 'Mýrin' by Arnaldur Idrioason, Kormákur's (101 Reykavik) superior film noir finds a perfect home in Iceland's unforgiving stark landscapes, in tense performances, a haunting choral score, topical material on data privacy and a story that is never far removed from tragedy, Jar City is a multi-layered gripping crime thriller with a strong sense of place.
 
16 March:

Goodbye Solo  
USA 
Dir: Ramin Bahrani   2008   91 mins   15

An elderly man gets in to the back of a taxi cab of an African immigrant and offers him a deal. For $1,000 he wants to be driven in ten days to the top of a mountain in Blowing Rock National Park, making no mention of a return journey. Superbly directed and convincingly acted, Goodbye Solo looks into the importance of families, both the one we make and the ones we are born into. Following on from Man Push Cart and Chop Shop, Bahrani is fast developing into one of the most promising talents in US independent cinemas
 
30 March:

Amal  
Canada 
Dir: Richie Mehta   2007   101 mins   cert tbc

Eccentric billionaire G.K Jayaram is so moved by the altruistic nature of auto rickshaw driver Amal, that he decides to bequeath his entire fortune to him. When Jayaram dies, his lawyer has just 30 days to find Amal amongst Delhi's 80,000 rickshaw drivers. Capturing the frenetic bustle of Delhi's street life, and buoyed by subtle, heart-warming performances, this crowd-pleasing fable proves that sometime the poorest of men are also the richest. We are delighted to announce this booking ahead of Amal's release date, and hope nearer the time to confirm a special guest.
 
13 April:

In Memoria di Me  
Italy 
Dir: Saverio Canstanzo   2007   111 mins   15

Andrea is a new recruit at a strict Jesuit seminary on an island across from Venice. Under the watchful eye of his Mater Superior, he immerses himself in the daily routines of prayers, scripture reading and contemplation, yet serious doubts about his chosen vocation soon surface. Faith is the subject of this quiet, absorbing and intense psychological drama, which asks whether the extreme commitment demanded of Jesuit monks magnifies or denies the experience of life. Costanzo's film is beautifully shot, and the imposing architecture of the seminary is integral to the power and mood of mystery that pervades this dream-like film.
 
27 April:

Anvil! The Story of Anvil  
USA 
Dir: Sacha Gervasi   2008   80 mins   15

Formed in 1978, Canadian heavy metal band Anvil were tipped for the top. Three decades and 13 unsuccessful albums later, Sacha Gervasi, a diehard fan from his teenage years, makes a documentary following band members Lips' and Robb's heartbreaking determination to give it one last shot. And then another. And just one more. In a world of instant celebrity and X-factor manufactured starts, Anvil presents a touching and real look at the music industry and the trials and tribulations of keeping the faith. Refreshingly inspirational, endearing and very funny.
 
11 May:

Waltz with Bashir  
Israel 
Dir: Ari Forlan   2008   90 mins   15

In his feature-length animated documentary, filmmaker and one-time soldier Ari Forlan set out to reconstruct repressed memories of his role in the 1982 Sabra-Shantila massacres in the first Lebanon War. It is a reconstruction where dreams and hallucinations are given as prominent a place as more straightforward recollections and eyewitness accounts. His extraordinary journey is awash with striking images, and the use of animation allows scenes to be created that would be impossible to act. Winner of a Golden Globe, and nominated for an Oscar and BAFTA, this is one of the most visually dazzling and original films about war ever made.