NOW SHOWING: LONDON SCREEN GUIDE w/c 24.11.17
RADIANT CIRCUS hunts out the best independent movie nights, film events & gallery screenings in London for the week ahead*. Here’s our SCREEN GUIDE for the week 24 to 30 NOV 2017.
FRI 24 // SAT 25 // SUN 26 // MON 27 // TUE 28 // WED 29 // THU 30
This week, we’ve grappled with how long and detailed our listings should be. We know folk like a varied bill but to prevent everything from getting too unwieldy we’ve highlighted (up to) three SINGLE-O EXHIBITS (one-off events) each day and offered a roundup of others (26 NOV is super busy…). Let us know what else you want, think and need in the comments below.
You can find our usual summary of MUSEUM SHOWS (exhibitions // seasons & festivals) and GRIND SHOWS (regular runs & mainstream marvels) below the line.
Our FEATURED ATTRACTION of the week is the world premiere of #STARVECROW (24 NOV). By pure coincidence, this is our second pick in as many weeks/days at the ICA (after WEST OF THE JORDAN RIVER) – and we kind of like how much The Guardian hated it… We hope to see you there.
A polite request: The Cinema Museum is under threat. Show your support by signing the petition HERE or by making a donation HERE. Thank you.
NOW SHOWING: SINGLE-O EXHIBITS
ONE-OFF MOVIE NIGHTS, FILM EVENTS & GALLERY SCREENINGS (by date/venue)
FRIDAY 24 NOVEMBER 2017
ICA: #STARVECROW + INTRO by director John Carver + PARTY (20:45)
The world’s first selfie movie is a “disturbing look at obsession, narcissism and complex relationships, where friendships and families are irreversibly broken”. Not for the faint of heart. Further screenings 28 & 29 NOV.
The Lexi Cinema: EASY RIDER (23:30)
SUPAKINO picks Dennis Hopper’s counterculture classic for The Lexi’s midnight movie of the month.
Picturehouse Central: BEACH RATS + Q&A (18:30)
Birds Eye View presents this event hosted by writer and film critic Sophie Wilkinson with special guests Desiree Akhavan and Matthew Todd. Read our #LFF17 writeup of Eliza Hittman’s film HERE.
SATURDAY 25 NOVEMBER 2017
Bernie Grant Arts Centre: MAKIBEFO + SHORT: KANYE KANYE (14:00)
One evening, two reworkings of Shakespeare… a “chilling” Macbeth set on the island of Madagascar and a “charming” Romeo and Juliet. Presented by Film Africa.
Deptford Cinema: THE CITY BELOW (17:30)
A new strand about cities begins with this study of “passion in the midst of the world of power and money”. In collab with the Goethe Institute.
The Horse Hospital: MUSHROOMS IN HEAT: GEORGE KUCHAR TRIPLE BILL (18:30)
If you saw and survived THUNDERCRACK! (31 OCT at ICA – we did!), then you’ll love this programme curated by artist and filmmaker Katrine Holmgren.
SUNDAY 26 NOVEMBER 2017
Close-Up Centre: ERASE AND FORGET + Q&A with director Andrea Luka Zimmerman (19:30)
A new doc about ‘Bo’ Gritz, the inspiration for Sylvester Stallone’s John Rambo and decorated Vietnam veteran turned whistleblower and outcast.
Everyman Muswell Hill: FILM STARS DON’T DIE IN LIVERPOOL + Q&A with Peter Turner & Jamie Bell (12:30)
A romance sparks between a young actor and a Hollywood leading lady. This special screening – the Muswell Hill cinema was used as a location – is followed by a Q&A with Peter Turner and Jamie Bell, who plays Peter in the film.
Prince Charles Cinema: THE LURE (15:40)
This horror-musical mash-up – the debut of Polish director Agnieszka Smoczyńska – follows a pair of carnivorous mermaid sisters drawn ashore to explore life on land in an alternate 1980s Poland.
BACK CATALOGUE (A to Z by title): BLACK NARCISSUS (14:15, Stow Film Lounge) // ENDLESS POETRY + SANTA SANGRE (13:00, Deeper into Movies at Moth Club) // THE FAMILY STONE (20:45, UNICORN Nights at the Prince Charles) // MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO (19:00, Deeper into Movies at Moth Club) // Z (15:00) & THE VANISHING (20:00, ArtHouse Crouch End).
MONDAY 27 NOVEMBER 2017
Deptford Cinema: SOUL KITCHEN (20:00)
A German-Greek restaurateur is forced to defend his bistro against property sharks, tax authorities and his gambling-addicted brother.
TUESDAY 28 NOVEMBER 2017
DocHouse: COMPLICIT + Q&A with co-director Heather White (18:30)
Shining a light on the dark side of the global electronic manufacturing industry.
ICA: COMMUNION + Q&A with director Anna Zamecka (18:30)
14-year-old Ola takes care of her dysfunctional father, autistic brother and a mother who lives separately, but most of all she tries to reunite her family.
Rio Cinema: THE COMING WAR ON CHINA + Q&A with John Pilger (18:30)
“As Trump threatens China with a trade war and worse, this film is both a warning and an inspiring story of people’s resistance.” Presented by Stop The War Coalition.
WEDNESDAY 29 NOVEMBER 2017
The Cinema Museum: WOMEN HE’S UNDRESSED (19:00)
A 2015 Australian doc, directed by Gillian Amstrong about costume designer Orry-Kelly. Another outing for the VITO Project, free monthly screenings bringing generations of LGBT folk together.
Stow Film Lounge: TSAR TO LENIN + INTRO + Q&A with Chris Marsden (19:30)
Mark the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution with one of the twentieth century’s greatest docs.
THURSDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2017
Barbican: TAN DUN: THE MARTIAL ARTS TRILOGY (19:30)
The composer of CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON, HERO and THE BANQUET conducts the London Symphony Orchestra alongside footage from the films.
Sydenham Film Club: HELL OR HIGH WATER (19:30)
“Part heist, part western for the Occupy generation, this sharply plotted thriller is a triumph for both director David Mackenzie and writer Taylor Sheridan.” (Wendy Ide, The Observer)
Whitechapel Gallery: STORY TELLING FOR EARTHLY SURVIVAL + Q&A (19:00)
“A striking and unconventional portrait of Donna Haraway”, whose critical approach to science and technology has had a profound and lasting impact since the 1980s.
NOW SHOWING: MUSEUM SHOWS
EXHIBITIONS (by venue/event)
Barbican: PURPLE (until 07 JAN 2018 – FREE, check for times)
British artist and filmmaker John Akomfrah’s “immersive six-channel video installation addressing climate change, human communities and the wilderness”.
Barbican: Vincent Moon & Priscilla Telmon: HÍBRIDOS (until 31 DEC – FREE, check for times)
A site-specific film installation featuring the spiritual rituals of Brazil.
Tate Britain: DEREK JARMAN: BLUE (until AUTUMN 2017 – FREE, check for times)
Jarman’s single-shot masterpiece with a score by – amongst others – Simon Fisher Turner and a soundscape by Marvin Black screens on perpetual loop. Read our writeup here.
Tenderpixel: A GESTURE TOWARDS TRANSFORMATION (until 25 NOV – FREE, check for times)
An exhibition about the erosion of trust in verbal communication and the pursuit of meaning in other forms – sound, tone, gesture, movement, rhythm, resonance and repetition.
Whitechapel Gallery: GABRIELA GOLDER AND WOJCIECH BAKOWSKI (until 03 DEC – FREE, check for times)
The latest selections from the gallery’s Artists’ Film International partnership screen on perpetual loop. Gabriela Golder is selected by Fundacion PRÓA, Buenos Aires; Wojciech Bakowski by Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw.
SEASONS & FESTIVALS (by venue/event)
Barbican: TIME, MEMORY, DREAM continues with Andrei Tarkovsky’s MIRROR (27 NOV 18:30). Given the number of sold out screenings at the recent Close-Up retrospective, this should be popular. Elsewhere, celebrate a centenary of Finnish Independence with: THE MOONSHINERS + ROMU-MATTILA AND A BEAUTIFUL LADY + LIVE ACCOMPANIMENT from Ykspihlajan Kino-orkesteri and “internationally renowned foley wizard” Heikki Kossi (29 NOV 18:30); THE STOLEN DEATH (30 NOV 18:30), a “poetic thriller”; and, MATCH FACTORY GIRL + THE LAND OF HAPPINESS (30 NOV 20:45) a double bill from some of the country’s most distinctive contemporary cinematic voices.
BFI: Headline programme WHO CAN YOU TRUST? is all about thrillers, including: a double bill VAYA + INTRO from director Akin Omotoso + WÙLU (25 NOV 18:10 & 20:40 – part of African Odysseys); and, DR. MABUSE, THE GAMBLER (26 NOV 12:20 ) Fritz Lang’s visionary – and, at 270 min, lengthy! – conspiracy thriller. INDIA ON FILM shifts focus to DEATH & DECEPTION with SAIRAT (26 NOV 16:40), dealing with the sub-continent’s enduring taboos. TEARS & LAUGHTER: WOMEN IN JAPANESE MELODRAMA concludes with THE SHAPE OF NIGHT (29 NOV 20:40) about a woman pushed into prostitution by her violent Yakuza boyfriend. GOOD AT BEING BAD: THE FILMS OF GLORIA GRAHAME includes: BIG HEAT (see GRIND SHOWS, below); HUMAN DESIRE (26 NOV 14:45); THE GLASS WALL (27 NOV 20:40); and, THE BAD & THE BEAUTIFUL (30 NOV 20:35). Finally, lovers of silent film should flock to MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA (26 NOV 20:00).
Ciné Lumière: TRIBUTE TO JEANNE MOREAU continues with JULES ET JIM (26 NOV 14:00) and LA NOTTE (26 NOV 16:10).
Close-Up: The ANDREI TARKOVSKY retrospective concludes with MIRROR (25 NOV 19:30) whilst new short season IL CINEMA RITROVATO: THE SHOCK OF THE OLD (28 NOV to 01 DEC) brings four programmes from Bologna to Shoreditch: ASSUNTA SPINA (28 NOV 19:30); MA L’AMORE MIO NON MUORE! (29 NOV 19:30); LUCIA (30 NOV 19:00); and, hopping into next week, TRANCES (01 DEC 19:30).
Deptford Cinema: Notorious cult filmmaker ANDRZEJ ZULAWSKI gets the tribute treatment starting with POSSESSION (24 NOV 20:00) and followed by lesser known titles SZAMANKA (25 NOV 20:00) and THAT MOST IMPORTANT THING, LOVE (26 NOV 20:00). The ROGER MOORE FILM FESTIVAL is just that (26 NOV 13:30 to 18:30) whilst the TRIBUTE TO AGNÈS VARDA continues with SANS TOIT NI LOI aka Vagabond (28 NOV 20:00).
GFEST (13 to 25 NOV): This year’s festival wraps up with DISCOVERING OURSELVES (24 NOV 18:15, ArtHouse Crouch End), an evening of LGBTQ shorts.
Irish Film Festival (29 NOV to 03 DEC): The 7th edition opens with THE DRUMMER & THE KEEPER (29 NOV 19:00, Picturehouse Central): “An unlikely friendship develops between the bipolar drummer of a rock band and an institutionalized teen suffering from Asperger’s syndrome.”
Picturehouse Central: THE ENHANCTED SCREEN invites you to ‘enter the magical world of folklore and fairy tales’. This week’s stories are THE TALE OF THE PRINCESS KAGUYA (26 NOV 13:00) and PAN’s LABYRINTH (28 NOV 18:30). Other Picturehouses available.
Portuguese Film Festival (until 01 DEC): The 8th edition of the festival continues with SKIN (28 NOV 18:30, Ciné Lumière) and MUDDY RIVER + INTRO by producer João Pinto Sousa (29 NOV 20:40, Ciné Lumière).
Russian Film Week (until 26 NOV): Friday is Ecology Day including a double bill of documentaries TIGERS AND HUMANS + THE HEART OF THE WORLD: BAIKAL (24 NOV 18:30, Pushkin House). GARRI BARDIN: A LIFE IN ANIMATION (25 NOV 14:00, Ciné Lumière) screens a series of shorts by the Russian animator and is followed by a masterclass. Alternatively, see the week out at Regent Street Cinema with a great looking triple: ABOUT LOVE 2 (24 NOV 15:00), DREAMFISH (24 NOV 18:00) and, NEAREST AND DEAREST (24 NOV 20:30).
UK International Jewish Film Festival (16 to 26 NOV): In this busy festival, we found tickets still available for: LET YOURSELF GO! (25 NOV 18:15, Regent Street Cinema); NO PAY, NUDITY (25 NOV 19:00, JW3); SHALOM BOLLYWOOD: THE UNTOLD STORY OF INDIAN CINEMA (25 NOV 20:00, JW3); LOVE IS THICKER THAN WATER (25 NOV 20:30, Picturehouse Crouch End); MONKEY BUSINESS + Q&A (26 NOV 12:00, JW3); EWA (26 NOV 16:00, Phoenix Cinema); and, WILFRID ISRAEL: THE ESSENTIAL LINK + CONVERSATION with Kindertransport survivor Ruth Barnett (26 NOV 16:30, Regent Street Cinema).
Underwire Festival (until 26 NOV): There are plenty of short film programmes still to screen along with features THE BOOK OF BIRDIE (24 NOV 18:45, Curzon Aldgate), REVOLUTIONS (25 NOV 18:00, Curzon Aldgate) and THE TANGO LESSON (26 NOV 16:00, Barbican). Read our handy GUIDE for more.
Women Of The Lens Festival (24 to 26 NOV): The Cinema Museum plays home to the festival which focuses on black women and women of colour in the UK creative industries. Get your tickets for three three days of short film screenings and panel discussions HERE.
NOW SHOWING: GRIND SHOWS
REGULAR RUNS & MAINSTREAM MARVELS (by title)
ANTIPORNO at ICA (25 to 28 NOV)
“Director Sion Sono creates an anarchistic, radical, beautiful and controversial milieu, destroying the limits of self-expression in his quest for freedom.”
THE BIG HEAT at BFI (24 NOV to 07 DEC)
Fritz Lang’s stark thriller about a cop fighting city-wide corruption stars Glenn Ford and Gloria Grahame.
MARIE CURIE: THE COURAGE OF KNOWLEDGE at Ciné Lumière (24 NOV to 05 DEC)
Director Marie Noëlle depicts the most turbulent years in the life of a genius woman.
Join the hunt for adventurous moving pictures.
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*THE SMALL PRINT: As accurate as we could make it. Apologies for any mistakes. Updates & corrections will be made to the online version. We don’t filter by age/certification: all readers & subscribers should be 18+. We only include events you can book for at the time of posting. Please click quickly!
Featured image: #STARVECROW (2017).