RADIANT CIRCUS is your handcrafted guide to London’s DIY, indie & alternative movie nights, film events & gallery screenings. Our DAILY UPDATE helps you find great films in London today*.

Find films in London today by: SINGLE-O EXHIBITS (one-off attractions) // MUSEUM SHOWS (several exhibits under one roof – seasons & festivals) // GRIND SHOWS (a selection of regular runs).

FEATURED ATTRACTION

Cuba: Haunted by History + Q&A with Coco Fusco at Tate Modern (04 DEC 18:30):

“We are pleased to welcome artist, activist and writer Coco Fusco back to Tate Modern to present the UK premiere of her films LA CONFESIÓN and TO LIVE IN JUNE WITH YOUR TONGUE HANGING OUT. Continuing Fusco’s thirty-year exploration into Cuban history, this programme considers resonances of the country’s historical tensions between poetry and politics.”

NEW AT RADIANT CIRCUS

We’ve posted our epic monthly roundup of London’s rep seasons & film festivals for DECEMBER to help you plan ahead.

Fringe! Queer Film & Arts Fest might be over for another year, but we’re posting a special series of Fringe! Diaries to report from the action. Next: FISH OUT OF WATER short film programme (17 NOV).

Fringe!’s next Fling – part of their year-round programme of screenings – is JONATHAN AGASSI SAVED MY LIFE + Q&A with director Tomer Heymann at Genesis Cinema (05 DEC).

FILMS IN LONDON TODAY

SINGLE-O EXHIBITS

THE CAVE d. Feras Fayyad, 2019 + Q&A with the director at Picturehouse Central (04 DEC 18:30):

“Oscar nominee Feras Fayyad (LAST MEN IN ALEPPO) delivers an unflinching story of the Syrian war with his powerful new documentary, THE CAVE. For besieged civilians, hope and safety lie underground inside the subterranean hospital known as the Cave, where pediatrician and managing physician Dr. Amani Ballor and her colleagues Samaher and Dr. Alaa have claimed their right to work as equals alongside their male counterparts, doing their jobs in a way that would be unthinkable in the oppressively patriarchal culture that exists above.”

INFRACTIONS d. Rachel O’Reilly, 2019 + Panel at ICA (04 DEC 18:30):

“INFRACTIONS is a feature documentary in dialogue with frontline Indigenous cultural workers’ struggles against threats to more than 50% of Australia’s Northern Territory from shale gas fracking. An hour-long panel discussion between filmmaker Rachel O’Reilly, Anthony Faramelli, Sarah Keenan, Que Kenny and Olivier Marboeuf follows the screening, asking what role image dissemination and artistic labour can play in any broader, systemic imagination of threats to – and defences of – locally complex and culturally laboured lands and water systems.”

JONATHAN AGASSI SAVED MY LIFE d. Tomer Heymann, 2018 + Q&A with the director at ICA (04 DEC 20:50):

Fringe! Flings presents: “Jonathan Agassi is one of the world’s most successful gay adult film star. His rise to fame was stratospheric and revolutionised the industry. The man behind the performer says that it saved his life, but at what cost? Filmed over eight years, the film provides a rare and intimate insight into the world of erotica and escorting, and one man’s attempts to find love, family and happiness in a world of hedonism and fantasy.”

More films in London today (A – Z):

1940s Noir With A Female Gaze Talk + Book Launch by Helen Jacey at The Cinema Museum (04 DEC 19:00).
A FANTASTIC WOMAN d. Sebastián Leilo, 2017 part of Latin American Cinema Nights at Deptford Cinema (04 DEC 20:00).
ATLANTICS d. Mati Diop, 2019 at ICA (04 DEC 21:10).
The Big Blend short films & networking presented by Shorts On Tap & London Filmmaking Network at 93 Feet East (04 DEC 19:00 – FREE!).
Discovery: THE SOUVENIR d. Joanna Hogg, 2019 presented by Screen25 at Harris Academy South Norwood (04 DEC 19:45 – Use exclusive promo “CIRCUS19” to book & save).
FISHERMAN’s FRIENDS d. Chris Foggin, 2019 presented by Pitshanger Pictures at St Barnabas Church (04 DEC 20:15).
THE IRISHMAN d. Martin Scorsese, 2019 at ArtHouse Crouch End (04 DEC 16:45).
JUDY d. Rupert Goold, 2019 at The David Lean (04 DEC 19:30).
YVES SAINT LAURENT: THE LAST COLLECTIONS d. Olivier Meyrou, 2018 at Ciné Lumière (04 DEC 20:30).

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MUSEUM SHOWS 1 // SEASONS

Films in London today: BLACK ORPHEUS, part of BIG SCREEN CLASSICS: GETTING TOGETHER at BFI Southbank (04 DEC).

70mm PRESENTATIONS at The Prince Charles (ongoing):

DIE HARD 70mm d. John McTiernan, 1988 (04 DEC 20:45).

BIG SCREEN CLASSICS: GETTING TOGETHER at BFI Southbank (DEC):

BLACK ORPHEUS 35mm aka Orfeu Negro d. Marcel Camus, 1958 + Intro by Kevin Le Gendre (04 DEC 17:35).

CHRISTMAS AT THE PCC at The Prince Charles (NOV to DEC):

THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL d. Brian Henson, 1992 (01 to 24 DEC – various formats/check venue).
IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE 35mm d. Frank Capra, 1946 (01 to 24 DEC – some digital/check venue).
ELF d. Jon Favreau, 2003 (04 DEC 18:35).
DIE HARD 70mm d. John McTiernan, 1988 (04 DEC 20:45).

MAURICE PIALET AND THE NEW FRENCH REALISM at BFI Southbank (OCT to DEC):

SOUS LE SOLEIL DE SATAN aka Under the Sun of Satan d. Maurice Pialat, 1987 (04 DEC 20:45).

MUSICALS! THE GREATEST SHOW ON SCREEN at BFI Southbank (OCT to DEC):

Talks: Sondheim at the Movies (04 DEC 18:20).
Judy Garland: THE WIZARD OF OZ d. Victor Fleming, 1939 + Intro by Kerry Ellis (04 DEC 20:40).
Re-releases: TOMMY d. Ken Russell, 1975 (22 NOV to 05 DEC).

MUSEUM SHOWS 2 // FESTIVALS

Films in London today: AWAY, part of London International Animation Festival at Rio Cinema (04 DEC).

Film festivals in London today include:

French Film Festival (07 NOV to 14 DEC).
London Film Week (02 to 08 DEC).
London International Animation Festival (29 NOV to 08 DEC).
London Migration Film Festival (28 NOV to 04 DEC).
Utopia Portuguese Film Festival (30 NOV 09 DEC).

GRIND SHOWS

Films in London today: THE DIRTY WAR ON THE NHS at ArtHouse Crouch End (29 NOV to 05 DEC). — Films in London today: THE DIRTY WAR ON THE NHS at ArtHouse Crouch End (04 DEC).

THE DIRTY WAR ON THE NHS d. John Pilger, 2019 at ArtHouse Crouch End (04 DEC 12:15):

“The new documentary from renowned BAFTA and Emmy-winning film-maker and journalist John Pilger. “This film is a tribute to a unique institution,” says Pilger at the start of DIRTY WAR, which is about threatened democracy. Above all, it is a warning. Pilger investigates the dismantling “by stealth” of the National Health Service, “a last bastion of true public service”.”

EYES WIDE SHUT d. Stanley Kubrick, 1999 + Short: NEVER JUST A DREAM: STANLEY KUBRICK & EYES WIDE SHUT d. Matt Wells, 2019 at BFI Southbank (04 DEC 14:30, 17:30 & 19:55):

“The date of this re-release of EYES WIDE SHUT isn’t accidental; it’s time to reappraise it as a Kubrickian Christmas movie. Kubrick’s final film, released posthumously, is an incredible display of precision and suspense, featuring a fragile relationship played out by (then) real-life couple Kidman and Cruise.”

THE NIGHTINGALE d. Jennifer Kent, 2019 at ICA (04 DEC 12:10):

“Set in 1825, Clare, a young Irish convict woman, chases a British officer through the rugged Tasmanian wilderness, bent on revenge for a terrible act of violence he committed against her family. On the way she enlists the services of an Aboriginal tracker named Billy, who is also marked by trauma from his own violence-filled past.”

More films in London this week (A – Z):

THE AMAZING JOHNATHAN DOCUMENTARY d. Ben Berman, 2019 at The Castle Cinema (29 NOV to 05 DEC). BIRDS OF PASSAGE d. Cristina Gallego & Ciro Guerra, 2018 at Whirled Cinema (02 to 08 DEC). HARRIET d. Kasi Lemmons, 2019 at Catford Mews (29 NOV to 05 DEC). HEIMAT IS A SPACE IN TIME d. Thomas Heise, 2019 at ICA (until 04 DEC). JAY & SILENT BOB REBOOT d. Kevin Smith, 2019 at The Prince Charles (29 NOV to 05 DEC). KNIVES OUT d. Rian Johnson, 2019 at Rich Mix (29 NOV to 05 DEC). LA BELLE ÉPOQUE d. Nicolas Bedos, 2019 at Ciné Lumière (22 NOV to 16 DEC). MARRIAGE STORY d. Noah Baumbach, 2019 at Rio Cinema (until 05 DEC). RETABLO d. Alvaro Delgado Aparicio, 2019 at The Castle Cinema (until 05 DEC). RONNIE WOOD – SOMEBODY UP THERE LIKES MEd. Mike Figgis, 2019 at DocHouse (until 04 DEC). SHOOTING THE MAFIA d. Kim Longinotto, 2019 at ArtHouse Crouch End (30 NOV to 05 DEC). THE STREET d. Zed Nelson, 2019 at DocHouse (29 NOV to 05 DEC). THE TWO POPES d. Fernando Meirelles, 2019 at JW3 (29 NOV to 05 DEC).

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*THE SMALL PRINT: As accurate as we could make it. Apologies for any errors. Apologies if we have missed your event. Updates & corrections will be made to the online version. Event dates/times are subject to change by the venue/organiser. We try to only list events you can book for at the time of posting: however, some events may still be sold out. Please click quickly! We don’t filter by age/certification: all readers & subscribers should be 18+.