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

WHERE HANDS TOUCH d. Amma Asante, 2018 + Q&A with the director at Genesis Cinema (07 MAY 20:30):

Caramel Film Club presents: “In 1944, a 15-year-old girl, daughter of a white German mother and a black African father, meets a member of the Hitler Youth. They become bound by the realization of the horrors being committed around them.”

NEW AT RADIANT CIRCUS

In advance of the next MIDNIGHT EXCESS (11 MAY 2019), Rebecca Nicole Williams aka The Celluloid Sorceress explains how both parts of the Vanity double feature – BERRY GORDY’S THE LAST DRAGON (1985) & NEVER TOO YOUNG TO DIE (1986) – were reclassified for their late night screenings.
Even if you’re new to world cinema histories you’ll probably know that every country seems to have had its New Wave… We caught up with Close-Up Film Centre programmer Oliver Dickens to talk about their continuing season of Czechoslovak cinema.
We’re partnering with Screen25 to celebrate their new Spring/Summer programme. All RADIANT CIRCUS subscribers, friends & followers get a juicy discount when booking for this exciting lineup.

FILMS IN LONDON TODAY

SINGLE-O EXHIBITS

FINAL ASCENT: THE LEGEND OF HAMISH MACINNES d. Robbie Fraser, 2018 + Q&A with the director & Michael Palin at ICA (07 MAY 18:30):

“The legend of Hamish MacInnes began early. At 16 he climbed the Matterhorn. At 17 he built his first motor car – from scratch. He attempted Everest in 1953 with his friend Johnny Cunningham, and almost stole the peak before Hillary and Tenzing. But at the age of 84, his accomplishments could not save him from being institutionalised against his will, suffering from delirium.”

WHIPLASH d. Damien Chazelle, 2015 + PRESENTATION by Professor Elaine Chew at Barbican (07 MAY 18:15):

Science On Screen presents: “A promising young drummer enrols at a cut-throat music conservatory where his dreams of greatness are mentored by an instructor who will stop at nothing in pursuit of perfection. Professor Elaine Chew will discuss how we use computers to understand how musicians mark and shape time, and how these methods allow us to study rhythms in abnormal heartbeats.”

More films in London today (A – Z):

ABOVE AND BEYOND d. Roberta Grossman, 2014 presented by UKJF at JW3 (07 MAY 15:30).
CITY OF GOD d. Fernando Meirelles & Kátia Lund, 2002 at TT Liquor (07 MAY 19:00).
Encounters Deaf Shorts at Rio Cinema (07 MAY 18:15).
MABOROSI d. Hirokazu Kore-eda, 1995 at Picturehouse Central (07 MAY 15:55 – Other Picturehouses available!).
NIAGRA d. Henry Hathaway, 1953 presented by Primrose Hill Community Library Film Show (07 MAY 20:00).
THE PLEDGE d. Sean Penn, 2001 presented by Tufnell Park Film Club at The Lord Palmerston (07 MAY 20:00).
THE PONDS d. Patrick McLennan & Samuel Smith, 2019 at ArtHouse Crouch End (07 MAY 19:15).
RAFIKI d. Wanuri Kahiu, 2018 at ICA (07 MAY 16:35).
RAY AND LIZ d. Richard Billingham, 2018 at Regent Street Cinema (07 MAY 20:45).
READY TO RUMBLE 35mm d. Brian Robbins, 2000 + Q&A with WrestleTalk at The Prince Charles (07 MAY 20:30).
SHERLOCK JR. d. Buster Keaton, 1924 + AGM presented by Wimbledon Film Club at Curzon Wimbledon (07 MAY 20:30).
UNDER THE SKY OF SEOUL d. Hyeong-pyo Lee, 1961 presented by LEAFF at The Cinema Museum (07 MAY 19:00).
US d. Jordan Peele, 2019 at The David Lean (07 MAY 19:30).

MUSEUM SHOWS 1 // SEASONS

Films in London today: DRIVE at Genesis Cinema (07 MAY).

AGNÈS VARDA: GLEANING TRUTHS at The Prince Charles (until 03 JUN):

THE GLEANERS AND I d. Agnès Varda, 2000 (07 MAY 18:30).

BEYOND YOUR WILDEST DREAMS: WEIMAR CINEMA 1919-1933 at BFI Southbank (MAY to JUN):

The Weimar Dream Factory: An Introductory Survey (07 MAY 18:10 – Currently looking SOLD OUT!).
OPIUM d. Robert Reinert, 1919 + LIVE PIANO ACCOMPANIMENT (07 MAY 20:40).

BIG SCREEN CLASSICS: THE MEANINGS OF LIFE at BFI Southbank (MAY):

BITTER VICTORY d. Nicholas Ray, 1957 (07 MAY 18:15).

CLOSE-UP ON THE CZECHOSLOVAK NEW WAVE at Close-Up (23 APR to 15 MAY):

THE SHOP ON THE HIGH STREET d. Ján Kadár & Elmar Klos, 1965 (07 MAY 20:15).

GENESIS 20TH BIRTHDAY at Genesis Cinema (03 to 12 MAY – Tickets £2.50 + FREE PINT!!):

THE FAST & THE FURIOUS d. Rob Cohen, 2001 (07 MAY 18:40).
DRIVE d. Nicolas Winding Refn, 2011 (07 MAY 21:00).

KUBRICK at BFI Southbank (APR to MAY):

THE SHINING (Extended Version) d. Stanley Kubrick, 1980 (07 MAY 14:30).
2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY 70mm d. Stanley Kubrick, 1968 (07 MAY 20:15 SOLD OUT!).

OF FLESH AND BLOOD: THE CINEMA OF HIROKAZU KORE-EDA at BFI Southbank (APR to MAY):

NOBODY KNOWS d. Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2004 (07 MAY 18:05).
MABOROSI d. Hirokazu Kore-eda, 1995 enjoys a grind show run (26 APR to 09 MAY).

MUSEUM SHOWS 2 // FESTIVALS

Films in London today: FOUR SPRINGS, part of Chinese Visual Festival at King's College London (07 MAY 19:00). — Films in London today: FOUR SPRINGS, part of Chinese Visual Festival at King’s College London (07 MAY 19:00).

Film festivals in London today include:

Chinese Visual Festival (02 to 09 MAY).
Herne Hill Free Film Festival (29 APR to 01 JUN).
Right Now Film Festival (06 to 12 MAY).
SERET International: The UK Israeli Film & Television Festival (29 APR to 12 MAY).

> Read our guide to this year’s Chinese Visual Festival (02 to 09 MAY).

GRIND SHOWS

Films in London today: EXTREMELY WICKED, SHOCKINGLY EVIL AND VILE at The Prince Charles (03 to 09 MAY).

EXTREMELY WICKED, SHOCKINGLY EVIL AND VILE d. Joe Berlinger, 2019 at The Prince Charles (07 MAY 13:30 & 16:00):

“Ted (Zac Efron): handsome, smart, charismatic, affectionate. Liz (Lily Collins): a single mother, cautious, but smitten. A picture of domestic bliss, the two seem to have it all figured out. That is until Ted is arrested and charged with a series of increasingly grisly murders.”

MERATA: HOW MUM DECOLONISED THE SCREEN d. Heperi Mita, 2018 at DocHouse (07 MAY 16:30):

“Pioneering Maori filmmaker Merata Mita is the subject of this rich and personal portrait by her son. Juggling motherhood, activism and filmmaking, she was the first Maori woman to make a feature film.”

VOX LUX at ArtHouse Crouch End (07 MAY 12:10 & 17:40):

“The second feature from writer-director Brady Corbet (THE CHILDHOOD OF A LEADER), VOX LUX is a stylish and absorbing modern portrait of a troubled pop star’s rise from the ashes of a major national tragedy to pop superstardom, featuring a remarkable performance from Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman.”

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

ART & MIND d. Amélie Ravalec, 2019 at ICA (until 09 MAY). ASH IS PUREST WHITE d. Jia Zhangke, 2018 at ICA (until 09 MAY). BENJAMIN d. Simon Amstell, 2018 at Whirled Cinema (06 to 12 MAY). DRAGGED ACROSS CONCRETE d. S. Craig Zahler, 2018 at The Prince Charles (03 to 08 MAY). EIGHTH GRADE d. Bo Burnham, 2018 at Moving Pictures (03 to 09 MAY). ELLA FITZGERALD: JUST ONE OF THOSE THINGS d. Leslie Woodhead, 2019 at DocHouse (06 to 09 MAY). GIRL d. Lukas Dhont, 2018 at JW3 (06 to 08 MAY). HIGH LIFE d. Claire Denis, 2018 at Ciné Lumière (08 to 23 MAY). IRENE’S GHOST d. Iain Cunningham, 2018 at DocHouse (03 to 09 MAY). KNOCK DOWN THE HOUSE d. Rachel Lears, 2019 at ICA (until 08 MAY). HEARTBOUND d. Janus Metz & Sine Plambech, 2018 at DocHouse (until 08 MAY). LORO d. Paolo Sorrentino, 2018 at Watermans (03 to 09 MAY). MABOROSI d. Hirokazu Kore-eda, 1995 at Rio Cinema (until 09 MAY). MID90S d. Jonah Hill, 2018 at Moving Pictures (until 09 MAY). RED JOAN d. Trevor Nunn, 2018 at ArtHouse Crouch End (03 to 09 MAY). THE SISTERS BROTHERS d. Jacques Audiard, 2018 at The Prince Charles (03 to 09 MAY). THE WHITE CROW d. Ralph Fiennes, 2018 at JW3 (03 to 09 MAY). WILD ROSE d. Tom Harper, 2018 at The Lexi Cinema (03 to 09 MAY). WOMEN AT WAR d. Benedikt Erlingsson, 2018 at Phoenix Cinema (03 to 09 MAY).

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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+.