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

CITY GIRL d. F.W. Murnau, 1927 + LIVE PIANO ACCOMPANIMENT by Meg Morley at The Cinema Museum (29 MAY 19:30):

Kennington Bioscope presents: “Three years after his masterpiece, SUNRISE (1927) director F.W. Murnau made his last film for the Fox Corporation, CITY GIRL. The film is unjustly neglected and rarely shown. Tenderly romantic and tough-minded in equal measure, CITY GIRL is one of cinema’s great pastorals, featuring some of the most delicate performances Murnau ever filmed and influencing directors such as Terrence Malick and Jean Vigo.”

NEW AT RADIANT CIRCUS

THE BOYS FROM FENGKUEI part of TAIPEI STORIES at Close-Up (01 to 30 JUN 2019).

Our friends at Close-Up have announced a new programme of thirteen films, by three masters of Taiwanese New Cinema, set in & around Taipei throughout the 20th & 21st Century. We’ve written a handy guide to the season (including news of an exclusive season discount).
As we start stockpiling Pro Plus for the next edition of SUPAKINO’s MIDNIGHT EXCESS (15 JUN 23:00+), we caught up with guest programmer Amos Levin to talk ROCKY, 16mm, ‘holy shit’ moments & The Lonely Island.
RADIANT CIRCUS is partnering with Screen25 to celebrate their complete Spring/Summer programme. Use promo code “CIRCUS19” when booking any film in the season to save on full price tickets. The season opens TONIGHT! with a special screening of RAFIKI (29 MAY).

FILMS IN LONDON TODAY

SINGLE-O EXHIBITS

Grab yourself a juicy discount for RAFIKI at Screen25 (29 MAY). — Grab yourself a juicy discount for RAFIKI at Screen25 (29 MAY) – Use promo code “CIRCUS19”.

London Double Bill d. various at Regent Street Cinema (29 MAY 19:30):

Heavenly Films and BBC Arena present: Two outstanding documentaries about London. This program is a special Save The Social event and all proceeds will go towards The Social, Little Portland Street which has recently been under threat of closure due to rent hikes and developers. Followed by a Q&A with the directors and members of Saint Etienne.

RAFIKI d. Wanuri Kahiu, 2018 + DISCUSSION at Harris Academy South Norwood (29 MAY 19:45):

Screen25 presents: “Banned at home, and embraced by the world, join us on an odyssey this May to Kenya with a screening of the remarkably touching and vibrantly colourful RAFIKI. We’re pleased to be welcoming Clara Bradbury-Rance (King’s College London) and Bisi Alimi (Bisi Alimi Foundation) who will be leading a discussion on the film.”
Use exclusive promo code “CIRCUS19” when booking for this or any film in the Spring/Summer season at Screen25.

Why Life is Worth Living: Friedl Kubelka vom Gröller + INTRO by the artist at BFI Southbank (29 MAY 20:20):

Austrian Cultural Forum presents: “Making a very rare UK appearance, Friedl Kubelka vom Gröller will personally present a selection of her carefully observed documentary portrait films made between 1969 and 2018. She is joined by Dietmar Schwärzler, Austrian artist film distributor, sixpackfilm representative and editor of the book Friedl Kubelka vom Gröller – One Is Not Enough.”

More films in London today (A – Z):

ASH IS PUREST WHITE d. Jia Zhang-Ke, 2018 at Ciné Lumière (29 MAY 15:45).
BEATS d. Brian Welsh, 2019 at Moving Pictures Cinema (29 MAY 20:30).
BRIGADOON 35mm d. Vincente Minnelli, 1954 at Regent Street Cinema (29 MAY 12:00 & 15:30).
GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS d. Michael Dougherty, 2019 at Peckhamplex (29 MAY 20:35).
JIMI HENDRIX: ELECTRIC CHURCH d. John McDermott, 2015 at Picturehouse Central (29 MAY 19:00 – Other Picturehouses available!).
LAST STOP CONEY ISLAND: THE LIFE AND PHOTOGRAPHY OF HAROLD FEINSTEIN d. Andy Dunn, 2018 at DocHouse (29 MAY 16:30).
MADELINE’S MADELINEd. Josephine Decker, 2018 at ICA (29 MAY 14:30).

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MUSEUM SHOWS 1 // SEASONS

Films in London today: NOT RECONCILED, part of THE FILMS OF JEAN-MARIE STRAUB AND DANIÈLE HUILLET at Close-Up (29 MAY).

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

BITTER VICTORY d. Nicholas Ray, 1957 + INTRO by Geoff Andrew (29 MAY 18:10).

CELEBRATING 80 YEARS OF THE BATMAN! at The Prince Charles (06 to 27 MAY):

BATMAN d. Tim Burton, 1989 (29 MAY 13:20 – LAST CHANCE!).

CELEBRATING PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN at The Prince Charles (06 JAN to 15 JUL):

DOUBT 35mm d. John Patrick Shanley, 2008 (29 MAY 18:20).

THE FILMS OF JEAN-MARIE STRAUB AND DANIÈLE HUILLET Goethe-Institut & partners’ epic season continues at Close-Up & Goethe-Institut (MAR to JUN):

NOT RECONCILED OR ONLY VIOLENCE HELPS WHERE VIOLENCE RULES d. Danièle Huillet & Jean-Marie Straub, 1965 at Close-Up (29 MAY 20:15).

KUBRICK at BFI Southbank (APR to MAY):

2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY 70mm d. Stanley Kubrick, 1968 (29 MAY 18:00 – Currently looking SOLD OUT!).
FULL METAL JACKET d. Stanley Kubrick, 1987 (29 MAY 20:30).
DR. STRANGELOVE OR: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BOMB d. Stanley Kubrick, 1963 enjoys a grind show run (18 to 30 MAY).
“Inspired by Kubrick”: DUNKIRK 70mm d. Christopher Nolan, 2017 (29 MAY 21:00).

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

SHOPLIFTERS d. Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2018 (29 MAY 18:15 – Currently looking SOLD OUT!).

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MUSEUM SHOWS 2 // FESTIVALS

Films in London today: A MATTER OF LIFE & DEATH at Herne Hill Free Film Festival (29 MAY). — Films in London today: A MATTER OF LIFE & DEATH at Herne Hill Free Film Festival (29 MAY 19:30 – FREE!).

Film festivals in London today include:

Herne Hill Free Film Festival (29 APR to 01 JUN).

GRIND SHOWS

Films in London today: AFTER LIFE at Rio Cinema (24 to 30 MAY).

AFTER LIFE d. Hirokazu Kore-eda, 1998 at Rio Cinema (29 MAY 18:30):

“Which memory would you choose? After the wonderful MABOROSI, Hirokazu Kore-eda, future director of SHOPLIFTERS, continued his exploration of the mystery of life with this remarkable and touching film that explores the profound human need to discover meaning in everyday existence and asks what makes us truly happy.”

TOO LATE TO DIE YOUNG d. Dominga Sotomayor Castillo, 2018 at ICA (29 MAY 18:35):

“Chile 1990, a country stretching its wings post-Pinochet, exhilarated by new-found freedom but still tentative in the face of an uncertain future. This political reality is paralleled by this story of an idealistic community living off-grid in a commune in the foothills of the Andes.”

XY CHELSEA d. Tim Travers Hawkins, 2019 at DocHouse (29 MAY 18:30):

“The historic story of whistleblower Chelsea Manning, whose 35-year sentence in an all-male maximum security prison was commuted by President Obama in 2017. XY CHELSEA is the journey of her fight for survival and dignity, and her transition from prisoner to a free woman.”

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

AMA-SAN d. Cláudia Varejão, 2016 at ICA (until 30 MAY). AMAZING GRACE d. Alan Elliott & Sydney Pollack, 2018 at DocHouse (until 30 MAY). ASH IS PUREST WHITE d. Jia Zhangke, 2018 at ICA (until 30 MAY). BATMAN d. Tim Burton, 1989 (17 to 27 MAY). BACK TO THE FUTURE PART II 35mm d. Robert Zemeckis, 1989 at The Prince Charles (24 to 30 MAY). BEATS d. Brian Welsh, 2019 at Watermans (24 to 30 MAY). BIRDS OF PASSAGE d. Cristina Gallego, 2018 at Rio Cinema (until 30 MAY). DR STRANGELOVE OR: HOW I STOPPED WORRYING & LEARNED TO LOVE THE BOMB d. Stanley Kubrick, 1964 + Short Film at The Prince Charles (23 to 29 MAY). EIGHTH GRADE d. Bo Burnham, 2018 at The Prince Charles (until 30 MAY). GIRL d. Lukas Dhont, 2018 at Whirled Cinema (27 MAY to 02 JUN). HIGH LIFE d. Claire Denis, 2018 at The Castle Cinema (until 30 MAY). JOHN MCENROE: IN THE REALM OF PERFECTION d. Julien Faraut, 2018 at ArtHouse Crouch End (24 to 30 MAY). MADELINE’S MADELINE d. Josephine Decker, 2018 at Barbican (until 22 MAY). MEMOIR OF WAR d. Emmanuel Finkiel, 2018 at Ciné Lumière (24 MAY to 25 JUL). OUTDOORS d. Asaf Saban, 2017 presented by UKJF at JW3 (26 to 30 MAY). ROCKETMAN d. Dexter Fletcher, 2019 at ArtHouse Crouch End (24 to 30 MAY). VOX LUX d. Brady Corbet, 2018 at The Prince Charles (24 to 30 MAY). WOMEN AT WAR d. Benedikt Erlingsson, 2018 at The Castle Cinema (until 30 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+.