THE BALLY #108: What to see in London this week (28 MAY to 03 JUN 2021)

Welcome to THE BALLY where we help you find what to see in London this week across DIY, indie & alternative cinema events, online, outdoors & in venues.

By RADIANT CIRCUS // Twitter @radiantcircus / Instagram @radiantcircus

Ciné-Real 16mm Film Club have done so well with their screenings of DR. STRANGELOVE that a third date has been added at The Castle Cinema, and it’s selling fast (06 JUN 13:30)! And things are starting to get busy elsewhere as more cinema screens reopen… a warm welcome back to, amongst others this week, Bertha DocHouse (from 28 May) and Peckhamplex (from 03 June). It was also wonderful to hear from Whirled Cinema after a long silence (they’ve been doing a refurb and will announce reopening plans soon…).

Repertory seasons mostly carry over from last month, but The Prince Charles has added their Bong Joon-ho celebration to London’s roster (from 01 June). In festivals, the Bank Holiday weekend comes alive with the Spanish Film Festival Spring Weekend, joining the UK Asian Film Festival in actual venues. Full details below.

Deptford Cinema has announced the return of physical screenings. Whilst they continue to search for a permanent home, their temporary nomadic life will see them settle at Albany and Deptford Lounge for events from 12 JUN (booking now!).

Rooftop Film Club wraps their drive-ins this week with both Alexandra Palace and Brent Cross going dark from 31 May. New dates have been announced at their traditional rooftop venues through June. Continuing to look ahead, we’ll also be posting our epic monthly roundup of London’s indoor and outdoor film seasons for June at some point over the Bank Holiday weekend. Remember too, our lovely subscribers at Patreon also get access to an exclusive page of coming attractions.

As to our Featured Attraction of the Week, we don’t normally elevate such a wide release into this slot, but hey, what are rules for…? FIRST COW screens almost everywhere and takes our top slot because: it’s a western (& we love our genre cinema…); it’s made by Kelly Reichardt (& we love Kelly Reichardt…); and, it’s evidence that cinemas are back in force (it’s the first week such a wide release has been possible for a very long time…). So, whilst FIRST COW is a must-see in its own right, it’s also here to celebrate the return of cinema-going in all its beautiful glory.

Don’t know about you, but we LOVE being back in the darkness and hope to see you there again soon… Stay safe!

Richard // RADIANT CIRCUS

PS – Apologies for the late arrival of these listings… life got in the way.

FIRST COW d. Kelly Reichardt, 2019 (daily, almost everywhere!)

• “The MEEK’S CUTOFF director returns with a distinctive story about a pair of drifters trying to make money by stealing milk from a newly-arrived cow.” ★★★★★ Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian
• Check your local venue for details (or go see it somewhere you’ve never been before!): ArtHouse Crouch End / Barbican / BFI / The Castle Cinema / Catford Mews / Curzon Cinemas / Electric Cinemas / Everyman Cinemas / Genesis Cinema / Picturehouse Cinemas / Rich Mix / Rio Cinema.

Spanish Film Festival Spring Weekend at Ciné Lumière (28 to 30 MAY).

• Includes (check venue for full listings): 
• SCHOOLGIRLS d. Pilar Palomero, 2020 at Ciné Lumière (28 MAY 18:30). 
• MEMORIES OF MY FATHER d. Fernando Trueba, 2020 at Ciné Lumière (28 MAY 20:35 / 29 MAY 17:50).
• THE HUMAN VOICE d. Pedro Almodóvar, 2020 + Intro by Joana Granero & Maria Delgado + Recorded Q&A at Ciné Lumière (29 MAY 16:10).
• THE INNOCENCE d. Lucia Alemany, 2019 at Ciné Lumière (29 MAY 20:45).
• MY MEXICAN BRETZEL d. Nuria Giménez, 2019 at Ciné Lumière (30 MAY 18:10).
• THAT WAS LIFE d. David Martín de los Santos, 2020 at Ciné Lumière (30 MAY 19:55).

• Chronic Youth Film Festival (01 APR to 03 JUN)
• Kinoteka: The 19th Polish Film Festival (06 MAY to 04 JUN 2021)
• Spanish Spring Weekend from the London Spanish Film Festival (28 to 30 MAY)
• UK Asian Film Festival (26 MAY to 06 JUN). READ MORE

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*THE SMALL PRINT: Opinions author’s own. // As accurate as we could make it. Apologies for any errors. Updates & corrections will be made to the online version only. // Event dates/times/formats are subject to change by the venue/organiser. Events may already be sold out at the time of posting, so please click quickly. // We try to list as many original format screenings as we can (8 to 70MM), but sometimes formats change due to age of the print, availability, logistics etc, so please check ahead with your venue if the format is your thing. // All images are used in the spirit of fair use for reporting & review – no ownership is implied or intended / unless otherwise credited to RADIANT CIRCUS as the original rights holder. We will remove any images immediately upon request – just get in touch. // We don’t filter our listings by age/certification: all readers & subscribers should therefore be 18+. // Finally, we always try to follow The Carny Code by “not screwing up anyone else’s game”, but everyone can make mistakes… If something does go wrong, we will always do our best to put it right. //.