THE BALLY #152: What to see in London this week [06 to 12 MAY 2022]

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

#QueerHorrorNights returns with David Freyne’s THE CURED (2017) at The Castle Cinema (15 MAY 14:00) / Booking now!

Welcome to another screen week! Let’s dip the houselights, and get on with it…

In this week’s special events, I would love to see you all at Cafe OTO for Sonic Cinema’s latest show (more on that in a bit…), but Birkbeck Cinema’s focus on Katharine Fry, and the gorgeously rare LIZ TAYLOR AND SOPHIA LOREN TV TRAVELOGUES presented by Network at The Cinema Museum, are all worthy of your Friday attention (06 MAY). On Saturday, the exceptional African Odysseys strand at BFI continues with RAÇA, a documentary about the struggle for civil rights in contemporary Brazil (07 MAY). ActOne Cinema is the place for talent on Sunday with Q&As for both BARRY AND JOAN and DOWNTON ABBEY: A NEW ERA (!), but the standout event for me is a new collab between Catford Mews and The Cabinet of Living Cinema for a live scored double bill of MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA / ARCADIA (08 MAY).

Deaf Awareness Week officially concludes at the weekend, but Birds’ Eye View #ReclaimTheFrame’s accessible screening of THE DROVER’S WIFE at Rio Cinema on Monday (09 MAY) is worthy of your serious attention (see also the ENCOUNTERS programme of shorts from or featuring Deaf talent at both ActOne and Rio Cinema over the weekend). On Tuesday, the Barbican’s excellent Science On Screen strand continues with ARRIVAL, Tufnell Park Film Club shows LADY SNOWBLOOD, Wimbledon Film Club resumes after a short break with SOMETIMES ALWAYS NEVER (featuring a director’s Q&A), and Sands Films Cinema Club screens LETTERS FROM BAGHDAD in-venue and online (all 10 MAY).

The new documentary / concert film about Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’ creative relationship, THIS MUCH I KNOW TO BE TRUE, can be seen almost everywhere on Wednesday, but I really like the look of the new Pink Palace slot at Rio; a weekly programme of queer cinema classics that begins in their basement bar with PINK NARCISSUS (11 MAY). Wrap your week with the latest Jellied Reels screening at The Castle Cinema of KIN-DZA-DZA! (described as being “somewhere between Monty Python meets Dune“). The proceeds from this screening will go directly to Meduza, “one of the few remaining independent and impartial Russian-language news sources, and which is currently operating from Riga in Latvia”.

In seasons, the BFI’s CRUEL FLESH: FILMS OF THE NEW FRENCH EXTREMITY really dominates, bringing Gaspar Noé to the stage for various engagements ahead of the release of his new feature, VORTEX. If that all sounds too intense, BFI’s MIKE HODGES season is also showing MORONS FROM OUTER SPACE (06 MAY) and FLASH GORDON (07 MAY) in the same week… The Southbank is host to some VR installations for MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK, including, under its theme of loneliness, LAIKA, the story of the stray dog that the Soviet Union sent into orbit. And finally, it’s your last week to join the GENESIS 23RD BIRTHDAY celebrations where every ticket (and every pint…) is a friendly £2.50, including some screenings from 35mm.

As always happens, I’ve not long published our latest epic roundup of everything, before I’m adding a few more festivals to these listings. New arrivals this week include Girls in Film Festival (06 to 08 MAY), In Short, Europe (07 MAY), Odyssey: A Chinese Cinema Season (10 MAY to 10 JUNE), and T A P E Collective’s Village Screen Film Week (10 to 15 MAY).

For this week’s new releases, I’ve highlighted the 50th Anniversary re-release of Bob Fosse’s CABARET, John Daschbach’s ramen shop doc COME BACK ANYTIME, and Thomas Daneskov’s WILD MEN. But it’s another week with a lot of narrow/exclusive indie releases, so do scroll all the way down for more of the good stuff…

I’ve chosen Sonic Cinema’s AUSTRIAN SYNAESTHETIC CINEMA at Cafe OTO (06 MAY) as my Featured Attraction of the Week. Partly because it looks epic, and partly because it’s sponsored by our subscriber-backed #ReviveTheDark initiative. If you’d like to support more indie cinema events like this one, simply start a monthly subscription at patreon.com/radiantcircus and 40% of your fee will go directly into a fund to promote DIY, diverse and distinctive cinema across London.

See you in the darkness, and stay safe.

Richard // RADIANT CIRCUS

AUSTRIAN SYNAESTHETIC CINEMA Feat. TWIXT Live A/V + Billy Roisz & Dieter Kovačič in conversation with Atau Tanaka presented by Sonic Cinema at Cafe OTO (06 MAY 20:00) / Supported by RADIANT CIRCUS #ReviveTheDark.

“Sonic Cinema presents an evening of recent films by Austrian audiovisual artists exploring the boundaries of perception. Through the concepts of visual music and synaesthesia –a neurological condition that causes a blending of the senses– these formally adventurous works blur the boundaries between the visual and sonic arts.”

“From glitching algorithmic compositions to deconstructions of genre cinema, this programme features six digital projections by Tina Frank, Siegfried A. Fruhauf, Rainer Kohlberger, NO1, Peter Kutin & Florian Kindlinger, followed by Billy Roisz’ and Dieter Kovačič’s live A/V performance TWIXT. Billy Roisz and Dieter Kovačič (TWIXT) will be in conversation with Atau Tanaka following their performance.”

  • Please note that all of the films in this programme contain flashing and strobing images.
  • Unfamiliar with Synaesthetic Cinema? Let Oliver Dickens’ Potted History be your guide…
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FRIDAY

AUSTRIAN SYNAESTHETIC CINEMA Feat. TWIXT Live A/V + Billy Roisz & Dieter Kovačič in conversation with Atau Tanaka presented by Sonic Cinema at Cafe OTO (06 MAY 20:00) / Supported by RADIANT CIRCUS #ReviveTheDark.

This is a film still from RAÇA dir Joel Zito Araújo & Megan Mylan, 2013, showing at BFI Southbank (07 MAY 2022).

SATURDAY

African Odysseys: RAÇA d. Joel Zito Araújo, Megan Mylan, 2013 + Q&A at BFI Southbank (07 MAY 14:00).

This is a film still from MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA dir Dziga Vertov, 1929, showing at Catford Mews (08 MAY 2022).

SUNDAY

MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA / ARCADIA ds. Dziga Vertov + Paul Wright, 1929/2017 + Live score by The Cabinet of Living Cinema at Catford Mews (08 MAY 18:30).

This is a film still from HIGH TENSION (aka Switchblade Romance) aka Haute Tension dir Alexandre Aja, 2003, showing at BFI Southbank (09 MAY 2022).

MONDAY

HIGH TENSION (aka Switchblade Romance) aka Haute Tension d. Alexandre Aja, 2003 + Recorded intro by author Alexandra West (09 MAY 18:00 – 4K) / Part of CRUEL FLESH: FILMS OF THE NEW FRENCH EXTREMITY at BFI Southbank

This is a film still from FREAKS dir Tod Browning, 1932, showing at The Prince Charles Cinema (10 MAY 2022).

TUESDAY

FREAKS d. Tod Browning, 1932 (06 MAY 12:25 / 10 MAY 18:00 – £1 Members’ Screening) / Part of PRE-CODE HOLLYWOOD at The Prince Charles.

This is a film still from PINK NARCISSUS dir James Bidgood, 1971, showing at Rio Cinema (11 MAY 2022).

WEDNESDAY

Pink Palace: PINK NARCISSUS d. James Bidgood, 1971 bar screening & discussion at Rio Cinema (11 MAY 19:30 – £5!).

This is a film still from KIN-DZA-DZA! dir Georgiy Daneliya, 1986, screening at The Castle Cinema (12 MAY 2022).

THURSDAY

KIN-DZA-DZA! d. Georgiy Daneliya, 1986 presented by Jellied Reels to raise funds for Meduza at The Castle Cinema (12 MAY 21:00).

Full daily listings in this week’s SCREEN GUIDE.

GENESIS 23RD BIRTHDAY at Genesis Cinema

More rep seasons listed in this week’s SCREEN GUIDE.
This is a film still from CABARET dir Bob Fosse, 1972.

CABARET (50th Anniversary) dir. Bob Fosse, 1972:

COME BACK ANYTIME dir. John Daschbach, 2021 at:

WILD MEN dir. Thomas Daneskov, 2021:

More new releases in this week’s SCREEN GUIDE.

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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. //.