This is a film still from MEDICATION dir Anne Hanavan, 2007, part of The Celluloid Body: Women’s Artist Films at the Limit at Whitechapel Gallery (30 MAR 2023).

THE BALLY #194: What to see in London this week [24 to 30 MAR 2023]

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

BAR TRASH presents… TRASH OR TREASURE? Resurrecting “The Worst Films of All Time” – BOOKING NOW!

Welcome to another screen week!

There are some great looking special events from indie exhibitors this week. Head down to The Cinema Museum on Friday for a gloopy creature double feature from The Gothique Film Society, X THE UNKNOWN + CALTIKI, THE IMMORTAL MONSTER (24 MAR). On Saturday, local community film club Talkies premiere their Short Film Commissions, or you could see Paul Heintz introduce his fascinating film CHARACTER c/o Storming Heaven at Close-Up (both 25 MAR).

On Sunday, Women & Cocaine continue their exemplary programming with Tod Browning’s FREAKS at The Cinema Museum, whilst film expert Michael Brooke gives another of his regular Polish Film Talks before THEIR BODIES aka Na Twoim Miejscu at Watermans. I’ll be screening juvenile delinquent melodrama HIGH SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL! over brunch at Rule Zero before heading across town to see the LSO provide a live score for THINGS TO COME at Barbican (all 26 MAR). Just remember that the clocks go forward…

Trans-majority film club Transmissions wraps their collab with guest curator Nat Funni on Monday with BUT I’M A CHEERLEADER at Dalston Superstore, whilst there’s a special screening of THE COW WHO SANG A SONG INTO THE FUTURE  at Rich Mix (both 27 MAR). On Tuesday, Tufnell Park Film Club presents BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID at The Lord Palmerston, and Wimbledon Film Club presents THE DOO DAH MAN at Curzon Wimbledon (both 28 MAR). On the same day, New East Cinema continues their commitment to Ukrainian cinema with a sold out screening of Mantas Kvedaravičius’s final work, MARIUPOLIS 2 (do check because occasional returns have been popping up).

Wednesday is another busy day, but I like the look of Habitats & Heritage’s presentation of THE LADY KILLERS at Grove Gardens Chapel, or Kennington Bioscope’s packed programme for THE LOVE EXPERT 35mm at The Cinema Museum. I’ll be popping up again for the conclusion of my TRASH OR TREASURE? bar season at Genesis Cinema with the “worst film of all time”, aka Ed Wood’s PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE (all 29 MAR). Then, Thursday is a strong day for women filmmakers with Mary Harron’s AMERICAN PSYCHO 35mm at Genesis Cinema, Alice Neel: Portraiture on Film at Barbican, Lola Quivoron’s RODEO + Q&A at Curzon Soho, and a Trans Day Of Visibility short film showcase from TCC at Strongroom Bar (all 30 MAR).

As BFI Flare (15 to 26 MAR) draws to an end, BFI Southbank returns to its conventional programme, launching a number of new rep seasons, including: GINGER ROGERS: ALL THAT SASS, NORTHERN VOICES, OUTSIDERS AND EXILES: THE FILMS OF JERZY SKOLIMOWSKI  and the return of their BIG SCREEN CLASSICS. Elsewhere, The Garden Cinema celebrates their 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY and there’s a special series of off-site screenings for SERPENTINE CINEMA: MENELAOS KARRAMAGHIOLIS at both Close-Up and Ciné Lumière.

Film festival openings include the always-fascinating Essay Film Festival (25 to 31 MAR) at Birkbeck Cinema and ICA, and TNB Xpo 2023, a celebration of Black talent in both film and TV (29 to 31 MAR). Hong Kong Film Festival (18 to 31 MAR), Human Rights Watch Film Festival (16 to 26 MAR), and WatchAUT 2023 (23 to 26 MAR) continue their strong programmes across the week.

New releases this week include Léa Mysius’ THE FIVE DEVILS, Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s THE BEASTS and Brandon Cronenberg’s INFINITY POOL. Head to the GRIND SHOW section of this week’s guide for full film and venue listings.

Finally, I’ve chosen The Celluloid Body: Women’s Artist Films at the Limit curated with and presented by Agnès Houghton-Boyle at Whitechapel Gallery as my Featured Attraction of the Week (30 MAR).

See you in the darkness, and stay safe.

Richard // RADIANT CIRCUS

PS – Please note, there are limited listings from Picturehouse Cinemas this week as their website just isn’t my friend…

The Celluloid Body: Women’s Artist Films at the Limitcurated with & presented by Agnès Houghton-Boyle at Whitechapel Gallery (30 MAR 19:00).

“Exploring some of the darkest and most intimate aspects of the human experience, this programme presents the work, very rarely screened in the UK, of the New York Underground chicks: Jasmine Hirst, Anne Hanavan and M.M. Serra, alongside the hand-made films of counter-current voice, Nazli Dinçel. Disparate in approach, these short experimental films share as their subject the body in all its pleasure and pain.” (Whitechapel Gallery)

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FRIDAY

Double Feature: X THE UNKNOWN + CALTIKI, THE IMMORTAL MONSTER d. Leslie Norman & Joseph Losey, 1956 + Riccardo Freda & Mario Bava, 1959, presented by The Gothique Film Society at The Cinema Museum (24 MAR 19:00).

SATURDAY

CHARACTER d. Paul Heintz, 2021 + Intro by the director & discussion with some of the film’s participants & crew, presented by Storming Heaven at Close-Up (25 MAR 20:15).

SUNDAY

FREAKS d. Tod Browning, 1932 + Intro & raffle, presented by Women & Cocaine at The Cinema Museum (26 MAR 19:30).

MONDAY

THE COW WHO SANG A SONG INTO THE FUTURE d. Francisca Alegría, 2022 + Panel with Kate Metcalf (co-director of Women’s Environmental Network), Sofia Serbin de Skalon (founder of the Argentine Film Festival), & curator Caroline Wilson at Rich Mix (27 MAR 18:00).

TUESDAY

BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID d. Roy George Hill, 1969 presented by Tufnell Park Film Club at The Lord Palmerston (28 MAR 20:00).

WEDNESDAY

THE LOVE EXPERT 35mm d. David Kirkland, 1920 + Supporting programme from 16mm/35mm, Intro by Michelle Facey & Live piano accompaniment by Colin Sell & John Sweeney, presented by Kennington Bioscope at The Cinema Museum (29 MAR 19:30).

THURSDAY

Alice Neel: Portraiture on Film + Intro by Catherine McCormack at Barbican (30 MAR 18:30).

Full daily listings in this week’s SCREEN GUIDE.
LATE SPRING d. Yasujiro Ozu, 1949

1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY at The Garden Cinema

More rep seasons listed in this week’s SCREEN GUIDE.

THE BEASTS aka As bestas dir. Rodrigo Sorogoyen, 2022

THE FIVE DEVILS aka Les cinq diables dir. Léa Mysius, 2022

INFINITY POOL dir. Brandon Cronenberg, 2023

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. //.