Sydenham Arts Film Club

How does this sound? Unusual? Strange? Funny?

Chomet’s multi-award winning animation is all of the above and so much more. Hilariously surreal and fearlessly imaginative, with a bold, dark and edgy sense of humor Belleville Rendez-vous sounds like nothing you have ever heard, and looks like nothing you have ever seen.

Watch out for the often dirty Anti-Disney jokes (like the Mickey shaped poop in the toilet), the musical guests (music hall’s legend of the 1920s, Django Reinhardt shows up playing the guitar) and inspired cameos (General de Gaulle appears on a TV speaking about the Tour de France).

You will laugh, you will cry tears of joy, maybe sing and even dance a little.

What better way to end the season before our summer break.

Shot in live action, with real actors (Douglas Booth, Saoirse Ronan and the late, great Helen McCrory among them), it was then treated as a painted animation – each of its 65,000 frames hand painted as an oil painting on canvas, using van Gogh’s technique, created by a team of over one hundred artists.

Directed by the Polish, award wining artist and filmmaker Dorota Kobiela and her British husband, producer, writer and director Hugh Welchman, it is a breathtaking, innovating artistic and technological feat – a piece of art itself.

So you see, you do know their beats. Join us this October to also know their name at last, as we celebrate Black History Month, with this brilliant documentary about their unlikely heroic story, some special guest stars, a steel pan performance by the group Heart of Steel (starting at 7:15 pm) and a West-Indian classic 'Guinness Punch' cocktail to cheer them all!

Reviews:

“Shot and edited with the same soulful groove the band injected into the music industry, the movie features an entertaining collection of interviews, music and archival film. Director Tim MacKenzie-Smith clearly has a lot of affection for the band. And so do we after watching his film.” Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall

“[It] takes viewers on a ride of highs, lows and everything in between when telling the story of the R&B/funk band Cymande, which is pronounced “sih-mahn-day.” If you want to know why [this] 1970s British band didn’t become as well-known as American counterparts such as Parliament-Funkadelic, this illuminating documentary tells a fascinating, heart-wrenching and informative story.” Karla Hay, Culture Mix

“The most striking moments of the film, however, remain the testimonies of the band members themselves: it is hard not to be moved seeing them interviewed now about their work, and celebrated by legions of fans of all ages.” Elena Lazic, Cineuropa

“This documentary is an education and a good-news story about the remarkable 70s British funk band Cymande (the word is a calypso term for “dove”) who should be as big as Earth Wind & Fire, but aren’t.” Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Groucho Marx’s favourite among his movies, and for many, Marx Brothers’ best film ever, is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year. But you couldn’t possibly tell, and anyway age is irrelevant.

A comedy masterpiece impossible to describe, is a fearless compilation of outrageously funny one-liners, wacky stunts and catchy tunes. As the Marx Brothers trio dabble in opera and high society what ensues is relentless hilarity that may take your breath away!

So join us in welcoming the New Year with big laughs, in high spirits.

Reviews:

“Comedy fans of all ages will see some of the greatest comedic moments ever put on film, including a legendary scene in which the Marx Brothers brilliantly and hilariously navigate a tiny stateroom that gets more and more crowded with people…” Neil Minow, Common Sense Media

“The film has several amazing sequences – notably the contract-tearing farrago between Groucho and Chico, and the crazy finale in which Harpo does a Tarzan act on the flyropes perfectly in time with Verdi’s music. Its level of invention is high…” Derek Malcolm, The Guardian

“This movie is hilarious. Harpo Marx remains the funniest man who ever lived, transforming the art of slapstick humor into a deeply deranged subversion that’s since been unmatched… Groucho & Chico are as impressive as ever in the circular logic of their conman wordplay, scamming the rest of the world and each other…” Brandon Ledet, Swampflix

“It’s easy to see why “A Night at the Opera” remained Groucho’s favourite film. It may not be as much of a masterpiece as their earlier films “Horse Feathers” or “Duck Soup”, but it’s guaranteed to have you giggling from one end of the musical scale to the other.” Jamie Russell, BBC – Film

Unruly, raw, uninhibited, wickedly funny, and uncompromisingly honest in both its depictions of violence and love, it unspools like a demented romantic comedy, a darkly imaginative, pedal to the metal road movie and a contemporary, unflinching western, a nightmare and a wonderful dream, all at once. The great’s, late’s, Lynch’s 5th film won the Palm D’ Or for Best Film at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival, although it was his most controversial and divisive cinematic dream. Yet 35 years after that first wild and weird ride it may well be reconsidered as his most underappreciated, ageless, ever timely one, and the most direct line to his unique mind and worldview.

There are films that come out of nowhere to sweep you off your feet.

Even though you know their creator(s) and what they are capable of.

Still.

Big little miracles that ever grow in you in weird and wonderful ways.

Like this dark, romantic comedy of misunderstandings.

Not the pop culture staple The Nightmare Before Christmas (directed by Henry Selick,as he was simultaneously busy with Batman Returns) is, Tim Burton’s The Corpse Bride is still unmistakably his and still a masterpiece. His 12th feature film and his first stop motion animation as a (co)director, it celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, and features prominently in the Design Museum’s brilliant exhibition The World of Tim Burton, which just got extended to May.

Oscar nominated for Best Animated film, it is a marvel of the art of stop motion, as it used innovative techniques to bring its story to (cinematic) life. Using neither of the industry standards of replaceable heads or replaceable mouths for its unusually tall (23-28 cm) puppets, but instead precision crafted clockwork heads, painstakingly adjusted by hidden keys, it achieved unprecedented, haunting subtlety.

Above all however, this is one of those films that come out of nowhere

to sweep us off our feet.

A big little miracle.

Tickets @ https://sydenhamarts.seatlab.com/events/27-03-2025-19-30-film-corpse-bride

Both films explore different modes of perceiving the world, adopting points of view of people that don’t quite fit, but seem to possess some kind of world changing, redemptive, distinctive, yet self-effacing superpower.

And both films are blessed with 2 of the best finales that ever graced the big screen – unexpected but absolutely earned, inspired and inspiring, as jaw-dropping and exhilarating as a just discovered hidden treasure you didn’t go searching for and never knew you needed.

Reviews:

“A compelling, thought-provoking, hardly groundbreaking but lovingly crafted film.” Caroline Rees, Empire

“Australian director John Duigan’s best films have dealt with the passage from childhood to adolescence, and here, in his first US film (from British producer Duncan Four Weddings Kenworthy), he maintains an atmosphere where dream is a short step from nightmare. Quirkily haunting.” DW, TimeOut

“Artistically speaking, John Duigan’s entirely U.S.-lensed drama about a privileged 10-year-old Kentucky girl’s odd friendship with a working-class young man is something of a mixed bag, with its blend of child’s fantasy, class politics, stylized social satire and startling… Intelligent and well acted, this new effort from hot British producer Duncan Kenworthy (“Four Weddings and a Funeral”) will attract a certain following among serious audiences.” Todd McCarthy, Variety

“Lawn Dogs is the greatest movie you’ve never seen. [It] is essentially a drama, although it contains a healthy dose of many other film genres. There’s some great comedic moments, adventure, father-son relationships, and even some crude (but funny) toilet humor. The film is clearly set in the “real world”, but some fantasy elements creep in at the most unexpected times, and the surprise twist ending is particularly chilling and inspirational” ReelReviesChicago

Yes, this is our uplifting pick to celebrate this June’s AKA Pride Month’s 56th Stonewall Riots (a cornerstone of LGBTQ history) anniversary and theme “Activism & Social Change”, that will feed your thoughts and fill your heart to the brim.

It is also our unconventional tribute to the late, great Gene Hackman, shining here in one of his rare comedic roles, opposite the legend of comedic genius that Robin Williams was, is and always will be.

And yes, sure, this is the Oscar nominated, American remake (one of the best ever, according to The Guardian) of the hit French farce, La Cage Aux Folles, with a stellar, Screen Actors Guild winning, cast that also include the incomparable Nathan Lane, Dianne Wiest, Hank Azaria and Christine Baranski.

But the one thing you really need to know about this film? It is hilarious.

And we mean crying out, breathless, thick tears, stomach aching, funny.

Reviews:

“What’s impressive is how relatively progressive The Birdcage still feels, within the context of mainstream cinema … Indeed, even if it was made by a straight director and a big studio, [it] remains a pillar in the landscape of queer cinema. As the film draws to a close… all the film’s gay characters are still breathing. Not only that: they’re laughing. [29] years later, the characters’ laughter, and the laughter they inspire, is a sound of joy and relief that remains a force of healing for LGBTQ+ viewers.” Emily Maskell, BBC Culture

“… The Birdcage is extremely ahead of its time as a queer film… [It] is not a film driven by plot. Instead, its central focus is on the characters and that’s why the performances of Lane, Williams and Hank Azaria specifically have shined through into pop culture immortality… The use of comedy, star performances and representations of nontraditional families (at the time queer representations in film were still largely stigmatized and sexualized) make this film fun while also doing very important work… [introducing us to] the joy of gay culture” Grace LaNasa, The Film Dispatch

“Remakes don’t get much better than Mike Nichols’s The Birdcage… [It] is a satire so subversive that audiences willingly laughed at many of their most sacred cows, including marriage, politics, sexism, homophobia, and the traditional family itself.” Andrea Thompson, Reader

“What makes Mike Nichols‘ version more than just a retread is good casting in the key roles, and a wicked screenplay by Elaine May, who keeps the original story but adds little zingers here and there (“Live on Fisher Island and get buried in Palm Beach – that way you’ll get the best of Florida!”).” Roger Ebert, RogerEbert.com

Nominated for 4 Oscars, 5 BAFTA and rightfully winning the Carl Foreman Award for the Most Promising Newcomer for Joe Wright, it became a bonafide cult classic, remaining ever gorgeous and ever relevant.

So whether you’re a devoted fan or curious newcomer, this is the perfect chance to experience the sharp wit, and iconic moments of this beloved film — on the big screen, surrounded by fellow film lovers, just a few weeks after its re-release in cinemas.

To be captivated by the singularly charismatic cast, from the tomboyish genius of Keira Knightley, and the inescapable enigma of Matthew Macfadyen, to the one way or another unforgettable Brenda Blethyn, Donald Sutherland, Rosamund Pike, Jena Malone, Carey Mulligan, Tom Hollandner and of course Judi Dench.

To explore virtually tanglible candlelit ballrooms or nature in all its glory as it bares witness without judgement or prejudice. To lose yourself in the breathtaking single take of a (first) dance. And to catch the slow-burn glances and gestures of this inspired adaptation of the archetypal enemy to lovers romance that still has us swooning two decades later.

Let’s celebrate 20 years of Austen magic together.

We can’t wait to watch it (again) with you.

Bewitched body and soul.

Reviews:

“What [Wright] captures here isn’t the raw truth, but it’s a perfect kaleidoscope that brings to life reverence, ease, and an indescribable comfort for which there are no words. Pair his visionary direction with the phenomenal cast and Dario Marianelli and Jean-Yves Thibaudet’s original score, and we’re in for an amazing form of escapism.” Sophia Gissane, Lady Geeks

“… this is the first straight adaptation for the big screen since the delicious 1940 version starring Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier. And very welcome it is, with a fresh, realistic approach, earthy settings and romantic suspense — and in Keira Knightley’s superb Lizzy, a heroine for all time.” Angie Errigo, Empire

“There are no great textual variations or interpretative liberties in this Pride & Prejudice, but both of its key ingredients are there in generous qualities, and it is very nicely acted with a terrific above-the-title turn from Knightley. It canters along like a thoroughbred racehorse, switching to a gallop or a rising trot where necessary. It’s an invigorating ride.” Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

“… let me propose my own tagline: “Sometimes the last movie on earth you expect to like is the one that seduces you utterly.” This new Pride & Prejudice—damn that ampersand!—is marvelous… A joy to behold” David Edelstein, Slate

Impossible to put into words this unexpected gem from Latvia won the Best Animated Feature Oscar against tough Hollywood competition. Made by a small Indie team using Blender (a free open-source creative platform), it’s a masterpiece all on its own and our Artist Trail 2025 feature film.

Join us on an unforgettable journey of discovery, joy, and cinematic miracles, and experience how “Flow” makes the end of the world wondrous.

Follow the little black cat…

Reviews:

“It can be playful; it can be deceptively profound… You do feel that you know all these characters, you could reach out and touch them. They live three-dimensional lives. It is genuinely magical… Captivating… It’s pure cinematic poetry.” Mark Kermode, Kermode & Mayo’s Take

“… this gorgeous animated adventure… was the dark horse winner at last month’s Academy Awards. It’s a film full of wonders but not a single word of dialogue in the epic tale of one cat’s adventures after a flood of biblical proportions… As visions of apocalypse go, it’s rather lovely: a world lush with nature, animals learning to get by together.” Cath Clarke, The Guardian

“Mysterious and magical, this Oscar-winning survival adventure is an animation worthy of Studio Ghibli… It’s been ages since anything articulated the wonder and spirituality of the natural world as breathtakingly as this… I watched it with my seven year-old. Then we watched it again.” Phil de Slemyen, Time Out

“A mesmerising, wondrous example of animation’s potential; a thoughtful allegory about ecocide and death; and an adorable ode to four-legged (and two-legged) friends. No ebbs here: Flow is the real deal.” John Nugent, Empire

There is a scene in this piercing, spellbinding film, where bodies move through music, space and, crucially, time. The definition of poetry in motion, it is arguably the best single, movie sequence of the year, (and one of the best of any year), and it perfectly encapsulates Ryan Coogler’s latest and more personal work.

In between history and fiction, fantasy and reality, life and death, the past and the future, then and now, the promising caress and violent honesty of music, and more than 2 film genres, Sinners finds its sweet spot and utterly unique voice.

Ambitious. Audacious. A true original. The 5th feature film from the director of Fruitvale Station, Creed and the Black Panther movies became a worthy early favourite and remains a front-runner in this year’s Oscar race.

So join us for a groundbreaking, big screen, audiovisual journey through music, space and, crucially, time.

Reviews:

“The settings are stunning, the music stirring and the party scenes electric. In one gorgeous, metaphysical moment, Coogler draws across centuries and continents with breathtaking scope, passion, and poetry. See it in IMAX if you can, and stay for the credits.” Elizabeth Weitzman, TimeOut

“Sinners is one of the most distinctive, confident mainstream films of the modern era.” Jake Cole, Slant

“Coogler… sees how the present becomes the future in the blink of an eye, but also how the past… never fully disappears. Sinners is about vampires, perpetual outsiders who desperately yearn to belong, but whose silky promises are rooted in treachery. Mostly, though, Sinners is alive to the mystery of music: the way, for centuries, white people and Black people seemed to hear and feel music differently, until somehow the sounds they were hearing, and making, merged and blurred into a kind of aural futureworld, one that’s still unfolding today.” Stephanie Zacharek, Time

“It’s both a wildly ambitious meditation on American history and a rip-roaring good time. ” Dana Stevens, Slate

Is this a romantic comedy? Or a crime thriller? A New Wave drama? A film noir?

Chungking Express is all of these and at the same time none of these. It is instead something unique. A genre, rather, all of its own.

Creatively celebrating all that came before it and at once pushing film-making forward, back to the future, in exciting, unpredictable ways.

Quentin Tarantino was so right!

No wonder it gave birth to two cinema legends: director Wong Kar-wai (In The Mood For Love, Happy Together, 2046) and cinematographer Christopher Doyle.

Kar-wai’s third feature film was shot in just 23 days, in sequence, “like a road movie”, while its director was taking a break/palette cleanser from filming his epic Ashes of Time. With an endearing all star Asian cast, (Tony Leung Chi-wai, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Brigitte Lin who came out of retirement to star in both this and the Ashes of Time, and the pop super star Faye Wong), it became one of the iconic, definitive films of the 90s.

Impossibly beautiful to look at while narratively raw, quirky and unexpected, this is the art of cinema at its best. Innovative, ageless, wide-eyed, heartfelt.

Reviews:

“Wong Kar-wai is one of the best filmmakers from one of the most significant film movements, the Hong Kong New Wave. I’d argue he is one of the best filmmakers, full stop without any necessary qualifications. And, in my opinion, Chungking Express is his best film. Supposing one plus one still equals two, that makes this one of the best films ever made. ” Joshua Polanski, Boston Hassle

“Wong Kar-Wai’s “Chungking Express” is as fresh as falling rain, a pair of love stories full of pain and humor. Shot fast and sometimes furiously on crowded Hong Kong streets, it speaks in its own highly personal shorthand, expressed through the most fluid of cameras and punctuated with bold whooshes of color and potent bursts of American pop music..” Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times

“My love for Chungking Express will never expire. Unlike other, more straightforward feelgood movies, it doesn’t shy away from depicting the rough edges of urban life and how it can leave you feeling unmoored. But it shows how there’s always a chance to make a meaningful connection, hope emerging like a rainbow after the rain, scattering the grey clouds from the sky.” Ann Lee, The Guardian

“A movie that endures past its expiration date, like Chungking Express, doesn’t just bottle time, it changes our perception of it. The film does this with its signature filmmaking technique of step-printing, through which the picture often looks simultaneously still and in motion. The images in this film are a place where the viewer can live, even if, like me, they’ve never been to Hong Kong and don’t speak the languages in the film.” J. M. Tyree, New England Review

Express Yourself, the 6 films programme we are hosting, a day before its official presentation at the ICA, is curated by Philip Ilson and offers a glimpse into the minds and methods of artists at work, tracing, sometimes quite intimately, the creative process.

Express Yourself films:

Stupid Little Films, dir. Vladislav Bolshakov, UK 2025, 2mins

A short animated documentary film about a young boy discovering animation. A short film that feels like an uncensored stream of consciousness illustrated by a wide-eyed, precocious child. Cheeky!

Crit, dir. Isabel Lea, UK 2025, 15mins

A disillusioned student questions the value of her art education, while she struggles to find the meaning and motivation in making. The inner life of an artist, complete with her hopes and doubts, inspirations and struggles, is communicated discretely, unannounced, but raw and without apologies, in this visually soft, but sharp in every other way (art) character study.

I Saw the Face of God in the Jet Wash, dir. Mark Jenkin, UK 2025, 17mins

The filmmaker travels the world with his work. In the liminal spaces between screenings he muses on cinematic influences, ponders cultural history and reflects upon the sea. One of the most exciting, distinct, new, British cinematic voices, Jenkin (Bait – “One of the defining British films of the decade” according to Mark Kermode), who is also a LSFF alumnus (Enys Men), shares a companion piece to/backstory of/working notes for his latest feature film Rose of Nevada – an unsettling, seafaring, time traveling mystery. A short that, although mysterious and uncanny itself, plays like a strangely familiar super 8 amateur film you can’t take your -full of nostalgia- eyes off.

Apocalypse, dir. Benoit Méry, France, 2024, 14mins

Deep in Hellfest, a gigantic metal festival, music gradually takes possession of metalheads. A silent (short) film like no other. With no dialogue and the music heard muffled via headphones or protective ear plugs, more by the gut and less by the ears. Making this a visceral, collective experience that catches you unawares.

Making Love to a Ghost, dir. Raj Chaudhuri and Rosie Litterick, UK 2024, 13mins

In his cluttered and oily garage in Forest Hill, surrounded by old cars and their dismembered parts, cutting through the noise of the blow torches, hammers and heavy drills, Fred, a car mechanic, discovers the haunting beauty of the illusive and strange instrument- The Theremin. The rough, heavy, very physical reality of the cars and their parts, is juxtaposed with the ethereal, intangible, anything but physical resonance of the theremin, in this unassuming documentary about the joy of taking the unexpected path, following our hearts.

The Girl looking for the cabin, dir. Phane Montet, France, French with English subtitles 2025, 30mins

During the winter of 2011, the young street artist Bilal Berreni travelled to the far north of Sweden and locked himself away in a wooden cabin, to live as a hermit. He wrote and drew “The Cabin Notebook”. Ten years later, after Bilal’s death, a girl follows his footsteps, looking for his cabin. Looking for the world he depicted. Perhaps also for him… In this mesmerising hybrid of live action and animation, memory and dreams bleed into reality, colouring it black and white and every shade of grey, turning into magic. Borderless and unruly, unframed and immersive.

This is a fantasy adventure, a romantic comedy, a satire of all the stories we grew up with, even a revenge thriller, all at once. Come for all that, but stay for the comedy! Imaginative, fearless, COMEDY.

Both Reiner and star Cary Elwes had to repeatedly remove themselves from the set during Billy Crystal’s scenes, because they laughed so hard that they would either feel nauseated (the former), or kept ruining take after take (the later)? And Mandy Patinkin bruised a rib (the only injury he sustained throughout the entire filming) as he constantly had to stifl his laughter in all his scenes with Crystal? Inconceivable!

Based on Reiner’s favourite book by William Goldman (who also wrote the screenplay), this is a subversive fairy-tale, if you wish, for kids of all ages, from 13 to 93 and beyond.

With a mostly fresh, pre-fame, stellar anyway, cast (Robin Wright, Chris Sarandon, Christopher Guest, Peter Falk, Carol Kane, Fred Savage, Wallace Shawn, and the WWE star André – The Giant – René Roussimoff in addition to the three mentioned above), it is filled with ever quotable one liners, gloriously meme-able comedy gags, and wonderful memories.

So come to rediscover this big, comforting hug of a film that in 2016 was inducted into the American National Film Registry, being deemed “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant”!

Reviews:

“.. a film all about the telling of tales: tall, short, moral — kind of — and whimsical. It is not to be trusted, only adored. A unqualified success that blends New York wit with timeless storytelling; a risky piece of filmaking that never feels so.” Ian Nathan, Empire

“It’s a fairytale with bite. Children can see it as a bright, frothy adventure while adults will appreciate the subtlety and the sheer wit. The film mocks sword fantasies yet it also delights in them and is somehow able to trumpet the genre while simultaneously laughing at it.” William Gallaghers, BBC Movies

“The entire cast is superb, but the funniest is Billy Crystal as a wizened miracle man… Patinkin’s performance is especially touching. He can say, “My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die”—and make you laugh, cry and cheer at the same time. The movie, two hours of pure enchantment, has the same effect. ” Peter Travers, People

“Some movies transcend their subject matter, subvert your expectations and become so endlessly quotable that their one-liners are seared into pop culture. By now you probably know what to prepare for when confronted by Inigo Montoya and that it’s unwise to go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line… ” Krystal Sim, SciFiNow

Director: James Griffiths, 2025, UK, Colour, English, 93′ mins, Certificate: 12

I cry, you cry, we all cry. Unexpected tears, of joy and of laughter – a lot of laughter, unforced, unapologetic, guttural laughter. And the not unexpected ones. Proper, cleansing tears, of deep and true emotion. Often at the same time.

All because of the originality, spirited humanity and healing magic of this big little comedy about grief. And about all the weird and wonderful ways grief can transform into power to move on. Stop surviving and start living again.

Tom Basden and Tim Key wrote and star, (along with the always brilliant Carey Mulligan), in this British sleeper indie hit that transfixed audiences last year and is well on its way to achieving cult status.

Based on the same team’s, Edinburgh Film Festival winner short, The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island (2007), this is a triumph of screenplay writing and proof that cinema is so much more than simply a visual art.

And if this one of a kind Ballad wasn’t enough, we will be treating you to a special Magic Lantern presentation by local glass artist Pippa Stacy!

Reviews:

“For a film about grief, regrets, lost love and a deep, cavernous loneliness, The Ballad of Wallis Island delivers a whole lot of laughs. This droll British picture… is so sharply observed and infectiously funny that you don’t at first notice that it plays out in a mournful minor key. … a bittersweet, cardigan-clad small treasure of a film and a balm for battered souls. ” Wendy Ide, The Observer

“What you also don’t anticipate is how poignant it all gets — a melancholy farce with an oddly pure soul.” Danny Leigh, Financial Times

“The Ballad of Wallis Island serves up Stephen King’s Misery with a mug of tea and a lemon scone on the side. Here, parasocial fandom might cause the odd faux pas, but everyone’s feet stay nicely attached – and, ultimately, it comes from a pure place, with the potential even to transform both the obsessee and their target into better people.” Clarisse Loughrey, The Independent

“This is simple but not simplistic filmmaking; an exceedingly British comedy that steers just clear of mawkish.” Francesca Steele, Sight and Sound

Directed by Luc Jacquet, 2005, France, USA, Colour, English, 80′ mins, Certificate: U

They do so in style, following an instinctual choreography to the bit of no sound but the wind, the ice, as it moves, and cracks, and booms, and the ocean. No matter that they are the tallest and heaviest of their species, and the only ones who dare to breed during the Winter in Antarctica.

Luc Jaccquet captures all that with a keen, yet tender eye, finding and honoring the small moments of triumph and heartbreak, before opening out his gaze back to the grant vistas of the landscape. The result is an Oscar wining, record breaking* documentary that will seduce your eyes, excite your brain, and warm your heart, like an odd, improvised musical or an edgy romantic comedy you couldn’t have imagined and never thought you needed.

*It is the highest grossing nature documentary ever, and the top 4rth documentary of all time. It is also worth noting that, by the time of the 2006 Academy Awards, this Best Documentary winner had out-grossed all 5 Best Picture nominees ($77 million vs. $75 million for Brokeback Mountain).

Reviews:

“French director Luc Jacquet and a team of incredibly brave (and heavily bundled) documentary filmmakers captured this complicated mating ritual with strikingly crisp photography that’s both grand and intimate. The images of this unforgiving terrain (the work of cinematographers Laurent Chalet and Jerome Maison) are so viscerally evocative, you might find yourself shivering in your seat… ” Christy Lemire, Associated Press

“This astonishing film, shot in the Antarctic, captures sights never seen before. Jacquet’s movie is as visually ravishing as “Winged Migration,” and more gripping.” David Ansen, Newsweek

“Middle America has embraced Luc Jacquet’s film for its purportedly pro-family-values depiction of the emperor penguin’s gruelling breeding process. In fact, it’s the sheer alienness of the penguins’ actions that make the film so fascinating. Imagine if we had to reproduce by leaving our homes every year to walk for miles to a big field, where we paired off and had very public sex before the women wandered off in search of grub, leaving the men starving and holding the baby in subzero temperatures. We’d be on the verge of extinction. Morgan Freeman’s slick voice-over compounds a slightly plodding structure, but the dedication of the penguins – and the cameramen – assure your wonderment.” Nick Funnell, TimeOut

“A perfect family movie, a perfect date movie, and one of the most eye-ravishing documentaries ever made.” David Denby, The New Yorker

After years of trying, we are finally able to share it with you. Serendipitously, on this Mental Health Awareness Month, on its 20th anniversary, a year after its director’s latest, It Was Just an Accident, won the Palm d’ Or at the Cannes Film Festival, (it also scored a BAFTA and a couple of Oscar nominations, a few month ago), and while all eyes are on Iran.

Panahi is arguably the most significant – along with his mentor Abbas Kiarostami – contributor to the Iranian New Wave cinema. Yet, he has consistently been the thorn in the side of the Iranian regime, as he focused his unapologetic, discerning, yet never obviously political gaze, first on children, then women and the marginalised, exposing the unyielding social, political and gendered structures of his home country.

Even before he was sentenced to 6 years in prison along with a 20-year ban on filmmaking activities in 2010, he had to shoot most of his films in secret, with amateurs actors, guerilla style, to avoid the Iranian authorities’ wrath. Still, since 2000’s The Circle all of them were banned or somehow censored in Iran, even though they triumphed anywhere else.

Case in point: he is one of only four directors in history – alongside Henri-Georges Clouzot, Michelangelo Antonioni, and Robert Altman – to win the top prizes at Europe’s three major film festivals, wining the Palme d’Or at Cannes last year, the Golden Bear at Berlin for Taxi (2015), and the Golden Lion at Venice for The Circle.

Often described as “a Farsi Bend it Like Beckham”, Offside is equally, highly entertaining, full of radical joy, but so much more nuanced and impactful in its sociopolitical satire. Clandestinely shot with easy to maneuver and hide digital video cameras, in part during the real life qualifying match between Iran and Bahrain, it is blessed with a spirited group of non actors university students, who came up with their own disguises as boys.

Banned in Iran just before its predicted to break box office records planned cinema release, it still became a hit, and Panahi’s most seen film by his countrymen and – most importantly – countrywomen, due to its unlicensed DVD copies that became available all over the country 2 days after the ban came into force.

So, what are you waiting for? Join the revolution with us!

Reviews:

“Offside is a vibrant, bitter-sweet… Shot on hand-held digital video cameras with a fly-on-the-wall immediacy and engagingly acted by a non-professional cast… Absurdly amusing, it recalls the best work of Ken Loach, in that the humour and the social critique emerge from the predicaments of the characters.” Tom Dawson, BBC Movies

“Jafar Panahi’s inspiring and charming film follows the frustrations and exhilarations of a group of girls caught trying to sneak into Iran’s World Cup qualifying match with Bahrain.Despite moments of genuine fear, when one or other of the “prisoners” ponders the severity of her punishment, this is a loving and lovely film.” Angus Wolfe Murray, Eye For Film

“A non-professional cast,sometimes improvising, is engagingly energetic, and the film is altogether so much fun that it’s almost – but not quite – possible at moments to forget that Panahi’s statement about Iranian culture here is every bit as impassioned and angry as his previous work. Even non-sporting audiences should take it to heart.” Jonathan Romney, Screen Daily

“Offside is comic and exuberant, bold and resilient, but it is also acutely sensitive to the tensions simmering in a society where young people, only too aware of the possibilities offered by a globalised world, are asking when they too will be brought into the game. ” Julian Graffy, Sight & Sound