Movie of the Week

• Bottoms

Cinemas

• How to Have Sex
• The Royal Hotel
• Dance First
• On the Adamant
• Nobody Has to Know
• The Bystanders
• I Am Urban
• The Undertaker

Streaming/On-Demand

• Nyad
• Sly
• Locked In
• Quiz Lady
• Fingernails
• Boudica

Re-Releases

• Pressure

CAST: Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri, Ruby Cruz, Havana Rose Liu, Kaia Gerber, Nicholas Galitzine, Miles Fowler, Marshawn Lynch, Dagmara Domińczyk, Punkie Johnson, Zamani Wilder, Summer Joy Campbell, Virginia Tucker, Wayne Péré

CREW: Emma Seligman (director, writer), Rachel Sennott (writer), Elizabeth Banks, Max Handelman and Alison Small (producers), Leo Birenberg and Charli XCX (composers), Maria Rusche (cinematographer), Hanna Park (editor)

PLOT: PJ (Sennott) and Josie (Edebiri) are two unpopular gay high school seniors who desire to hook up with cheerleaders before graduation. After injuring the school’s psychotic star quarterback Jeff (Galitzine), they concoct an elaborate lie about having spent time in a juvenile prison, prompting them to start a violent self-defence club that soon attracts the attention of their cheerleader crushes Brittany (Cruz) and Isabelle (Liu)…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• Already being labelled as one of the year’s funniest films, this wild and unpredictable dark teen comedy finally arrives in UK cinemas after gaining a devoted following in the United States
• Director Emma Seligman, the filmmaker behind the anxiety-ridden Shiva Baby, reunites with star Rachel Sennott (who also co-wrote the script with Seligman) for a ferocious take on the classic high school formula
• Sennott and co-lead Ayo Edebiri pull no punches when it comes to some of the shocking violence, as well as a number of hilarious encounters with their cheerleader crushes and psychotic quarterbacks
• Its raunchy dialogue and rather bloody action make for an extremely entertaining ride, especially for anyone who misses that era of teen flicks that pushed the envelope more than they currently do
• Early reviews have called this a modern teen classic, and they may be right if the rapturous reception by US audiences is anything to go by!

Bottoms is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Mia McKenna-Bruce, Lara Peake, Shaun Thomas, Samuel Bottomley, Enva Lewis, Laura Ambler, Eilidh Loan, Daisy Jelley

CREW: Molly Manning Walker (director, writer), Konstantinos Kontovrakis, Emily Leo and Ivana MacKinnon (producers), James Jacob (composer), Nicolas Canniccioni (cinematographer), Fin Oates (editor)

PLOT: Tara (McKenna-Bruce) and her fellow teen friends Skye (Peake) and Em (Lewis) head to Crete for a sunny, booze-soaked holiday after completing their exams. Tara is eager to lose her virginity on the holiday, and after befriending handsome Badger (Thomas) and his friends it seems she might be in luck – only for things to take a less desirable turn…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• This subversive and poignant teen drama puts the adolescent rite-of-passage that is the Cretan summer holiday under the microscope
• Molly Manning Walker, the cinematographer behind Charlotte Regan’s own standout debut Scrapper, makes her filmmaking debut a confident and impressively assured one
• It is anchored by a stellar lead turn by Mia McKenna-Bruce, as a teen who finds her holiday in paradise going in some unwanted directions
• The film tackles some heavy themes about consent and sexual pressure among teenagers, in thoughtful and even shocking ways that make this required viewing for any adolescents learning about the important of “no” in physical relationships
• Having won the Un Certain Regard prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, this film is probably as close to awards love that a teen holiday resort with cheap cheesy chips and fishbowl cocktails will probably get

How to Have Sex is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Julia Garner, Jessica Henwick, Hugo Weaving, Toby Wallace, Ursula Yovich, Daniel Henshall, James Frecheville, Herbert Nordrum, Barbara Lowing, Bree Bain

CREW: Kitty Green (director, writer), Oliver Redding (writer), Iain Canning, Kath Shelper, Emile Sherman and Liz Watts (producers), Jed Palmer (composer), Michael Latham (cinematographer), Kasra Rassoulzadegan (editor)

PLOT: Hanna (Garner) and Liv (Henwick) are two Canadian friends who are backpacking across Australia, but when their funds run low, they are forced to take a job working as barmaids at a remote pub called The Royal Hotel, run by its alcoholic owner Billy (Weaving). As they work tireless shifts, the friends soon attract the sinister attention of the local men…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• Tensions are high in this unsettling and suspenseful Australian thriller about the dangers of male toxicity, and the passiveness people tend to treat it with
• Director and co-writer Kitty Green, who previously impressed with her pseudo-Weinstein workplace drama The Assistant, presents an uncomfortable environment where things can turn sour at any given moment
• Julia Garner reunites with Green for another compelling performance, alongside Jessica Henwick and a plethora of memorable supporting turns from the likes of Hugo Weaving and Toby Wallace
• Green, along with co-writer Oliver Redding, based their film on the harrowing documentary Hotel Coolgardie, which detailed the rather disturbing experiences of foreign backpackers in a similarly remote mining town in Australia
• It doesn’t always go the way you’d expect it to, but at all times you’re left breathless by the sheer amount of fear that the environment creates

The Royal Hotel is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Gabriel Byrne, Fionn O’Shea, Aidan Gillen, Maxine Peake, Sandrine Bonnaire, Léonie Lojkine, Robert Aramayo, Bronagh Gallagher, Lisa Dwyer Hogg, Barry O’Connor, Gráinne Good, Caroline Boulton

CREW: James Marsh (director), Neil Forsyth (writer), Michael Livingstone, Viktória Petrányi and Tom Thostrup (producers), Antonio Paladino (cinematographer), David Charap (editor)

PLOT: A look at the life of renowned playwright Samuel Beckett (Byrne), from his early days as a Second World War resistance fighter, to his tumultuous relationship with fellow author James Joyce (Gillen), to his later life as a recluse…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• The life of Samuel Beckett, considered one of the last modernist writers of the twentieth century, is playfully explored in this unconventional biopic of the famed Irish writer
• Gabriel Byrne plays Beckett, with Fionn O’Shea playing a younger version in numerous flashback scenes
• The film covers a number of significant events in Beckett’s life, including his success with plays like Waiting for Godot, and his awarding of the Nobel Prize in Literature
• James Marsh, who directed Eddie Redmayne to a Best Actor Oscar in The Theory of Everything, brings to life a script by Neil Forsyth, who makes his film debut after writing for TV shows like Guilt and Bob Servant
• You’ll learn a lot more about the mysterious figure here than you would in any other run-of-the-mill biopic

Dance First is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023 (and will be streaming exclusively on Sky Cinema soon)

CAST: Mamadi Barri, Walid Benziane, Sabine Berlière, Romain Bernardin, Charafdine Bouzaraa, Linda De Zitter, François Gozlan, Jean-Paul Hazan, Pauline Hertz, Frédéric Prieur, Muriel Thourond, Sébastien Tournayre

CREW: Nicolas Philibert (director, writer, cinematographer, editor), Linda De Zitter (writer), Céline Loiseau, Miléna Poylo and Gilles Sacuto (producers)

PLOT: The Adamant is a psychiatric centre for adults with mental health issues, located in the middle of the Seine River in central Paris, where patients and their carers work to overcome their personal barriers…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• This gentle and insightful French documentary explores the lives of adults with learning difficulties, and the Seine-based centre where they regularly visit
• Nicolas Philibert, the filmmaker behind the acclaimed 2003 school documentary Être et Avoir, brings a similar level of compassion and care to this film, which could be considered a spiritual sequel to the 2003 movie
• It won the Golden Bear at this year’s Berlin Film Festival, as well as the heart of jury president Kristen Stewart who praised the film as “cinematic proof of the vital necessity of human expression”
• A lack of non-diegetic music allows the atmosphere to feel more immediate and grounded, as well as smoother for any viewers with sensory issues
• Full of vibrant real-life characters and a tremendous supply of empathy, it will lift your emotions in the most unexpected ways

On the Adamant is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023 (and will be available to rent exclusively on Curzon Home Cinema)

CAST: Michelle Fairley, Bouli Lanners, Cal MacAninch, Clovis Cornillac, Julian Glover, Andrew Still, Donald Douglas

CREW: Bouli Lanners (director, writer), Stéphane Malandrin (writer), Jacques-Henri Bronckart (producer), Pascal Humbert and Sébastien Willemyns (composers), Frank van den Eeden (cinematographer), Ewin Ryckaert (editor)

PLOT: Phil (Lanners), a robust middle-aged man, suffers a stroke which causes him to lose his memory. Millie (Fairley), the woman taking care of him, falsely tells him that they were secretly in love before his condition worsened, which ignites a series of unexpected events for the two of them…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• Filmmaker Bouli Lanners directs, co-writes and co-stars in this moving romantic drama
• A co-production between Lanners’ native Belgium and the United Kingdom, the film combines the filmmaker’s European style with a UK flavour
• Game of Thrones alumni Michelle Fairley stars alongside Lanners in a role that could be extremely questionable if placed in the wrong hands, but thankfully the actor makes her role compelling regardless
• It was nominated for a number of awards at the Magritte Awards (Belgium’s answer to the Oscars), and won for Best Film and Best Director
• Even with a plot that sounds like if Overboard was a Merchant Ivory production, there is a strong sense of emotion that should carry the audience through

Nobody Has to Know is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Scott Haran, Seann Walsh, Georgia Mabel Clarke, Andi Jashy, Nick Helm, Chris Wright, Emily Wyatt, Frank Harper, Lucy Pinder, David Schaal, Marek Larwood, Tom Clegg, Lauren Douglin, Adam Morse, Stefan Boehm, Aimée Hills, Ray Calleja, Emily Milburn, Nikolaos Brahimllari, Kurt Deed

CREW: Gabriel Foster Prior (director, writer, producer), Jack Hughes (writer), Luisa Riviere (producer), Foz Foster (composer), Matthias Ashford (cinematographer), Will Steer (editor)

PLOT: Pete (Haran), a directionless nobody, is recruited to become a Bystander, an invisible guardian angel whose job is to watch over and occasionally intervene with their assigned person’s life. However, as Pete and his cynical mentor Frank (Walsh) find themselves bored senseless by their menial job, they soon make a pledge that shakes up both their lives…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• In this comedic take on a concept made popular by Wim Wenders’ Wings of Desire, we see how dull and unfulfilling it is to be an invisible guardian angel
• Lead actors Scott Haran and comedian Seann Walsh have stinging comic chemistry with each other
• Gabriel Foster Prior’s stylish and playful direction has been likened to Edgar Wright, while his and Jack Hughes’ script contains witty zinger after witty zinger
• Like in Wenders’ film, the cinematography plays around frequently with black-and-white and colour imagery to differentiate between the mortal world and that of the Bystanders
• It’s an irreverent yet unexpectedly endearing film about appreciating life in all its weirdness

The Bystanders is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Fraser Kelly, Richard Armitage, Anna Friel, Charlie Heaton, Jonathan Payne, Liam Ainsworth, Olivia Downie Hullah, Olivia Tomlinson, Oscar Rogers, Nadine Rose Mulkerrin, Ellie Rooney-West, Neil Morrissey, Kathryn Drysdale

CREW: Candida Brady (director, writer, producer), Bernard Hare and Tiffany Sharp (writers), Matthew Mitchell and Titus Ogilvy (producers), Geoff Gamlen (composer), Peter Field (cinematographer), Armen Deghkhadirian (editor)

PLOT: In 90s Leeds, hard-living former social worker Chop (Armitage) becomes the unexpected beacon of light for anarchic foster kid Urban (Kelly) and his band of runaway friends…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• You’ll feel all the feelings as you watch this tender and moving drama about the unlikely bond between an out-of-control kid and his unorthodox new carer
• It is based on the award-nominated memoir Urban Grimshaw and the Shed Crew by Bernard Hare, who also has a screenwriting credit on this film
• Hobbit star Richard Armitage holds his own opposite young co-star Fraser Kelly, and there’s room for memorable supporting turns by Anna Friel and Neil Morrissey
• The film had its world premiere at the Leeds International Film Festival back in 2015, and is finally receiving a theatrical release almost ten years later
• Highlighting the social strife of working-class citizens in the north of England, this is an often harsh but painfully real look at how life was back then

I Am Urban is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Paul McGann, Tara Fitzgerald, Murray Melvin, Roger Barclay, Sean Gilder, Nicholas Rowe, Lily Frazer, Robert Whitelock, Ray Emmet Brown, Carlotta Morelli, Bob Cryer, Marc Danbury, Gracie Lupton, Tom Cavendish

CREW: Michael Wright (director, writer, producer), Roger Barclay and Ben Hughes (producers), Tess Tyler (composer), Luke Fleming (cinematographer), Nikk Fielden (editor)

PLOT: Arthur (McGann), a mild-mannered undertaker, reluctantly makes a deal with local gangster Finlay Unsworth (Barclay) to secretly dispose of his victims. However, when Finlay’s killing gets out of control, Arthur realises that the only way to free himself of his immoral employer is to end his reign of terror on his own terms…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• This quiet but no less thrilling crime thriller is not nearly as meek or even as straightforward as it seems
• Paul McGann, best known as the Eighth Doctor and for being the “I” of Withnail and I, puts in a stoic lead performance that says plenty without much dialogue
• The strong supporting cast includes Game of Thrones alumni Tara Fitzgerald and the late Murray Melvin in one of his final roles
• Some shocking gangster violence accompanies a healthy dose of moral drama in director Michael Wright’s script
• It builds and builds to a surprising climax that turns everything on its head

The Undertaker is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Annette Bening, Jodie Foster, Rhys Ifans, Karly Rothenberg, Jeena Yi

CREW: Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vaserhelyi (directors), Julia Cox (writer), Andrew Lazar and Teddy Schwarzman (producers), Alexandre Desplat (composer), Claudio Miranda (cinematographer), Christopher Tellefsen (editor)

PLOT: At the age of 60, former swim athlete Diana Nyad (Bening) decides to revitalise her lifelong dream of swimming 110 miles in the open ocean from Cuba to Florida, and with the help of her loyal coach and best friend Bonnie (Foster) she makes great progress towards turning her dream into a reality…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• The remarkable true story of Diana Nyad’s unprecedented swimming feat is the heart and soul of this winning sports drama
• Oscar-nominated actor Annette Bening delivers a towering lead turn as Nyad herself, and is firmly backed up by an equally strong supporting turn by Jodie Foster
• It is the narrative debut of directors Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vaserhelyi, who won an Oscar for their work on the thrilling climbing documentary Free Solo
• Top Gun: Maverick cinematographer Claudio Miranda creates some beautiful ocean-based visuals that make the viewer want to root for its central figure even more
• For those looking for a crowd-pleasing story of defying expectations and overcoming impossible odds, this is a solid choice to pick

Nyad is streaming exclusively on Netflix from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Quentin Tarantino, Jennifer Flavin, John Hurzfeld, Wesley Morris, Frank Stallone, Sage Stallone, Scarlet Rose Stallone, Sistine Rose Stallone, Sophia Rose Stallone, Henry Winkler

CREW: Thom Zimny (director, editor), Sean M. Stuart (producer), Tyler Strickland (composer), Justin Kane (cinematographer), Annie Salsich (editor)

PLOT: The fifty-plus career of action star Sylvester Stallone, and his own personal rise to glory, is given an all-encompassing retrospective…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• The life of one of cinema’s most iconic action heroes is put on display in this raw and honest documentary
• Stallone lays bare his own underdog story that’s hard-hitting and inspirational enough to be worthy of a Rocky movie
• Through several interviews with the man himself and many of his family and friends, including his former arch-rival Arnold Schwarzenegger, we get a clearer picture of what kind of person Stallone truly is
• We see many of his high points, and also some of his low points, in a film that goes out of its way to present as balanced a view of its subject as possible
• Anyone who’s ever loved one of Stallone’s most famous roles, from Rocky to Rambo, will come out of this with a whole new appreciation for the man behind those timeless heroes

Sly is streaming exclusively on Netflix from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Rose Williams, Famke Janssen, Anna Friel, Alex Hassell, Finn Cole

CREW: Nour Wazzi (director), Rowan Joffe (writer), Nicky Bentham (producer), Alex Baranowski (composer), Remi Adefarasin (cinematographer), Fiona DeSouza (editor)

PLOT: Newlywed Lina (Williams) finds herself pitted against her cold-hearted, wealthy mother-in-law Katherine (Janssen) after an affair leads to betrayal and murder – but it soon transpires that the victim may not be who she seems…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• There are twists and turns aplenty in this unpredictable new psychological thriller
• Rose Williams, recently seen in The Power and Harris Goes to Paris, faces off against former Bond girl and X-Men star Famke Janssen in a sharp-fanged battle of wits
• Some sultry affairs with unexpected lovers add a little bit of spice to the cold-hearted affair
• You’ll be curious where it’s going next, especially after certain revelations that call the validity of its main protagonist into doubt
• For anyone looking for their fill of fun throwaway thrillers to put on during a lonely night, this will give them exactly what they want

Locked In is streaming exclusively on Netflix from Wednesday 1st November 2023

CAST: Awkwafina, Sandra Oh, Jason Schwartzman, Holland Taylor, Tony Hale, Jon “Dumbfoundead” Park, Will Ferrell, Paul Reubens

CREW: Jessica Yu (director), Jen D’Angelo (writer, producer), Awkwafina, Jessica Elbaum, Will Ferrell, Maggie Haskins, Sandra Oh and Itay Reiss (producers), Nick Urata (composer), Adrian Peng Correia (cinematographer), Nat Sanders and Susan Vaill (editors)

PLOT: Anne (Awkwafina), a tightly-wound young woman who’s obsessed with game shows, is forced to travel across the country with her chaotic sister Jenny (Oh) to appear on her favourite game show, in order to win the money she needs to pay off the crooks that have stolen her dog…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• Awkwafina and Sandra Oh both play against type in this hilarious road-trip comedy
• Killing Eve star Oh has a blast in a higher-energy role than she’s used to playing, while Awkwafina opts for a different kind of energy in a much lower key part
• Filmmaker Jessica Yu directs a script by Jen D’Angelo, whose recent film credits include Hocus Pocus 2 and Prime Video’s time-travelling slasher comedy Totally Killer
• Keep an eye out for plenty of comedy giants in smaller roles, including Will Ferrell, Tony Hale, Jason Schwartzman, and the late Paul Reubens
• With plenty of unhinged laughs and unexpected situations, this is a comedy that is by far and away the correct option

Quiz Lady is streaming exclusively on Disney+ from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Jessie Buckley, Riz Ahmed, Jeremy Allen White, Luke Wilson, Annie Murphy, Christian Meer, Amanda Arcuri, Nina Kiri, Clare McConnell, Katy Breier, Juno Rinaldi, Jim Watson, Varun Saranga

CREW: Christos Nikou (director, writer, producer), Stavros Raptis and Sam Steiner (writers), Cate Blanchett, Coco Francini, Andrew Upton and Lucas Wiesendanger (producers), Christopher Stracey (composer), Marcell Rév (cinematographer), Giorgos Zafeiris (editor)

PLOT: In a future where true love has been scientifically proven thanks to controversial new technology, Anna (Buckley) lives a comfortable life with her confirmed partner Ryan (White). However, when she starts having doubts about her true feelings, she applies to work at a love testing institute where she meets Amir (Ahmed) and begins to find herself falling in love without the aid of the technology…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• This amusing sci-fi romantic-comedy asks whether or not our human desire for love is genuine or artificial
• Jessie Buckley and Riz Ahmed, two of the best actors working today, form a gentle bond as the main romantic couple
• Greek filmmaker Christos Nikou, the person behind the absurdist satire Apples, makes his English-language debut without losing any of his odd charm
• With Cate Blanchett on-board as a producer, there is bound to be a sense of profundity at the heart of its satirical premise
• Filled with dry humour and heartfelt scenes, this is a neat little surprise that might just have you falling in love all over again

Fingernails is streaming exclusively on Apple TV+ from Friday 3rd November 2023

CAST: Olga Kurylenko, Clive Standen, Peter Franzén, Rita Tushingham, Lucy Martin, Nick Moran, James Faulkner, Leo Gregory, Harry Kirton, Yarden Tusia-Cohen, Dominiquie Vandenberg, Kris Johnson, Rachel Wilde, Litiana Biutanaseva, Justin Sysum

CREW: Jesse V. Johnson (director, writer), Ehud Bleiberg, Lucinda Rhodes Thakrar and Mark Vennis (producers), Sean Murray (composer), Jonathan Hall (cinematographer), Matthew Lorentz (editor)

PLOT: In 61 AD, as the Roman Empire rules over British territory, the Celtic King Prasutagus (Standen) rules over the Iceni people with his wife Boudica (Kurylenko) by his side. When Prasutagus is murdered by the Romans, and his land seized shortly thereafter, a vengeful Boudica rallies various tribes from the kingdom and wages war against the mighty Roman Empire…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• The legendary story of the Celtic Queen Boudica, and her heroic stance against the Roman Empire, is retold in a brand-new action-packed historical epic
• Olga Kurylenko plays the titular Queen, and utilises her inner badass to bring the fierce leader to life
• The ruthlessness of the Roman Empire during its occupation of Britannia is a source for some of the most violent and upsetting scenes
• Don’t worry, for many of them do get their comeuppance with some equally bloody battle sequences that feature savagery in the extreme!
• As an introduction to a true historical legend, this is a captivating and engaging way to be introduced to Boudica’s legacy

Boudica is available to rent/buy on digital platforms from Monday 30th October 2023

CAST: Herbert Norville, Oscar James, Frank Singuineau, Lucita Lijertwood, Sheila Scott-Wilkinson, Ed Devereaux, T-Bone Wilson, Ram John Holder, Norman Beaton, John Landry, Philip Jackson, Corinne Skinner-Carter

CREW: Horace Ové (director, writer), Samuel Selvon (writer), Robert Buckler (producer), Mike Davis (cinematographer), Alan J Cumner-Price (editor)

PLOT: Tony (Norville), the British-born teenage son of an immigrant family from Trinidad, navigates life as a young Black man in a White-dominated society where systemic racism keeps working-class civilians down…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

• The UK’s first Black narrative feature remains just as relevant today as it did nearly fifty years ago
• Filmmaker Sir Horace Ové, who recently passed away at the age of 86, focuses on topics such as racism and class in his damning interpretation of British life for the Windrush generation
• This new 4K restoration, a combined effort by the BFI National Archive and The Film Foundation, marks the launch of a new BFI season celebrating the life and work of the late pioneering director
• It does not shy away from the real-life horrors of police brutality and unconscious prejudice that Black people have to sadly face on a regular basis
• A landmark film in British film history, one with themes that cannot be ignored almost five decades on, this is a big-screen experience that should be felt and understood by all

Pressure is showing in cinemas from Friday 3rd November 2023