Thirty Two Members braved the awful stormy weather to enjoy a social gathering with wine, soft drinks and nibbles before the screening.
The Film was well received with an average score of 8.8 out of 10 which was better than the IMDb score of 7.7.
Some of the comments received were as follows:-
I like to watch the âCriterion Closet Picksâ videos on YouTube. If youâve never seen them: people from the film world, be they directors, actors or whatever, get invited into the Criterion closet, which is a closet full of DVDs and Blu-rays, and they get to pick and choose films they like. As long as they talk about them for a bit as well.
So I just finished watching the one where director Gints Zilbalodis from Latvia picks a number of films. Normally I may make a few notes with regards to the films that get chosen, but this time, it was the director himself who seemed such a great guy that I became curious about his films. The write-up said he had just made âFlowâ so off I went to the IMDb website.
Turns out Flow is an animated film, in a style which seems highly original, judging by the trailer. Iâm not much of a fan of animated films, to be honest, but this one seems an absolute gem, about a cat (it helps if youâre a cat lover I suppose!) who has to survive in a drowned out world without human beings. Amazingly, thereâs no dialogue and all the animals have real-life âvoicesâ, which involved trips to the zoo to get recordings of some rarer species! Itâs an almost biblical theme, but then without humans.
Premiering at Cannes earlier this year and winning awards in Annecy, it has since been submitted by Latvia for the Best International Feature Film category of the 2025 Academy Awards. The IMDb score of 7.9 underwrites the quality of this film.
It is out this month (December 2024), so definitely one to seek out. Itâs a u-rated film, so why not try and make it a Christmas outing with the whole family!
Adrian
The Passion of Anna, Ingmar Bergmanâs film of 1969, is not everyoneâs favourite. Some like it a bit, most donât like it all. The odd interludes with the actors talking about their roles feel experimental and out of place. Jarring even. And yet, having just seen it again after a long while, I must admit itâs growing on me. Especially after having heard some interesting information about it.
Liv Ullmann, who plays Anna, said in an interview that the English title is misleading. The filmâs original title is En Passion (A Passion). No mention of Anna at all. And that piece of information may be the key to oneâs liking the film better. It is NOT about Anna, but about the complete – both mental and in the end even literal – disintegration of a man.
Another interesting fact is that that same Liv Ullmann said that Ingmar Bergman basically spent his days filming his own life. His oeuvre reads like an autobiography. This particular film was written and shot while Ingmar Bergmanâs relationship with Liv Ullmann was falling apart. Is the main character – Andreas Winkelman – really just another version of Ingmar himself? The film does seem to capture the strangling emotions of a relational breakdown perfectly.
Itâs funny how those two small pieces of information will make one look at this film in a different light. So do me a favour, and try and watch it again. Iâm hopeful youâll be duly impressed with its emotional depth and Bergmanâs talent. May those final shots of the film stay with you for a long, long time, because theyâre beautiful!
Adrian
Screening Friday 6th December 2024
Not too keen on sugar-coated Disney animations? Or maybe you find the myriad of Japanese animation films a little too infantile?
Donât worry, with our December film, Belleville Rendez-vous, youâll get none of that. Instead, youâll be treated to a highly original, maybe slightly quirky, animation film, which basically reinvented the genre at the time.
Frenchman Sylvain Chomet must have felt the same, for his first feature movie, released in 2003, was not only unlike any other animated film out at the time. He even included a few digs at the more commercial side of the animations industry. Watch out for Mickey Mouse appearing in a slightly compromised place (a toilet!) and a wallet commenting on other Disney characters.
But you donât have to watch it for those reasons. Just come and watch because it is visually entertaining, fun, fast-paced and youâll love Bruno the dog!
It’s also worth noting that it won Oscars for the Best Animated Feature and Best Music in 2004.
Oh and donât forget: Christmas nibbles and cheer from 6.30pm onwards! Plus a free DVD give-away bonanza!
This film was massively well received. We had 39 attending and every single one gave a score of 5!
Comments included:
Not a dry eye in the house.
Thatâs what weâre promising you if you join us on the 15th of November to watch âOne Lifeâ, the 2023 film by James Hawes. Yet, thereâs not an ounce of sentimentalism to be witnessed. But then, when you got Anthony Hopkins on the billing, youâre more or less assured of a high-quality film, arenât you?!
And Hopkins is the embodiment of a long-lasting career, defying the commonly held view that film careers are are only for the young and beautiful. Itâs amazing to see how he manages to keep finding roles to play that showcase his talent, yet feel differently with each picture he makes.
An honourable mention needs to go to Johnny Flynn who managed to make all of us swoon when he played Mr. Knightly in the 2020 adaptation of jane Austenâs Emma, only to return now in a much more serious role. Will he prove to be just as versatile as Mr. Hopkins…?
Only 34 members attended this showing which was a shame as it was very well received with a rating of 8.2 /10 (IMDb 8.4). Nearly half the attendees considered it as excellent.
Here is a selection of the comments given.
“I am big, Itâs the picture that got small,” is a notable quote from the Film.
At the time, Billy Wilderâs 1950 film Sunset Boulevard was the first to show the politics and powerplay of the Holywood studio system in a way never seen before by audiences.
Gloria Swanson plays Norma Desmond, a famous actress from the silent movie era whoâs not been able to hang on to fame after âtalkiesâ came in. In the film, we witness her psychological breakdown while still longing for fame. Her world becomes ever more delusional, resulting in the demise of herself and others around her.
Interestingly, the film could have portrayed Gloria Swansonâs life, though she was one of the very few who did successfully carry on her glittering career in the silent movie era to that of the talking pictures. We come across the real life director Cecil B DeMille, who made Gloria Swanson a star. In the film we see DeMille actually directing his 1950 film Samson and Delilah. Another link to the âreal worldâ is the butler played by Erich von Stroheim who both in the film as in real life had discovered the actress and directed her in various films. But Gloria Swanson always denied that the story of the film reflected her own story. No dead bodies in her swimming pool!
In Hollywood everyone is ultimately replaceable. So come and join us on 25 October to see this film which everyone thought could / should not be made, but which is now still one of the best Hollywood film noirs of its time.
48 members turned up to watch this film. The feedback forms gave it a rating of 6.8 out of 10 compared with an IMDb rating of 7.0. There were 5 members who rated it as “Very Good” with most classifying it as “OK”. A selection of comments received illustrated the range of views.
Thought provoking, complex character, profound feelings.
Different culture, age group but the beauty of cinema. A good first performance!
Different culture, age group but the beauty of cinema. A good first performance!
It held my attention, nice seeing Korea
Quite liked it but very long
it was interesting and compelling but I didnât like it
Made me cry.
Curates Egg (?)
Had a certain gloomy charm but it felt like 5 hours.
The opening film of the season “A Serious Man” was shown on the 15th September. This Comedy/Drama made in 2009 was viewed by 45 members. It was given an average score of 7.3 out of 10 which compares with the IMDb rating of 7.0
Some of the comments received were:-
“Entertaining and amusing”
“That was two hours of my life which I will not get back!”
Darkly funny, thank you’
‘2 hours of my life I won’t get back’
‘A good choice of film. thanks’
‘Entertaining and amusing’
‘Not what i was expecting from the synopsis but really good, bittersweet’
‘Shocked by ending, still nothing is certain’.