Long list for the new season

It’s that time of year when we need to start planning for the new film season. We’ve compiled

a long list of films that we can easily source, have heard good things about and think are

worth consideration. We need your help now in narrowing them down and selecting the ones

you want to see.

Please take the time to read the summaries below, and then complete the tick list at the end,

indicating any films you definitely do want to see, and that you don’t, and those that you

hadn’t necessarily heard of until now, but you’d be willing to give a try.

We always try to find a balance between showing popular crowd pleasers, but also excellent

films that you may not necessarily have heard of.

By now, we hope that you’ve seen enough hidden gems to trust us and forgive us the (very)

odd dud!

If you could drop your completed preferences by Monday 23 November to the town hall, or

just email us the titles you’d really like to see at enquiries@selseytowncouncil.gov.uk, then

we’d be very grateful, as it helps inform our programming.

Once again, thanks for all your support.

Sam, Louise & the rest of the Cinema Club Team

SPECTRE

Available April

There is probably not too much to say about this.

Bond is back, which means action, adventure,

camp humour, fast cars, beautiful girls and

supervillains! Reuniting the team behind Skyfall,

the lastest Bond has again been the darling of the

critics, and promises another vintage helping of

effortless British spy action.

AMY

(15) 128mins Biography

A very, very powerful biography indeed from Asif

Kapadia, the maker of “Senna”. The formidable

talent of Amy Winehouse is laid out for us to see –

because in the cool light of retrospect she was a

great performer. The film uses a huge amount of

footage to tell her story, from the early home

video stuff from her difficult childhood through to

the glory days. But it is the fragile and self-

deprecating personality of the girl that shines

through. The final scenes are overwhelming,

reducing many of its Cannes premiere audience to

tears. And the strength of this great film is to

make clear to us the role played in her downfall by

a frenzied and ever hungry media which kept on

wanting more. This is a tragedy and the film

shows us exactly what the world lost when her life

ended.

DARK HORSE

(PG) 85 mins Equestrian documentary.

A rags-to-riches story about the racehorse Dream

Alliance who was trained (and became the soul of)

a small Welsh mining community, depressed after

the closure of the Pit. (Can you believe it is a

village right next to Phill’s home village!) It is hard

to overestimate the popular appeal of this little

film. It has had audiences from Wales to Robert

Redford’s Sundance Festival cheering on their feet.

As Mandy, Associate at Capel in Surrey reported

on her May show: “Everybody absolutely loved

it.”

45 YEARS

(12A) 93mins Drama/Thriller

Big hit at this year’s Berlin Film Festival. Tom

Courtenay and Charlotte Rampling play a couple

(Geoff and Kate) whose celebration of 45 years of

marriage is wrecked by the discovery of the body

of Geoff’s previous lover in an Alpine glacier 50

years after her accidental death. This is a terrific

second film by British wunderkind Andrew Haigh.

All about a close relationship now revealed to be

not what it seemed.

The two leads are perfect (see the press

conference on the DVD) and Rampling especially

gives a quietly devastating performance.

SONG OF THE SEA

(PG) 93mins Children’s adventure

Irish animator Tomm Moore returns to the formula

he introduced in his “Secret of Kells”, here with a

folk tale of a little orphaned girl who turns out to

be a Selkie – a sort of Celtic sea fairy. The story

has plenty of modern realism and family truths to

prevent it becoming total whimsy. However it is

the wonderful colour design that delights the eye

and charms the mind. A film that will appeal to the

‘family audience’ without any talking down or

royalties to Disney.

THE THIRD MAN (12A) 104mins Classic

A great old friend gets a wash and brush up and

delights us again. What a wonder!

Script by Graham Greene, fabulous photography by

Robert Krasker, direction by Carol Reed. A feast of

literary fun. Joseph Cotton, Alida Valli, Trevor

Howard and –of course - Orson Welles. Simply

one of the best – and always will be.

A WALK IN THE WOODS

(15) 104mins Light drama.

In this new comedy adventure, celebrated travel

writer, Bill Bryson (Robert Redford), instead of

retiring to enjoy his loving and beautiful wife

(Emma Thompson), and large and happy family,

challenges himself to hike the Appalachian Trail -

2,200 miles of America's most unspoiled,

spectacular and rugged countryside from Georgia

to Maine. The peace and tranquillity he hopes to

find, though, is anything but, once he agrees to

being accompanied by the only person he can

find willing to join him on the trek - his long lost

and former friend Katz (Nick Nolte), a down-on-

his-luck serial philanderer who, after a lifetime of

relying on his charm and wits to keep one step

ahead of the law - sees the trip as a way to sneak

out of paying some debts and sneak into one last

adventure before it’s too late. The trouble is, the

two have a completely different definition of the

word, "adventure". Now they're about to find out

that when you push yourself to the edge, the real

fun begins.

Based on Bill Bryson’s best-seller.

BOLSHOI BABYLON (12A) 86mins

This is a special pre-release availability from our

friends at Altitude Films. The Bolshoi. Symbol of

Russia, a national treasure and one of the most

famous institutions in the world. Recently,

however, the theatre has been in the headlines for

all the wrong reasons: intrigue, personal attacks

and management changes have created lurid

headlines. From the two-time Academy Award-

winning Producer of MAN ON WIRE and

SEARCHING FOR SUGARMAN, BOLSHOI BABYLON

gives a voice to artists and company members on

irreverent and candid terms. With unparalleled

behind the scenes access, BOLSHOI BABYLON

provides a unique and privileged insight into the

dancers’ extraordinary artistic and athletic talents,

their abiding fear of injury and the ruthless

ambition needed to survive in the world’s most

famous ballet company.

BROOKLYN 12A 111mins Drama.

An Irish immigrant lands in 1950s Brooklyn, where

she quickly falls into a new romance. When her

past catches up with her, however, she must

choose between two countries and the lives that

exist within. Terrific cast (the estimable Saoirse

Ronan, Domnhall Gleeson, Julie Walters, Jim

Broadbent) in Nick Hornby’s adaptation of the

best-seller by Colm Toibin. “Brooklyn is one of

those rare films that's written, acted and directed

with such elegance, it never gets boring or

disengaging”. One of the hits of the Sundance

Festival in 2015, it is a film of grace and beauty and

Saoirse Ronan’s central performance is of Oscar

quality.

BURNT 12A (tbc) 100mins Romantic Drama.

Adam Jones (Bradley Cooper) is a Chef who

destroyed his career with drugs and diva

behaviour. He cleans up and returns to London,

determined to redeem himself by spearheading a

top restaurant that can gain three Michelin stars.

Fast moving, excellent depictions of culinary life in

the fast lane (whether or not totally accurate), the

always watchable Bradley Cooper and Sienna

Miller and a supporting cast to die for: Omar Sy,

Daniel Brühl, Matthew Rhys, Alicia Vikander, Uma

Thurman and Emma Thompson. Only drawback

maybe is that we may have seen our fill of

celebrity chefs! Some very enthusiastic ‘vox pop’

reviews on IMDB, contrast with the critics’ view.

BY THE SEA (12A) (tbc). 115 mins. Romantic Drama.

Set in France during the mid-1970s, Vanessa, a

former dancer, and her husband Roland, an

American writer, travel the country together. They

seem to be growing apart, but when they linger in

one quiet, seaside town they begin to draw close

to some of its more vibrant inhabitants, such as a

local bar/cafékeeper and a hotel owner.

Written and directed by ‘Angelina Jolie Pitt’ and

starring Ms Jolie and Brad Pitt with a strong

supporting cast including Melanie Laurent, Richard

Bohringer. Advertised as the last film in Angelina

Jolie’s acting career, it is her first with Brad Pitt in

10 years (‘Mr and Mrs Smith’ 2005). This is a new

film so there are no reviews – but lots of

anticipation.

CAROL (15) 118mins. Drama

The much anticipated new film from Todd Haynes

based on the novel by Patricia Highsmith. Rooney

Mara won the Best Actress award at Cannes for

her performance and Cate Blanchett stole all the

headlines for her (allegedly misquoted) remarks on

her previous love life. This is potentially one of the

great films of the decade. The story of a love

affair between two women in 1950s New York.

Performances are electric and Haynes’ recreation

of the period is every bit as mesmerising as in his

“Far from Heaven”. From the Cannes Festival

accolade: “ The film we've chosen to award is

more than a movie, it's a moment in history. The

first time a love story between two women was

treated with the respect and significance of any

other mainstream cinematic romance. For its

heartbreaking performances, stunning mise-en-

scene, and overall mastery of craft we are proud to

honour “ CAROL “ ….”

EVEREST (12A) 121mins. Adventure drama.

On the morning of May 10, 1996, climbers from

two commercial expeditions start their final ascent

toward the summit of Mount Everest, the highest

point on Earth. With little warning, a violent storm

strikes the mountain, engulfing the adventurers in

one of the fiercest blizzards ever encountered by

man. Challenged by the harshest conditions

imaginable, the teams must endure blistering

winds and freezing temperatures in an epic battle

to survive against nearly impossible odds. Based

on a true story this is an epic and spectacular

outdoor adventure with a splendid cast: Jake

Gyllenhall, Keira Knightley, Emily Watson, Josh

Brolin, Robin Wright.

“A movie that's as stunning and as majestic and as

spellbinding as mount Everest itself.”

FATHERS AND DAUGHTERS (15) 116mins. Drama

Tear-jerker about the problems bequeathed to a

prize-winning author to his daughter. This is a new

film so no reviews are available at time of writing.

Early reports indicate a strong central performance

from Russell Crowe, with great on-screen rapport

with Kylie Anne Rodgers as his child daughter.

Amanda Seyfried and Aaron Paul as the grown up

(messed up) daughter and her boyfriend good too.

Jane Fonda pops up with a great cameo.

GRANDMA (15). 79 minutes. Comedy drama.

The first screen outing in 27 years for Lily Tomlin,

now aged 75. Tomlin plays Elle Reid, a poet who is

as celebrated as she is misanthropic. When her 18

year old granddaughter Sage turns up, announcing

she is pregnant by her hopeless boyfriend, the pair

go on a road trip to get the money for an abortion,

which involves Elle reconnecting with people from

her past and Sage discovering how she has to stick

up for herself from now on.

No UK reviews yet for the film but from the San

Francisco Examiner: “Grandma” does deal with

the very touchy subject of abortion, but it does so

in a way that is thoughtful and intelligent. But this

movie is not at all about abortion. It is really about

the journey Elle and Sage take together and how it

helps them to move on into the future. And yes,

the main reason to see “Grandma” is for Tomlin

who reminds us once again why she is one of the

greatest comedians and actresses of all time. She

dominates each scene she’s in and holds our

attention for every second she’s onscreen”.

HE NAMED ME MALALA (PG) 88mins Documentary

“Academy Award Winning Director Davis

Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth - 2006) guides

the audience into the life of Malala Yousafzi, the

young Pakistani girl (youngest Nobel Prize Winner -

2014) who was shot in her school bus in 2012 by

the Taliban. At the heart of this heartwarming film

is the relatable and kind Malala, the daughter of

outspoken father Toor Pekai, reserved mother

Khushal and sister to two equally enjoyable

brothers Ziauddin and Atal. Through personal

interviews that shows the light that shines within

Malala and her family, we learn of her upbringing,

gain insight into her family and community,

through the rise of the Taliban. Making the story

accessible (especially to the younger audience),

Guggenheim perfectly intertwines (though

animation) the story behind Malala's name - the

name comes from a Pashtun woman who

encouraged the Afghan forces to fight on during

the Battle of Maiwand. This is a remarkable story

that deserves to be told and experienced by all,

especially today's young women. "Let us pick-up

our books and our pencils. They are our most

powerful weapon".

HECTOR (15) 87mins. Drama

A portrait of an invisible man and an authentic

account of homelessness within contemporary

Britain, Hector is at once a powerful character

study and an insight into the lives of those on the

margins. Hec has been living around the

motorways with transient friends for years. After

so long on the move, he hopes to have left his past

far behind. Our story follows his annual pilgrimage,

on the roads and in the cities, from Scotland to a

shelter in London to be with his temporary

Christmas family. But his clock is ticking and he is

compelled to try to reconnect with his real family

he last saw 15 years before. Premiered at this

year’s Edinburgh Film Festival and with a stunning

performance from Peter Mullen.

IN THE HEART OF THE SEA (12A) 121 mins. Adventure Drama

Latest blockbuster from Ron Howard, hitting

cinemas for Christmas. In the winter of 1820, the

New England whaling ship Essex was assaulted by

something no one could believe: a whale of

mammoth size and an almost human sense of

vengeance. This real-life maritime disaster would

inspire Herman Melville's Moby Dick. But that told

only half the story. "In the Heart of the Sea" is

about the harrowing aftermath, as the ship's

surviving crew is pushed to their limits, braving

storms, starvation, panic and despair, as their

captain searches for direction on the open sea and

his first mate still seeks to bring the great whale

down. Looks fabulous. Chris Hemsworth, Brendan

Gleeson, Cillian Murphy, Ben Wishaw. Release

held back from last May to make the film a big

Oscar contender.

LEGEND (18) 131mins. Crime Drama.

A tough, realistic but also elegant and exhuberant

telling of the story of the Kray brothers and their

rule of crime in London’s East End in the 60s. Tom

Hardy is remarkable in the double role of both the

brothers- his performance undeniably the

centrepiece of the movie. His Reggie is all charm

and swagger, with intelligence and ambition to

boot, whilst the schizophrenic Ronnie is a short-

tempered ball of emotional bluster. The film has

great period feel, underpinned by a great music

score from Carter Burwell. “There's a sense of

glorification here that mightn't sit well with some

audience members, however the Krays were

adored in the East End and to deny the glitzier

parts of their life would be to deny what made

them popular to begin with. An exceptional crime

picture with two outstanding performances from

one man, proving again that Hardy really is an

acting… legend.”

LIFE (15) 111mins. Drama.

The film chronicles the story behind the famous

1955 LIFE magazine photo shoot by Dennis Stock

of then-rising star, James Dean, and gives us an

inside look at some of Hollywood's most stars.

Director

Anton Corbijn brings to life an unlikely friendship.

Robert Pattinson as Stock plays the lead to

perfection- a brooding, ambitious man with few

redeeming features. Dean (Dane Dehaan) however

is solemn, single minded and impulsive in a

charismatic way. Dehaan steals the screen with his

relaxed performance. Part of the fascination of the

film is the backstory as to how and why some of

the now famous shots came into being. The

famous Time Square shot of a sodden Dean

walking the wet streets with a smoke in his mouth

and hands deep in his coat pockets was shot on a

whim. A fascinating snapshot of the mid 50s – of

a bright but difficult talent.

MACBETH (15) 113mins. Shakespeare

Australian director Justin Kurzel’s stunning version

of the play with Michael Fassbender and Marion

Cotillard. “I think Shakespeare would approve of

this retelling, starting as it does with the three

witches on the blasted heath, especially as the

witches are not caricatures and as the landscape

and skies reflect the sombre mood of a sombre

Scotland. Superstition is the social currency of the

day. Betrayal is afoot. The king is in danger. Lives

are easily lost in bloody battle. Mood and tone

are everything in Kurzel’s reading and what better

than music and sound to drive that home in

tandem with the images. Luckily we know the

story, so losing chunks of dialogue to the gods of

authenticity and sound mix matters less than

usual. Whether you like it or not is another matter.

Old traditionalists with memories of classic

Macbeth may find it a challenge to see it delivered

with a contemporary sensibility, but the film pays

its respects to the original with its powerful period

setting. No stage play could match the power of

the landscape depicted here, rugged, beautiful,

misty, wintry, expansive and foreboding as far as

the eye can see … Kurzel has made his vision come

alive on screen, and it is a singular, visceral, audio

visual Macbeth, operatic without the arias. No

wonder Cannes selected it for the Competition.

With a different jury, it could well have won the

Palme d’Or. “

MY NAZI LEGACY (PG) 96mins

MY NAZI LAGACY follows three men as they travel

together across Europe. For two of them the

journey involves a confrontation with the acts of

their fathers, who were both senior Nazi officers.

For the third, international lawyer and author

Philippe Sands, it means visiting the place where

much of his own Jewish family was destroyed by

the fathers of the two men he has come to know.

It is an emotional, psychological exploration of

three men wrestling with their past, the present of

Europe – and conflicting interpretations of the true

facts.

PAN (PG) 111mins. Fantasy.

12-year-old orphan Peter is spirited away to the

magical world of Neverland, where he finds both

fun and danger, and ultimately discovers his

destiny -- to become the hero who will be forever

known as Peter Pan. A lavish fantasy adventure

starring Hugh Jackman and directed by Joe Wright

director of ‘Atonement’ and ‘Pride & Prejudice’.

This is a film which suffered a critical mauling but

which (if the comments on IMDB are anything to

go by) was much more warmly received by

ordinary viewers: e.g. “Pan is the best movie I have

seen in a while. Although it is based on the story of

Peter Pan, the story is original. It tells the story of

how Peter Pan came to be, a sort of back story…

Peter in search of his mother whom he has never

met. His search takes him from the ordinary world

to the stunningly beautiful Neverland. The cast is

great and do a great job. Hugh Jackman is not even

recognizable as Blackbeard the pirate. Rooney

Mara is beautiful as Tiger Lily. It is great fun to

watch. Once again the critics are wrong.”

RADIATOR (15) 93mins. Drama.

Daniel receives a call from his elderly mother; his

father Leonard, has got stuck on the sofa. He

travels to their remote farm to discover that they

have fallen over the edge of eccentricity into

outright squalor. With only a few days free from

work Daniel tries to help but his parents are unable

to adapt to their new circumstances. Powerful

performances from Gemma Jones and especially

Richard Johnson as the father mark this film as

something special. Splendidly photographed,

tightly scripted and taking the viewer effortlessly

from comedy to dark tragedy, this is a very good

film indeed – “an original, darkly comic portrait of

an elderly couple and their son”. “The film seems

to disprove one of its more poignant lines: "The

black moments smother any flicker of light", and

instead builds on another: "Just because someone

changes, doesn't mean you stop loving them". You

will likely recognize all three lead actors, and each

of them delivers excellent performances. Despite

the subject matter, my experience is actually

summed up in yet another line from the film … "I

remember so much pleasure".

SICARIO (15) 121mins. Crime Drama.

When drug violence worsens on the USA Mexico

border, the FBI sends an idealistic agent (Emily

Blunt) on a mission to eradicate a drug cartel

responsible for a bomb that had killed members of

her team. A fast moving, expertly crafted action

crime thriller by Canadian director Dennis

Villeneuve. Excellent performances from Emily

Blunt and Benicio de Toro. A master class in

Cinematography by Roger Deakins. “"Sicario"

describes, with surgical precision, the fatal and

bloody desecration of Mexico as a result of its

decades long cartel war. And it does so by

compressing this almost endless tragedy into a

two-hour tour-de-force of filmmaking.”

SLOW WEST (15) 84mins. Western Drama.

A young Scottish man travels across America in

pursuit of the woman he loves, attracting the

attention of an outlaw who is willing to serve as a

guide. Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian: “it’s only

slow in the way a rattlesnake or a predatory killer

is slow. This terrific film is actually tense, twisty

and brilliant. ..Writer-director John Maclean makes

a lethally stylish feature debut with this tale of

murder and survival in the old west. He has put

together a drum-tight picture with elegant and

dust-dry humour; it’s wonderfully shot by

cinematographer Robbie Ryan” Australian

youngster Kodi Smit- McPhee plays the central

character (you may have seen him in ‘The Road’

and ‘Let Me In’). “This innocent abroad in a world

of danger is clearly going to be someone’s lunch

soon, so it is his apparent good fortune to chance

upon Silas, played by Michael Fassbender, a tough

traveller and seasoned killer. In return for every

penny that Jay appears to have on him, Silas offers

to conduct him safely to wherever he wants to go.

This odd couple embark on a trudging quest

knowing that they face violent death at any

moment – with one nursing a nasty secret.”

Terrific!

STEVE JOBS (15) 122mins. Biography.

No less than the third film this season starring

Michael Fassbender! “Steve Jobs” takes us behind

the scenes of the digital revolution, to paint a

portrait of the man at its epicentre. The story

unfolds backstage at three iconic product

launches, ending in 1998 with the unveiling of the

iMac. Directed by Danny Boyle who gave us

‘Slumdog Millionaire’, this is about a different sort

of millionaire in a very different world. No UK

reviews yet but from USA “a brilliant, rapid-fire

examination of parenthood, ego, and maniacal

genius told in a refreshingly innovative way that

Jobs himself would have loved.” “An exhilarating,

heart-stopping experience, something you

probably wouldn't expect to hear of a film about

Apple computers. There will likely be other films

about Jobs that will attempt to decode who the

man really was, but guaranteed none of them will

be quite like this one” Our own Kate Winslet co-

stars as Jobs’ personal assistant Joanna Hoffman.

SUFFRAGETTE (12A) 106mins. Period Drama.

Cary Mulligan, Helena Bonham-Carter, Meryl

Streep, Anne-Marie Duff, Romola Garai. One of

the most eagerly awaited films of the year. ‘A

drama that tracks the story of the foot soldiers of

the early feminist movement, women who were

forced underground to pursue a dangerous game

of cat and mouse with an increasingly brutal State.

These women were not just from the genteel

educated classes; there were also working women.

Radicalized and turning to violence as the only

route to change, they were willing to lose

everything in their fight for equality - their jobs,

their homes, their children and their lives. Maud

(wonderfully played by Carey Mulligan) was one

such foot soldier. The story of her fight for dignity

is as gripping and visceral as any thriller, it is also

heart-breaking and inspirational.’ Meryl Streep

has just a powerful cameo as Emmeline Pankhurst.

SUNSET SONG 12A (tbc) 135mins. Classic Drama

We are proud to offer (by special arrangement

with our friends at Metrodome Films) this

outstanding new film by renowned UK director

Terence Davies, adapted from him from the 1932

Scottish classic by Lewis Grassic Gibbon (widely

considered the greatest Scottish novel of the 20th

century) and starring the most talked about

newcomer of the year, model turned actress

Agyness Deyn. Peter Mullen is the father, the

delightful Kevin Guthrie (the shorter of the boys in

‘Sunshine on Leith’) as the husband Chris Guthrie

grows up in a farming family in North East Scotland

and has dreams of becoming a teacher. Her father

is a domestic tyrant who bullies his wife and beats

his son. After her mother’s death, her brother

escapes to Canada but Chris stays on to look after

her stroke-ridden father and manage the farm,

which she eventually inherits. The film shows us

her life through courtship, marriage and

motherhood, until the whole world is turned

upside down by the outbreak of war in

1914. Ravishing cinematography and meticulous

period detail (e.g.the farmhouse kitchen!). Not to

be missed!

SUPERBOB (15) 82mins. Comedy satire.

Very silly but a pure delight. Imagine an entirely

British super-hero (much to the annoyance of the

Americans) who is in actuality a postman from

Peckham with a domineering mother who gets

accidentally hit by a meteor and whose life is taken

over by the M.O.D. (in the form of his ‘handler’ –

Catherine Tate). He gets one day off a week and

on that day he has to face the biggest challenge of

his life – going on a date. What makes the film

rise out of the ordinary is the dedicated playing of

the unknown principals – especially Brett Goldstein

as Bob and Natalia Tena as his ‘cleaner’ Dorris)-

and the simple, economical direction of the film’s

creator Jon Drever. This could only be a British

film – no one else would have the cheekiness to

get away from it. But the characters are so good,

you want to stay with them – in fact see the film all

over again once it is over. Reminded me of the

best of Ealing, when it was about London and its

people. Great fun! (NB Not for kids –even

teenagers – A 15 only because eof some ripe-ish

language. That’s a pity: Youngsters would have

loved it)

TANGERINES (15) 87mins. War Drama

Nominated for Best Foreign Language Oscar. War

in Georgia, 1992: local Apkhazians are fighting to

break free from Georgia. A village of Estonians in

the mountains has become empty, almost

everyone has returned to their homeland. Only

two men have stayed: Ivo and Margus. But

Margus will leave as soon as he has harvested his

crops of tangerines. In a bloody conflict in village,

wounded men are left behind, and Ivo is forced to

take them in. But they are from opposite sides of

the war. This is a touching anti-war story about

people who find themselves in the middle of

someone else's war. Peter Bradshaw The

Guardian: “It more than deserves its UK release

now: a tremendous, old-fashioned antiwar film, by

turns touching, moving and suspenseful.” It is

tremendous storytelling: engaging, intelligent, and

with some lovely touches. When Ivo and Margus

push a soldier’s van down a hill to hide it, they are

disappointed it doesn’t burst into flames, like in

the movies. “Cinema is a great big fraud,” says Ivo.

THE DANISH GIRL (15) tbc 120mins. Drama. OK. You are reading

about 2016’s first film sensation here first. It is a

gamble hoping we shall have it in April – if not

certainly in the summer. And by then, it might

have swept the board at the Oscars. An

extraordinary story (based on fact) about Danish

artists wife and husband Gerda and Einar Wegener

and Einar’s search for his true sexuality, leading to

the first transgender surgery in history. Sounds

demanding but get this: Einar is played by Eddie

Redmayne, Gerda by Alicia Vikander (‘A Royal

Affair’, ‘Testament of Youth’) and Ben Wishaw and

Mattias Schoenaerts also star. Direction is by Tom

Hooper who made “Kings Speech” and “Les

Miserables”. Sumptuous photography by Danny

Cohen and splendid design mark this out as a treat

in store.

THE DRESSMAKER 15 (tbc) 118mins. Drama.

A glamorous woman returns to her small town in

rural Australia. With her sewing machine and

haute couture style, she transforms the women

and exacts sweet revenge on those who did her

wrong. Andrew Urban from DownUnder: “ It is

quickly apparent that this black farce is every bit as

scathing and tragic as Muriel's Wedding, whose

author and director J. P. Hogan (director Jocelyn

Moorhouse's partner) helped write the screenplay

based on Rosalie Ham's best selling book. It's a

story of small town hates, lies and betrayals whose

victims are many but none so wronged as is Tilly.

It's her story: she has a score to settle, and being a

clever fashion designer these days, she does it in

true female style - with warring wardrobe. You

could say she came (back), she sewed, she

conquered. ‘The Dressmaker’ is the kind of film

that might have been made by Pedro Almodovar,

both for its melodramatic story complete with

family secrets and for its wicked tone - as well as

some notable excesses (eg Hugo Weaving's

fetishist local cop) It is as risky, too, with deaths

and disabilities crowding the frame.

The already mentioned cast as well as the

remainder have given their all in weird and

wonderful ways, sometimes defying us to even

recognise them at first, eg Judy Davis as Tilly's

wheelchair bound mother. Liam Hemsworth

himself has the hard task of playing a normal,

handsome young man without notable flaws,

always a challenge for actors to make a mark,

while Kate Winslet has just the right mix of

chutzpah and vulnerability to make her Tilly a

credible and dynamic character.” FUN!

THE LADY IN THE VAN (12A) 104mins. Comedy.

Little needs to be said: Alan Bennett’s stage play

filmed with Maggie Smith in the title role,

supported by a wealth of UK treasures – not least

Alex Jennings as Bennett himself and a roll call of

rep players from other Bennett vehicles such as

‘History Boys’. Everyone is going to want to see

this – for a second time even if they have seen it in

the cinema. We shall not have it until public DVD

release alas – Sony Pictures do not release early.

But book it for March.

THE LEGEND OF BARNEY THOMSON (15) 96mins. Black comedy/Crime

Dark comedy about a small time Glasgow barber

who gets mixed up in murder. Starring and

directed by

Robert Carlyle and worth the ticket just to see

Emma Thompson as his mother. Wonderful! The

Guardian: “Poor Barney finds himself prime

suspect in a serial killer case, with a malevolent

Cockney copper played by Ray Winstone all over

Barney’s case like a cheap suit. He is himself

feeling the heat from his superior officer: a nice

cameo from Tom Courtenay. The Tarantino-esque

finale doesn’t quite match the downbeat comedy

of the rest of the movie, but Carlyle has some

smart touches. The Glasgow locations that he and

his cinematographer Fabian Wagner find are

impressive, and Emma Thompson gives us a scene-

stealing performance which is enjoyably macabre.”

THE LOBSTER

(15) 118mins. Fantasy-satire

In a dystopian near future, single people,

according to the laws of The City, are taken to The

Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic

partner in forty-five days or are transformed into

beasts and sent off into The Woods. This is a

brave, highly creative, weird, nutty, surreal film by

Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos which has been a

surprisingly big hit among young audiences. It

boasts a very impressive cast: Colin Farrell as the

hero – a lonely architect. Rachel Weisz, Olivia

Colman (as the Hotel manager), Ben Wishaw, Lea

Seydoux.

“The Lobster has just about everything you'd want

from a film. It's unpredictable, it's offbeat, and it's

laugh-out-loud funny. But it's most impressive

feature is the subtext - it manages to reflect how

odd our own modern-day social pressures are.

How loneliness is feared, how individuality loses

out to the mainstream system, and how

relationships have to be deemed 'legitimate' by

some higher order.

There's plenty to talk about with this film, and I'll

definitely be seeing it again to delve a little

deeper....”

THE MARTIAN (12A) 144mins. Drama.

Ridley Scott’s space adventure about an astronaut

accidentally left behind on Mars and the attempt

to rescue him. Director on fine form and excellent

performances from Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain,

Sean Bean, Kristen Wig – and a host of other

familiar faces. This really is a Robinson Crusoe

story, very very well acted by Damon, beautifully

photographed and with a director (at 78) very

much back on form. Mark Kermode: “Most

important, however, is just how much fun Scott

seems to be having with The Martian. …this revels

in the down-to-earth details of making a meal out

of a potato when you’ve run out of ketchup, and

the sheer absurdist pleasure of watching human

beings outwit the universe with Sellotape and

string.” Highly recommended.

THE PROGRAM (15) 103mins.

From Stephen Frears (director of ‘Philomena’ and

many other UK successes) comes this story of the

Lance Armstrong doping scandal. David Walsh

(Chris O'Dowd), an Irish journalist for The Sunday

Times, meets Lance Armstrong (Ben Foster) before

his Tour de France debut in 1993. Impressed with

his enthusiasm yet wary of his chances, Walsh

predicts Armstrong will only make a minor impact

in the world of cycling. Fast forward to 1999,

Armstrong has beaten testicular cancer and won

the first of his seven consecutive Tour de France

titles, as well as launching Livestrong, a charity to

help those affected by cancer. Walsh, curious of

Armstrong's miraculous recovery and

performances, begins to doubt the champion and

embarks on a journey to uncover the truth in

regards to whether Armstrong was using banned

substances to enhance his performance. Superb

performances from the two main players and a

spectacularly photographed film.

THE WALK (PG) 123mins.

‘Twelve people have walked on the moon, but only

one man - Philippe Petit (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) -

has ever, or will ever, walk in the immense void

between the World Trade Centre towers. Guided

by his reallife mentor, Papa Rudy (Ben Kingsley),

and aided by an unlikely band of international

recruits, Petit and his gang overcome long odds,

betrayals, dissension and countless close calls to

conceive and execute their mad plan. Robert

Zemeckis, the director of such films as Forrest

Gump, Cast Away, Back to the Future, Polar

Express and Flight, uses cutting edge technology in

the service of an emotional, characterdriven story.

The Walk is true big-screen cinema, a chance for

moviegoers to experience the feeling of reaching

the clouds. ‘ (Sony Pictures). Nail-biting stuff,

terrific entertainment and, in the hands of an old

‘pro’ like Zemeckis, first rate cinema.

THEEB (15) 100 mins.

Oxford-born, Jordanian-bred film-maker Naji Abu

Nowar tells an intimate story of betrayal and

survival in a wide-open space, while rewriting an

especially contentious chapter of movie history.

During the first world war, Theeb, a young boy in a

Bedouin encampment (Jacir Eid) grows curious

about the blondhaired, blue-eyed Englishman (Jack

Fox,) who’s appeared from nowhere with a

trunkful of gold. It is a engrossing adventure tale of

a young boy forced to grow up and survive in a

desert full of bandits and untrustworthy adults.

Telling the story entirely from Theeb's point-of-

view, our curiosity matches that of Theeb, who

heads out to follow his brother and the mysterious

British officer. Events are surprising and gripping ,

aided by stunning scenery and cinematography

and a heart stopping score. A superb and unusual

film. Subtitled.

UNDER MILK WOOD (15) 87mins. Poetic fantasy.

Rhys Ifans has a go at the Richard Burton role in

Kevin Allen’s film version of the 1954 BBC radio

play – done in English and broadcast after Dylan

Thomas death. Allen has a bit of celebrity casting

with Charlotte Church as the alive-and-well good-

time-girl Polly Garter; but Church is in fact pretty

good in the role, a wholesome apple-cheeked type

who gets up to all sorts in the woods. Allen's film

comes across as a kind of fast-moving fever-dream

– appropriately enough, given the swelling tide of

fantasy that Dylan Thomas instils in the drama:

everyone, and everything, is operating through a

sweaty film of lust or delusion. Allen also ramps up

what you might call the bawdiness quotient: from

the orgasmic yelps in the background of the

opening dream sequence, to the continual

incidents of jiggling and writhing. With its energy

and attack this is an Under Milk Wood that is funny

and entertaining, and never gets bogged down.

ZARAFA (PG) 78mins.

French animated film (in English) about a young

Sudanese boy who helps transport the first giraffe

to Paris in the early 19th century. Beautifully

made and a contrast from the usual American

animated fare. Some quite grown up themes too

in the fact that it does not shy away from the

realities of racism at the French court or the

threat of slavery.

Film Likely

Available

Date

I Definitely

Want to

See This

Film

I Would

Consider

Seeing

This Film

I Definitely

Don’t

Want to

See This

Film

Spectre Late March

2016

Amy Now

Dark Horse Now

45 Years Now

Song of the Sea Now

The Third Man Now

A Walk in the Woods January 2016

Bolshoi Babylon January 2016

Brooklyn March 2016

Burnt March 2016

By The Sea March 2016

Carol March 2016

Everest January 2016

Fathers & Daughters February 2016

Grandma April 2016

He Named Me Malala February 2016

Hector February 2016

In the Heart of the Sea April 2016

Legend January 2016

Life January 2016

Macbeth January 2016

My Nazi Legacy Now

Pan January 2016

Radiator January 2016

Sicario January 2016

Slow West January 2016

Steve Jobs March 2016

Suffragette January 2016

Sunset Song January 2016

Superbob January 2016

Tangerines January 2016

The Danish Girl April 2016

The Dressmaker March 2016

The Lady in the Van March 2016

The Legend of Barney Thomson January 2016

The Lobster January 2016

Film Likely

Available

Date

I Definitely

Want to

See This

Film

I Would

Consider

Seeing

This Film

I Definitely

Don’t

Want to

See This

Film

The Martian February 2016

The Program February 2016

The Walk February 2016

Theeb January 2016

Under Milk Wood January 2016

Zafara January 2016

Please return this form to Selsey Town Hall by Monday 23 November, or email your

preferences to enquiries@selseytowncouncil.gov.uk