The commandant of Auschwitz and his wife strive to build a dream life for their family in a house and garden next to the camp.

The film observes Rudolf Höss (Christian Friedel) and his wife Hedwig (Sandra Hüller) as they live their happy family life right next door to the concentration camp. Shot like a casual European dramedy about a family at their summer home, the reality that surrounds them is revealed only by the barbed wire fences, small details in conversation, skies filled with smoke, bursts of sound design, and the piercing score. Friedel as Höss is frightening in his mundanity and Hüller as Hedwig gives the film its twisted humanity. The moments where Hedwig is cruel to her house staff almost feel like a relief - evil we can see even if it’s so much milder than what’s over the walls. In the novel from where this screenplay has been adapted, the lead was named Paul Doll. Glazer, best known for ‘Sexy Beast’ and ‘Under the Skin’, specifically chose to name his main character Rudolf Höss (almost identical to Rudolf Hess) to bring the weight of a well-recorded historical character living in a specific place and time. (Subtitles)

USA 2023 Jonathan Glazer 105m

When people in Littlehampton - including conservative local Edith - begin to receive letters full of hilarious profanities, rowdy Irish migrant Rose is charged with the crime. Suspecting that something is amiss, the town's women investigate.

Fiery Rose Gooding (Jessie Buckley) has little in common with the pious Edith Swan (Olivia Colman) aside from them being neighbours in the seaside town of Littlehampton in the 1920's. But one day, Edith starts receiving scandalous letters written with foul language as eccentric as it is obscene, and she immediately accuses Rose of being the poison pen writer behind them. As Rose stands to lose her freedom and the custody of her daughter, and outrageous letters continue to blight the town, police officer Gladys Moss (Anjana Vasan) begins to suspect something is amiss. Together with a group of resourceful women, Gladys endeavours to solve the mystery, liberate Rose, and catch the real culprit. Inspired by a real historical event from the 1920s, the charming seaside town of Littlehampton was a place where everyone knows everyone, and everyone is always on their best Christian behaviour. Filming for this thoroughly enjoyable and very funny film took place principally in Arundel throughout the Autumn of 2022. No doubt we will delight in recognizing our local surrounds on the big screen.

UK 2023 Thea Sharrock 102m

The extraordinary story of Amy Winehouse's early rise to fame and the making of her groundbreaking album, ‘Back to Black’.

Told from Amy's (Marisa Abela) perspective and inspired by her deeply personal lyrics, the film follows the remarkable woman behind the phenomenon and the tumultuous relationship at the centre of one of the most legendary albums of all time. Winehouse was touted as “the next best thing” with the voice of a Blues’ angel, but left us way too soon at the age of 27, leaving not only a huge hole in her family’s life, but a chasm in the world’s musical sphere. The perfectly chosen support cast includes Jack O'Connell as Amy’s husband Blake Fielder-Civil, plus Eddie Marsan and Lesley Manville as the singer’s parents, Mitch and Cynthia. Directed by Sam Taylor Johnson, who did an outstanding job on John Lenon’s story in 2009’s ‘Nowhere Boy’. Screenplay is by Matt Greenhalgh also known for ‘Nowhere Boy’ as well as the Joy Division biopic ‘Control’.

UK 2024 Sam Taylor Johnson TimeTBC

A Homeric fairy tale that tells the adventurous journey of two young boys, Seydou and Moussa, who leave Dakar to reach Europe.

In this acclaimed film which won top directing and acting prizes at the Venice Film Festival, writer-director Garrone presents a "reverse shot" of the immigration experience while unfurling an epic, cinematographically magnificent odyssey from West Africa to Italy. The story is told through the mind’s eye and experiences of two Senegalese teenagers living in Dakar who yearn for a brighter future in Europe. Yet between their dreams and reality lies a treacherous journey through a labyrinth of checkpoints, the scorched Saharan desert, a fetid North African prison and the vast waters of the Mediterranean where thousands have died packed inside vessels barely fit for passage.

Italy 2023 Matteo Garrone 122m

To complement our talk on Frank Capra and the remastered ‘It Happened One Night’, we also present one of Capra’s best and most loved films.

Longfellow Deeds (Gary Cooper), a resident of small-town Vermont, leads a simple life until he inherits a vast fortune from a late uncle. Soon, unscrupulous lawyer John Cedar (Douglas Dumbrille) brings Deeds to New York City, where the unassuming heir is the object of much media attention. When wily reporter Babe Bennett (Jean Arthur) gains the trust and affection of Deeds, she uses her position to publish condescending articles about him - but are her feelings for him really that shallow? With snappy lines and stellar performances, this is an undisputed Capra classic.

USA 1936 Frank Capra 115m

NT Live

Michael Sheen plays Nye Bevan in a surreal and spectacular journey through the life and legacy of the man who transformed Britain’s welfare state and created the NHS.

Tue 23 Apr 19:00 (LIVE)

Tue 9 May 19:45 (Encore)

This Cannes 2023 opener follows the life of Jeanne Bécu, Comtesse du Barry, who was born as the illegitimate daughter of an impoverished seamstress in 1743 and went on to rise through the Court of Louis XV to become his last official mistress.

When Jeanne’s (Maïwenn) lover, the Comte du Barry (Melvil Poupaud), wishes to present her to King Louis XV (Johnny Depp) he orchestrates a meeting through the influential Duke of Richelieu (a brilliant Pierre Richard). The encounter goes far beyond his expectations, for it was love at first sight for the King and Jeanne. Through this ravishing courtesan, the king rediscovers his appetite for life, and makes Jeanne his last official mistress. Scandal erupts of course, as no one at Court will accept a girl from the streets into their rarified world. The attention afforded to costume and production design is superb, creating a visual feast that will have you swooning over the lavish gowns, gravity-defying hairstyles and ornate décor. Director (also lead actress and co-writer) Maïwenn caused quite a stir by casting Johnny Depp as Louis XV. (Subtitles)

France 2023 Maïwenn 117m

A down-on-his-luck man embarks on a misguided attempt to capitalize on the rise of celebrity and the influence of the Messiah for his own personal gain.

This film is a throwback to the era of Hollywood Biblical epics, which stops along the way to tap into the funk-powered spirituality of Isaac Hayes and a touch of Python irreverence. The ‘Book of Clarence’ is a New Testament-adjacent tale, set in Jerusalem, 29 A.D, of an opportunist unbeliever named Clarence (LaKeith Stanfield) who fraudulently sets himself up as a new Messiah. This is entertaining stuff, with a subversive swagger and a cheekiness that is not generally associated with films of faith. It is an ambitious project that manages to be both casually sacrilegious and utterly earnest about its ultimate message of faith.

USA 2023 Jeymes Samuel 136m

Fifteen years after being burnt when the pub where she slept as a child caught fire, a woman seeks revenge before ultimately seeking peace, in this superbly acted and engaging drama.

23-year-old Franky (Vicky Knight) is a nurse who lives with her large family in an East London borough. Obsessed with a thirst for revenge and a need to assign guilt for a traumatic event that happened 15 years before, she is unable to build any meaningful relationship until she falls in love with one of her patients – Florence (Esme Creed-Miles). They escape to the coast where Florence lives with her more open-minded patchwork family, and there, Franky finds the emotional shelter to deal with the grudges of the past. Based on lead actress Vicky Knight’s life, ‘Silver Haze’ is a meandering drama that starts as a revenge story, morphs into a love story and then morphs again into something more complicated, more tragic and ultimately more hopeful.

UK 2023 Sacha Polak 102m