Keyke Mahboobe Man

A septuagenarian, solitary for many years, chooses to revive her love life. A chance encounter becomes an unforgettable evening. A lovely film that keeps up Iran’s reputation as a powerhouse of quality storytelling.

70-year-old Mahin (Lili Farhadpour) has lived alone in Tehran since her husband’s death and her daughter’s departure for Europe, until an afternoon tea with friends leads her to break her solitary routine and revitalise her love life. What begins as an unexpected encounter quickly evolves into an unpredictable, unforgettable evening. She meets Faramarz (Esmaeel Mehrabi), a modest, personable single man of her age, who himself is of Mahin’s independent frame of mind: he got into trouble with joyless authorities for playing a musical instrument in a wedding band. The Iranian government prevented the film’s two directors from travelling to Berlin to attend their own premiere, most probably because of a scene in which police drive self-importantly around Tehran, intimidating women who are allegedly not wearing their hijabs with enough modesty. Our 70-year-old heroine – who wistfully remembers a time when hijabs were not required at all – stands up to these uniformed bullies and rescues a woman from their clutches. Unmissable cinema.

Iran 2024 Maryam Moghadam & Behtash Sanaeeha 97m

How the Taliban transformed itself from an extremist militia into a mighty military regime in the wake of US troops’ withdrawal from Afghanistan is the subject of this powerful new documentary.

Picking over an estimated $7bn worth of military equipment left at the former Hollywood Gate CIA base in Kabul, we meet Mawlawi Mansour, aTaliban commander overseeing the equipment’s repair and repainting the fighter jets and Black Hawk helicopters.  Filmmaker Ibrahim Nash’at, born in Egypt and based in Berlin, spent 12 months trailing Mansour and his crew, loitering in the background and shooting from the sidelines. While restricted access prohibited any in-depth interviews, this fascinating, fly-on-the-wall documentary nevertheless teases back the curtain to reveal soldiers pining for the caves where they once hid, and mourning the glorious death that has been snatched from their grasp.

Germany/USA 2023 Director Ibrahim Nash’at 92m

A cantor in a crisis of faith finds his world turned upside down when his grade school music teacher re-enters his life as his new adult Bat Mitzvah student.

Between The Temples is graced with two endearing performances from Jason Schwartzman (Ben) as the Jewish cantor suffering a crisis of faith, and Carol Kane (Carla) as the ageing Bat Mitzvah student who gives him a new lease of life. Ben has arrived at a joyless stage of his life with his wife having died a year earlier. He is living back in the upstate New York home of his two mothers when his old elementary school music teacher re-enters his life, wanting to have the Bat Mitzvah she was denied as a 13-year-old. Ben comes to recognise in Carla something of a kindred lost soul and, as they study together, they develop a warm friendship that begins to see them both open up. elevated by the chemistry between Carol Kane and Jason Schwartzman.

USA 2024 Nathan Silver 112m

Beetlejuice is back! After a family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River.

Still haunted by Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton), Lydia's (Winona Ryder) life is turned upside down when her rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid (Jenna Ortega), discovers the mysterious model of the town in the attic and the portal to the Afterlife is accidentally opened. With trouble brewing in both realms, it's only a matter of time until someone says Beetlejuice's name three times and the mischievous demon returns to unleash his very own brand of mayhem.

USA 2024 Tim Burton 104m

Met Opera

Jacques Offenbach’s fantastical opera ‘Tales of Hoffman’ kicks off the Metropolitan Opera’s season. It will make an interesting comparison with the Royal Opera's version showing in January 2025.

Sun 6 Oct 13:00

A story of ambition, blackmail and desire with a dazzling anti-hero at its dark heart, all brought together by a delicious performance by Ian McKellen as a catty theatre critic in 1930s London.

Jimmy Erskine (McKellen) is the most feared and famous theatre critic in 1930s London, saving his most savage takedowns for Nina Land (Gemma Arterton), an already unsure leading lady. He takes pleasure in ritually tearing her down, a practice that has further eroded her fragile sense of confidence. As a gay man forever at the mercy of laws that prohibit his very existence, Jimmy is living life on the edge, indulging in park sex with strangers while showboating his flamboyance in writing. But when his newspaper’s proprietor dies and his son (Mark Strong) takes over, Jimmy may need to turn to Nina for help. As the three become entangled in a whodunnit wrapped in a Faustian pact, their strange triangle winds tighter and tighter to devastating effect for all those caught in the deadly web of blackmail and betrayal. McKellen makes Jimmy simultaneously despicable, understandable and wholly entertaining, whilst Arterton is also a stand-out, as she skilfully navigates how a stage actress tries to overcome personal demons and self-doubt. Supporting cast also includes Romola Garai, Claire Skinner and the always impressive Lesley Manville. This is a whodunnit wrapped in a Faustian pact which winds tighter and tighter.

UK/USA 2023 Anand Tucker 95m

When a skeleton is discovered in the desert, a lawman and son of a legendary local sheriff, begins an investigation that will have profound implications both for him personally and for all of Rio County

When Sam Deeds (Chris Cooper) uncovers a skeleton in a small south-western Texas border town, it is thought to be that of Charlie Wade (Kris Kristofferson), the infamously corrupt, cruel and racist sheriff who was driven from the town by Deeds’ father Buddy (Matthew McConnaughey). A keen observer of America’s social fabric, writer/director John Sayles uncovers the haunted past buried beneath this border town with an Oscar-nominated screenplay. This masterful 90s classic western features a brilliant ensemble cast, transitions seamlessly from past to present and has been given a 4k digital remastering, making it a must-see on the big screen.

USA 1996 John Sayles 125m

Faced with both her hot-tempered father's fading health and melting ice-caps that flood her ramshackle bayou community and unleash ancient aurochs, six-year-old Hushpuppy must learn the ways of courage and love.

Six-year-old Hushpuppy (Quvenzhané Wallis) lives with her father, Wink (Dwight Henry), in a remote Delta community. Wink is a stern taskmaster, but he is preparing his young daughter for the end of the world. When Wink falls mysteriously ill, nature seems to fall ill with him. Temperatures rise, the ice caps melt and fearsome prehistoric beasts called aurochs run loose. Rising waters threaten to engulf their community, sending Hushpuppy in search of her long-lost mother. This is a fantastical and emotionally powerful journey with a strong environmental focus. Filmmaking that values imagination over money.

USA 2012 Benh Zeitlin 93m

Followed by short talk + Q&A in the studio by chalk stream expert Sarah Hughes of the Western Sussex Rivers Trust.

A romantic and thrilling story that spans several decades and continents; following one man's emotional journey to find his first love who disappeared 50 years ago, before his time runs out.

Kristopher (Egill Ólafsson) is a widower who is in the early stages of dementia. Realizing there isn’t a lot of time left before his memories are gone completely, he leaves Iceland and ventures to London, hoping to find his lost love. Flashbacks build up the story of how young Kristopher (Pálmi Kormákur) dropped out of school, got a job washing dishes at a Japanese restaurant, and fell in love with the owner’s daughter, Miko (Kōki). The film cleverly builds suspense in two directions simultaneously. We watch old Kristopher trying to find Miko and wondering if he’ll succeed, and we also wait with nervous anticipation to learn why the two were separated decades ago. Director Baltasar Kormákur masterfully weaves a story that encapsulates the human experience with poetic honesty and emotional depth. This is one of the most genuinely romantic movies of the past few years, not lightweight romantic, but rather romantic in a deep, human way that you can feel in your soul. (Some subtitles)

Iceland 2024 Baltasar Kormákur 121m

Imprisoned at Sing Sing for a crime he did not commit, an inmate finds purpose by acting in a theatre group alongside other incarcerated men in this story of resilience, humanity and the transformative power of art. Oscar tipped, this is a remarkable film that soars, and is justly hailed by film critics around the world.

Divine G (Colman Domingo) finds purpose at Sing Sing Prison by acting in a theatre group alongside other incarcerated men, including a wary newcomer (Clarence Maclin). When the curtain rises on the beauty they’ve all built, what we witness is a work of art that never papers over the injustices, just as we see the men who are fighting for their humanity in a world that doesn’t value it. This isn’t simply a movie about one man experiencing the power of the arts, but about how such a programme acts as a consistent source of sanctuary for everybody involved. Kwedar’s deft direction works in tandem with fine-tuned drama to craft naturalistic mosaics, drawn from a patchwork of real prison experiences. This film will break your heart and rebuild it stronger than before.

USA 2023 Greg Kwedar 105m

Ten years after the disappearance of their teenage daughter, a couple is confronted by a young woman claiming to be their lost child.

John (Jared Harris) and Mary (Juliet Stevenson) have lived with desolating grief and the agony of uncertainty for the past ten years. Their only child, Clare, ran away from home when she was fourteen and no trace of her whereabouts has ever been found. When Clare (Erin Doherty) returns, now a young woman of twenty-four, Mary is overjoyed. But John comes to believe that Clare is not who she claims to be. As old tensions resurface, deceptive motivations and thrilling suspense culminate in a gripping search for the truth. Harris and Stevenson deliver exceptional performances. Doherty subtly delivers nervous looks and hesitations which make her character a believable prodigal daughter but leave enough doubt about her to sustain the mystery. This is an absorbing and affecting tale beautifully told by director Gilbert.

UK 2024 Virginia Gilbert 90m

A detective inspector investigates a series of murders in a riverside town in rural China in the 1990s. After a swift arrest, clues push the policeman to dive deeper into the hidden behaviour of the locals.

Beleaguered police chief Ma Zhe is charged with investigating the murder of ‘Granny No 4’ in a neighbouring rural village of only 50 families and tries so hard to unravel the killing, that he almost decends into madness. Granny Four had taken in a simpleton who, throughout the movie, is known only as “the madman” (Kang Chunlei) and he becomes the natural suspect, but nothing is clear-cut… This is far from a standard police procedural; increasingly blurring the line between the real and the imagined, fact becomes fiction and dreams become nightmares. This stylish, murky and enigmatic noir is imaginative in structure with impressive production design and breathtaking cinematography. One of two very good Chinese films in this season’s programme (see also ‘Black Dog’). (Subtitles)

China 2023 Wei Shujun 101m