Movies

SBO Premiere: Black Sheep

Sky Box Office – Friday 30 November, from 8.35pm

Get Ready for the Violence of the Lambs!

An experiment in genetic engineering turns harmless sheep into blood-thirsty killers that terrorize a sprawling New Zealand farm.

Starring Nathan Meister, Danielle Mason

SBO Premiere: Miss Potter

Sky Box Office – Friday 30 November, from 8.05pm, hourly

The life of Beatrix Potter is the most enchanting tale of all.

The story of Beatrix Potter, the author of the beloved and best-selling children’s book, “The Tale of Peter Rabbit”, and her struggle for love, happiness and success.

Thirty years old and single, Beatrix Potter lives in London with her social-climbing parents, who are exasperated that she has turned down any number of eligible young men. Her only real friends are the animals which since childhood she has lovingly drawn and made up stories about. She finally succeeds in selling a book of the stories, and it becomes Norman Warne’s first project. He quickly falls in love with both the book and Beatrix and together they carefully arrange publication. This proves the first of many successes, offering her the possibility of escaping from both her parents’ way of life and London.

Starring Emily Watson, Renee Zellweger, Ewan McGregor, Barbara Flynn

Real View: The Blood Of Yingzhou District
Rialto – Thursday 29 November, 8.30pm

Gao Jun is the voiceless toddler who appears in The Blood of Yingzhou District. Director Ruby Yang followed Gao Jun for a period of a year in this groundbreaking documentary which discloses the hidden AIDS epidemic in a country not commonly associated with this disease. This stunningly shot documentary at the same time exposes the tragedy of the impoverished Chinese as they donate blood in order to eke a living, ignorant of the unsafe medical practices that would cause them to contract Aids.

Star Birthdays: Edward C. Carfagno: Julius Caesar (1953)

TCM – Wednesday 28 November, 10:30pm

Marlon Brando, Sir John Gielgud and Greer Garson star with James Mason and Deborah Kerr in this exceptional film adaptation of William Shakespeare’s tragedy of honour, heroism, loyalty and the fear of tyranny – Julius Caesar.

Under Fire (1983)

MGM – Tuesday 27 November, 8.30pm

Political thriller about three journalists in 1979 war-torn Nicaragua, how their lives intertwine, and how they risk everything by becoming involved in the conflict.

Nominated for an Oscar (Music), BAFTA (Editing), and two Golden Globes (Gene Hackman, and Best Score). Based on a story by Ron Shelton (Bull Durham, Tin Cup).

Director: Roger Spottiswoode (Tomorrow Never Dies, The 6th Day, 48 Hrs.).

Starring: Nick Nolte, Ed Harris, Gene Hackman, Joanna Cassidy, Alma Martinez.

“The actors in “Under Fire” never step wrong. Nolte is great to watch… one of the year’s best films.” – Roger Ebert

World Cinema: 5X2
Rialto – Tuesday 27 November, 8.30pm

Francois Ozon’s take on Ingmar Bergman’s Scenes from a Marriage, 5×2 deconstructs the union of two individuals whose plans for a lifetime of shared happiness end up in divorce court. 5×2 is simply an autopsy of a marriage. Ozon’s intent is to show how something that begins with such optimism can degrade to the point where the only option is to dissolve the bonds and renounce the vows.

Starring Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Stephane Freiss and Geraldine Pailhas.

Monday Comedy Madness: Valley Girl (1983)

MGM – Monday 26 November, 8.30pm

Julie, a clean cut Valley girl falls for Randy, a punker from the other side of the Hollywood Hills. Her friends disapprove of the leather-clad dude and push her into going to prom with her preppy Valley boyfriend, Tommy. But love-struck Randy can’t let Julie go! A delightful 80s classic featuring a brilliant performance from a young Nic Cage as well as a, like, totally cool soundtrack including The Plimsouls, Josie Cotton, The Psychedelic Furs, and more.

Director: Martha Coolidge (Real Genius, Rambling Rose, TV Series Sex And The City).

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Deborah Foreman, Cameron Dye, Elizabeth Daily, Michael Bowen, Frederic Forrest.

“…this movie is a little treasure, a funny, sexy, appealing story of a Valley Girl’s heartbreaking decision: Should she stick with her boring jock boyfriend, or take a chance on a punk from Hollywood?” – Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times.

British Theatre: What We Did On Our Holiday
Rialto – Monday 26 November, 8.30pm

A comedy/drama about family, love, growing up and growing old. Loving husband and son Nick decides to take his ageing parents on one last holiday to Malta, his father’s posting as a young soldier. As Nick resists pressure from his wife Laura to have a child, he learns that his father has an older son on the island.

Directed by Jeremy Webb

Starring Pauline Collins, Shane Ritchie and Roger Lloyd-Pack.

Channel Premiere: The Unfinished Dance (1947)

TCM – Sunday 25 November, 10.30pm

Margaret O’Brien, Karin Booth, and Cyd Charisse star in a gripping film about a young aspiring dance student’s misguided ventures to help her idol gain a much sought-after part in a dance production. Margaret O’Brien takes it upon herself to ensure her idol Cyd Charisse would not lose the lead to an upcoming ballet to newcomer Karin Booth. As a desperate measure, O’Brien stages an accident to injure Booth in rehearsal, which brings for consequences she never could have imagined. Henry Koster directs.

Blow Out (1981)

MGM – Sunday 25 November, 8.30pm.

John Travolta stars as a sound effects man for low budget horror films. While taping wind effects for a b-grade production, Coed Frenzy, he inadvertently records a presidential hopeful’s fatal car crash. But was the noise he heard a tire blow-out? Or was it the gunshot of a political assassin? Was it an accident, or murder? Loosely based on Michelangelo Antonioni’s 1966 classic, Blow Up. Quentin Tarantino, a fan of the movie, used some of Pino Donaggio’s musical score from Blow Out in his most recent film, Death Proof.

Director: Brian De Palma (Dressed To Kill, Scarface, The Untouchables, Carlito’s Way).

Starring: John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow, Dennis Franz.

“This movie is inhabited by a real cinematic intelligence. The audience isn’t condescended to… we’re challenged and stimulated…” – Roger Ebert.