Nov 30th   
The Choral*  (12A)        
(Electric Palace, Harwich)          

(GB 2025)     
Sony Pictures Classics/BBC/Screen Yorkshire. 113m.

In 1916 an impoverished Northern choral society losing most of its young men to the Western Front hires a controversial German-educated choirmaster to conduct Elgar's Dream of Gerontius.
Semi-period drama by Bennett, wonderfully literate as always with him, and also authentically capturing the musical rehearsal process, although inconsistent as a story, with the now familiar politically correct casting out of kilter with the period.

Written by: Alan Bennett.
Producers: Kevin Lander, Nicholas Hytner, Damian Jones.
Director: Nicholas Hytner,
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Roger Allam, Amara Okereke, Taylor Uttley, Shaun Thomas, Mark Addy, Alun Armstrong, Robert Emms, Simon Russell Beale (as Elgar).
Photography: Mike Eley.
Music: George Fenton.

Nov 20th   
45 Years**    
(GB 2014)   
BFI/Film Four/Creative England/The Bureau. 95m.

A longtime married couple are affected by the unexpected duscovery of the husband's former lover before he was married.
Thoughtful drama with two veteran actors giving naturalistic performances, developing like a TV Play for Today, but ultimately with a slightly boring resolution.

Written and Directed by: Andrew Haigh, based on the short story "Another Country" by David Constantine.
Producer: Teristan Goligher.
Starring: Charlotte Rampling, Tom Courtenay, Geraldine James, David Sibley, Alexiane Cazenave.
Photography: Lol Crawley.
Music: none.

Nov 15th    
2001: A Space Odyssey***  (U)        
(Prince Charles Cinema)  

(GB 1968)                      
MGM/Hawk. 141m. Super Panavision 70

From the age of apes to the futuristic space age, Man seeks to unravel the mysteries of an enigmatic black monolith.
Kubrick's extraordinary if slightly enigmatic science fiction allegory, every bit as breathtaking and baffling as it was when first released in 1968, starting with men in fairly skilfully designed monkey suits, then jumping drastically forward to the Moon space station orbit, then the Jupiter mission with the addition of partly irrelevant psychological drama with the villainous computer HAL-9000, and then finally the climactic journey into infinity, where Kubrick loses his way with the narrative trying to replace plot with spectacle and at times overbearing music. Technologically speaking the film seems light years ahead of its time, and has not dated, in the spite of the irony of the year of its setting now being in the retrospective past. 

Written by: Stanley Kubrick, Arthur C. Clark, based on his short story "The Sentinel".
Producer/Director: Stanley Kubrick.
"Starring": William Sylvester, Keir Dullea. Gary Lockwood, Daniel Richter, Douglas Rain (voice of HAL), Robert Beatty, Leonard Rossiter.
Photography: Geoffrey Unsworth, John Alcott.
Production Design: Tony Masters, Harry Lange,Ernie Archer.
Special Photographic Effects: Douglas Trumbull.

Nov 8th   
The Ladykillers**    
(GB 1955)               
Rank/Ealing. 97m.

Sinister crooks use an old lady's boarding house as a cover for their robbery at Kings Cross, but she proves to be their undoing.
Ealing caricatures their own funnier and more entertaining Lavender Hill Mob with this seedy-looking black comedy caper, with the actors overplaying (except ironically the young Peter Sellers). The plot doesn't have far to go, but considered a cult classic by Ealing comedy enthusiasts.

Written by: William Rose.
Producer: Michael Balcon.
Director: Alexander Mackendrick.
Starring: Alec Guinness, Katie Johnson, Cecil Parker, Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers, Danny Green, Jack Warner, Frankie Howerd, Kenneth Connor, Philip Stainton.
Photography: Otto Heller.
Music: Tristram Cary.

Preceded by:
Tom and Jerry in
Fraidy Cat**
(US 1942. 8m.; d: William Hanna, Joseph Barbera, Rudolf Ising; p: Fred Quimby.)

Oct 25th    
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey*    (15)
(Electric Palace, Harwich)    

(US 2025)        
Columbia.30 West/Imperative Entertainment. 109m. 

A couple are brought together by a mysterious car hire agency who transport them to various significant episodes in their lives.
Sentimental and contrived supernatural romantic comedy, with slightly too eligible leads, making the eventual resolution come much later than it needs to.

Written by: Seth Reiss.
Producers: Bradley Thomas, Ryan Friedkin, Youree Henley, Seth Reiss.
Director: Kogonada.
Starring: Colin Farrell, Margot Robbie, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Kevin Kline, Lily Rabe, Hamish Linklater, Jennifer Grant.
Photography: Benjamin Loeb.
Music: Joe Hiraishi.
Editing: Susan E. Kim, Jonathan Alberts.

Oct 7th  
The New World**  
(US/GB 2005)        
New Line/First Foot Films/Sunflower. 150m. Panavision

The gradual colonisation of Virginia by 17th century British settlers, and the romance of rogue Captain John Smith with Pocahontas, then her subsequent Christian marriage to John Rolfe, told in familiar dreamy fashion by Malick who gives due weight and lyrical reverence to the native American country and its heroine, whilst the clumsy British are variably depicted. Not a commercial success, but defiantly free of any concessions to studio or stars. 

Written and Directed by: Terrence Malick.
Producer: Sarah Green.
Starring: Colin Farrell, Q'orianka Kilcher, Christopher Plummer, Christian Bale, August Schellenberg, David Thewlis, Wes Studi, Ben Mendelsohn, John Savage, Jonathan Pryce (as King James).
Photography: Emmanual Lubezki.
Music: James Horner, and others.
Editing: Richard Chew, Hank Corwin, Saar Klein, Mark Yoshkawa.

Sep 26th   
Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines***  (U)
Sub-title: Or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes
(Pictureville Cinema, Bradford)

(GB 1965)
Twentieth Century Fox. 135m. Todd-AO

In 1910 a London newspaper owner launches an air race between London and Parris, with various nationalities taking part for better or worse.
Entertaining comedy adventure, a "fun" epic as opposed to the more traditionally sombre serious subjects for this kind of cinema, and as such highly commercial. Based loosely on Bleriot's flight across the Channel and other milestones in aviation, with several enjoyable comedy cameos, some excellent reconstructions (especially aircraft), and suitable music to capture the atmosphere of the whole thing.

Written by: Jack Davies, Ken Annakin,
Producer: Stan Marguilles.
Director: Ken Annakin.
Starring: James Fox, Stuart Whitman, Sarah Miles, Robert Morley, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Irina Demick, Gert Frobe, Terry-Thomas, Eric Sykes, Alberto Sordi, Zena Marshall, Karl Michael Vogler, Sam Wanamaker, Tony Hancock, Willie Rushton, Michael Trubshawe, Benny Hill, Yujiro Ishihara, Flora Robson, Fred Emney, Cicely Courtneidge, Red Skelton, James Robertson Justice (narrator).
Photography: Christopher Challis, Skeets Kelly.
Music: Ron  Goodwin.

 Titles: Ronald Searle.
Production Design: Tim Morahan.

100 Favourite Films: Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines