Second Run DVD presents IKARIE XB–1 (Digibeta, DVD)
Ikarie XB–1 (1963, JindřichPolák, Czechoslovakia, 86mins, black & white, in Czech with English subtitles)
Jindrich Polák’s pioneering and much-imitated feature is one of the cornerstones of contemporary sci-fi cinema. Adapted from Stanislaw Lem’s 1955 novel The Magellanic Cloud, and predating Gene Rodenberry’s Star Trek and Kubrick’s 2001, Ikarie XB–1‘s influence can be seen on both – and on almost every other science-fiction vehicle that followed. “Remains one of the most original and exciting science fiction films ever made… the film is packed with sublime moments unlike those of any film preceding it. A game-changing film that profoundly influenced the genre and showed that science-fiction movies weren’t only about special effects; they were also high art. Of the hardest and most admirable kind” Alex Cox. Second Run DVD are proud to present a new restoration of this marvellous film, with new English subtitles.
SCREENINGS INCLUDED
Wednesday 4th September: Star and Shadow Cinema, Newcastle
Thursday 5th September: Riverside Studios, London
Thursday 12th September: Stratford East Picturehouse, London
Friday 13th September: Phoenix Cinema, Leicester
Fri 13th – Sat 14th September: QUAD, Derby
Tuesday 24th September: The Gulbenkian, Canterbury
Ikarie XB–1 is released on DVD, newly restored by Second Run, on 9 September.
Eureka Video presents THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC (2K DCP)
The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928, Carl Theodor Dreyer, France, 97mins, black & white, silent)
One of the most emotional film experiences of any era, The Passion of Joan of Arc is a miracle of the cinema, an enigmatic and profoundly moving work that merges the worlds of the viewer and of saintly Joan herself into one shared experience of hushed delirium.Dreyer’s film charts the final days of Joan of Arc as she undergoes the debasement that accompanies her trial for charges of heresy – through her imprisonment and execution at the stake.The portrayal of Joan by Renée Maria Falconetti is frequently heralded as the all-time finest performance in the history of film, and Dreyer’s unusual and virtuosic method, in seeming to render the very soul of his actress, vaulted the director decisively into the ranks of the art form’s supreme geniuses. The Passion of Joan of Arc is presented in an exclusive new restoration on 2K DCP. Venues are invited to curate their own score to the film. The film is also available on DVD and Blu-ray, presented in either 20fps and 24fps playback speeds, and featuring Dreyer’s own original Danish-language intertitles.
SCREENINGS INCLUDE
Sunday 8th September: The Gulbenkian, Canterbury
Thursday 12th September: Genesis Cinema, London – with ECM records score live-mixed by Scanner
Friday 13th September: Ultimate Picture Palace, Oxford
Sunday 15th September: Rio Cinema, London
Saturday 28th September: Phoenix, Leicester
BFI Flipside presents SLEEPWALKER / THE INSOMNIAC (Blu-ray/DVD)
Sleepwalker (1984, Saxon Logan, UK, 49mins, colour), The Insomniac (1971, Rodney Giesler, UK, 45mins, colour)
When wealthy couple Richard and Angela visit Marion and Alex in their decaying family home, an evening of drunkenness and sexual rivalry turns bloody as the guests fall victim to an unhinged attacker. Featuring a rare performance from director Bill Douglas (Bill Douglas Trilogy, Comrades), and starring Joanna David and Heather Page (both of whom would go on to work with Douglas in Comrades), this outrageous mix of biting satire and stylish horror recalls the work of otherwise unlikely bedfellows, Lindsay Anderson and Dario Argento. The stellar cast also includes Nikolas Grace, and features cameos by Fulton MacKay, Michael Medwin and Raymond Huntley. Perfectly double-billed with The Insomniac (Rodney Giesler, 1971, 45mins), in which a man experiences a night-time world that is part nightmare, part sexual fantasy.
Sleepwalker is released in a Dual Format Edition (DVD & Blu-ray) by BFI Flipside on 23 September. The Insomniac and other rare British films are included as extra features.
SCREENINGS INCLUDED
Monday 23rd September: Alibi Bar, Dalston, London
Monday 23rd September: Chapter, Cardiff
Friday 27th September: QUAD, Derby, with introduction by Fright Club’s Darrell Buxton
Date tbc: Manchester
Parker Posey Film Festival presents PARTY GIRL (35mm)
Party Girl (1995, Daisy von Scherler Mayer, US, 94mins, colour)
Daisy Mayer’s first feature is a film about love, life and librarianism in New York city in the 1990s. This indie comedy features a razor sharp script, fantastic performances from NYC upstarts Parker Posey and Liev Schreiber, outrageously camp costuming and a soundtrack pulled straight from the dance-floors of the day. Posey plays Mary, the party girl in question, who after coasting on money from her illegal parties gets busted and has to find a new career path. This overlooked and unreleased in the UK until now indie gem, was to influence a whole generation of New York writers and directors most famously Lena Dunham (Tiny Furniture, Girls). Much like its protagonist and the 40’s screwball films that came before Party Girl is filled with energy, it’s wilful, defiant and big hearted.parkerposeyfest.co.uk
SCREENINGS INCLUDED
Friday 6th – Saturday 7th September: QUAD, Derby
Saturday 14th September: ICA, London
Friday 27th September: Duke of York’s, Brighton
She Shark Industries presents VARIETY (35mm)
Variety (1983, Bette Gordon, US, 100mins, colour)
In Bette Gordon’s pioneering indie narrative about voyeurism from a female perspective, a young woman (Sandy McLeod) works as a ticket taker in a porn theater, and her curiosity leads her to shadow a male patron. This film features an unparalleled collaborative team of downtown artists from the early 1980s, including composer John Lurie, cinematographer Tom DiCillo, writer Kathy Acker, photographer Nan Goldin, and actor Spalding Gray. Variety was shot on location in New York City at the now bygone landmarks of the Variety Theatre, Fulton Fish Market, and Yankee Stadium, as well as an edgier incarnation of Times Square. – Tribeca Film Festival
SCREENINGS INCLUDED
Sunday 15th September: ICA, London
Sat 21st – Sun 22nd September: QUAD, Derby
Wednesday 25th September: Star and Shadow Cinema, Newcastle
BFI and Children’s Film Foundation: SAMMY’S SUPER T–SHIRT (DVD)
Children’s Film Foundation: Sammy’s Super T–Shirt (1978, Jeremy Summers, UK, 58mins, colour)
Join Scalarama for a family trip to childhoods past, a time when movie superheroes were kids! In this marvellous tale from the beloved Children’s Film Foundation Sammy Smith discovers that his favourite tiger T–shirt has been bombared with special rays, giving him super powers – to run super fast, to leap over high walls and to lift heavy objects – plus the confidence to stand up to bullies.But Sammy will need to put aside his powers if he is to win a race fair and square. Popular in the latter days of CFF filmgoing, Sammy’s Super T–Shirt found renewed popularity with a new generation when shown on BBC1 in 1987 and once again in 1988, and is one of the best remembered of all the CFF films. Now through Scalarama, a new generation can discover this cult classic on the big screen.
Sammy’s Super T–Shirt is available on the BFI’s The Race is On DVD, part of the BFI’s ongoing activity making films from the Children’s Film Foundation archive available.
SCREENINGS INCLUDED
Saturday 7th September: Stratford East Picturehouse, Clapham Picturehouse, Ritzy Brixton, Greenwich Picturehouse, Hackney Picturehouse, Notting Hill Gate, Phoenix Cinema East Finchley, Lexi Cinema Kensal Green, Cambridge Picturehouse, Duke’s at Komedia and Duke of York’s, Brighton; FACT, Liverpool; Regal Picturehouse, Henley; Phoenix Picturehouse, Oxford; Little Theatre Cinema, Bath; Exeter Picturehouse, Stratford-upon-Avon Picturehouse; Cinema City, Norwich; City Screen, York; Hyde Park Picturehouse, Leeds; Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle; The Gulbenkian, Canterbury; Birks Cinema, Aberfeldy; Forum Cinema, Hexham; The Grovesnor, Glasgow; Perth Playhouse; Abbeygate Picturehouse, Bury St Edmunds.
Saturday 28th September: Glasgow Film Theatre
Sat 28th – Sun 29th September: QUAD, Derby
Jack Stevenson and Little Joe present THE KUCHAR BROTHERS (16mm)
Hold Me While I’m Naked (1966, George Kuchar, US, 15mins), The Craven Sluck (1967, Mike Kuchar, US, 23mins), The Secret of Wendell Samson (1966, Mike Kuchar, US, 30mins), Mongreloid (1978, George Kuchar, US, 13 mins).
Twin brothers from The Bronx, Mike and George have created a do-it-yourself cinematic style that celebrates the common man but does so in style oozing with “kitchen sink” Hollywood excess. Starting in the mid-50’s with a string of shorts shot on the regular-8 format, they switched to 16mm around ’65 and began making their own films. George sadly passed away in 2011, so Little Joe, a magazine about queers and cinema, mostly, have teamed up with Copenhagen-based Jack Stevenson to honour both brothers, presenting a selection of their work from Jack’s own 16mm collection. Titles include: Hold Me While I’m Naked (by George), a playful satire of motion picture making that leads to existential contemplations on the meaning of life. The Secret of Wendell Samson (by Mike), a personal story of inner turmoil is told in the vocabulary of science fiction, expressionism, and pop-fantasy which is entertaining yet sincere and soberly conceived,The Craven Sluck (by Mike) about the sordid domestic routines of a typical Bronx married couple, Adel and her office worker husband, Brunswick and Mongreloid(by George), a tribute to Georges dog, Bocko, who appeared in so many of the brothers’ films and was undoubtedly the best known dog in underground cinema. littlejoemagazine.com
SCREENINGS INCLUDED
Tuesday 3rd September 7.30pm: The Cinema Museum, Kennington – presented by Little Joe
Friday 13th September: VIVD Projects, Birmingham
Saturday 21st September: Hyde Park Picturehouse, Leeds – presented by Creatures of the Night
Thursday 26th September: Star and Shadow Cinema, Newcastle
Animat presents BELLEVILLE RENDEZ-VOUS – Live Rescore(DVD)
Belleville Rendezvous (2003, Sylvain Chomet, France, 80mins, colour, in French, English, Portuguese with English subtitles).
Animat are a downtempo electronica duo based in Sheffield, UK. Musicans, producers and DJs Mark Daly and Michael Harding have appeared at numerous festivals, art house cinemas and events with their unique “soundtracking” take on cult films. A mix of specially written music, tracks from their DJ catalogue and the film’s dialogue and score is played live with the screening. For Scalarama, Animat will be revisiting one of their earliest rescores to the award-winning animation from Sylvain Chomet, Belleville Rendez-vous (aka The Triplets of Belleville). Combining dialogue and sound from the film’s original soundtrack together with live instrumentation and sampling, Animat create a unique, unforgettable live cinema experience. Previously Animat have collaborated with vocalists including Anne Garner and SanchitaFarruque, done remix duties for Pitch Black, Winter North Atlantic and Deep Dive Corp, and have had music used in multimedia projects at Tate Britain and New York’s Leverhouse Gallery.
