The White Ribbon (15)

Dir: Michael Haneke. With: Christian Friedel, Ernst Jacobi, Leonie Benesch, Ulrich Tulkur.

The story of the children and teenagers of a choir run by the village schoolteacher, and their families in a north German village on the eve of the first World War. Strange accidents occur and gradually take on the character of a punishment ritual. Who is behind it all? The schoolteacher observes, investigates and little by little discovers the incredible truth. Are we being asked to consider whether these events heralded something that would explode years later with the rise of Nazi Germany? Did these events contain the germs of the tragedies that followed? This haunting and provocative film was awarded the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

Germany/Austria/France/Italy 2009. 143 mins. B/w. subtitled.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

Oscar Nominated

Food, Inc. (PG)

Dir: Robert Kenner.

You’ll never look at dinner the same way again. Filmmaker Robert Kenner lifts the veil on the food industry, exposing its highly mechanized underbelly. The food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the farmer, the safety of workers and the environment. We have bigger-breasted chickens, the perfect pork chop, insecticide-resistant soybean seeds, even tomatoes that won't go bad, but we also have new strains of e coli, widespread obesity, particularly among children, and an epidemic level of diabetes among adults.

US 2008. 93 mins

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

Nowhere Boy (15)

Dir: Sam Taylor Wood. With: Aaron Johnson, Kristin Scott Thomas, Thomas Sangster, Anne-Marie Duff.

Imagine John Lennon's childhood... A lonely teenager, curious and sharp, growing up in the shattered city of Liverpool. Two incredible women clash for his love. Mimi (Kristin Scott-Thomas), the formidable aunt who raised him, and Julia (Anne-Marie Duff), the spirited mother who gave him up. Yearning for a normal family, John (Aaron Johnson) escapes into music. His fledgling genius finds a kindred spirit in the young Paul McCartney. But just as John's new life begins, the truth about his past leads to a tragedy he would never escape. Poignant and powerful, the untold story of the boy who created The Beatles.

UK 2009. 97 mins.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

A Prophet (18)

Dir: Jaques Audiard. With: Tahar Rahim, Niels Arestrup, Adel Bencherif.

An engrossing, terrifying prison drama about Malik, a young French-Arab convict who enters a tough French jail and finds himself with even less freedom than he bargained for. Arriving at the jail entirely alone, he appears younger and more fragile than the other convicts. Cornered by the leader of the Corsican gang who rules the prison, he is given a number of “missions” to carry out, toughening him up and gaining the gang leader’s confidence in the process. But Malik is brave and a fast learner, daring to secretly develop his own plans...

France/Italy 2009. 150 mins. Subtitled.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

Oscar Nominated

The Road (15)

Dir: John Hillcoat. With: Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Robert Duvall, Guy Pearce, Charlize Theron.

An epic, post-apocalyptic tale of the survival of a father and his young son as they journey across a barren America that has been destroyed by a mysterious cataclysm. An adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s prize-winning novel.

US 2009. 111 mins.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

Up in the Air (15)

Dir: Jason Reitman. With: George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman.

The timely odyssey of a corporate downsizer and consummate modern business traveller who, after years of staying happily airborne, suddenly finds himself ready to make a real connection. Ryan has for years been happy with his unencumbered lifestyle lived out across America in airports, hotels and rental cars and is close to his lifetime goal of 10 million frequent flier miles, and yet he has nothing real to hold onto. When he falls for a fellow traveller at the same time as being grounded by his boss, he begins to contemplate what it might mean to have a home.

US 2009. 109 mins.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

Oscar Nominated

The Island (Ostrov) (nc)

Dir: Pavel Lounguine. With: Pyotr Mamonov, Viktor Sukhorukov, Dmitry Dyuzhev.

A mysterious Russian orthodox monk – a yurodivy or holy fool in the Russian tradition - at an island monastery in the White Sea is said to possess healing powers. While pilgrims come to seek his aid (with mixed results for them) he is consumed by guilt for an incident in his youth. Boasts a persuasive performance by Mamonov, a former rock star who has become a bit of a Iyurodivy himself. With haunting cinematography and a soundtrack of Russian Orthodox music. A major box-office hit in Russia!

Russia 2006. 112 mins. Subtitled.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

Precious: Based on the novel Push by Sapphire (15)

Dir: Lee Daniels. With: Gabourey Sidibe, Mo’Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey.

The story of a 16 year old African-American girl born into a life no one would want. Pregnant by her father for the second time and physically and emotionally abused by her mother, she has reached the ninth grade with good marks but an awful secret – she can neither read nor write. In spite of all this she has an unshakeable sense that other possibilities exist for her. When she is offered a transfer to a special school she begins a journey that will lead her from darkness, pain and powerlessness to light, love and self-determination.

US 2008. 109 mins.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

Oscar Nominated

Precious: Based on the novel Push by Sapphire (15)

Dir: Lee Daniels. With: Gabourey Sidibe, Mo’Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey.

The story of a 16 year old African-American girl born into a life no one would want. Pregnant by her father for the second time and physically and emotionally abused by her mother, she has reached the ninth grade with good marks but an awful secret – she can neither read nor write. In spite of all this she has an unshakeable sense that other possibilities exist for her. When she is offered a transfer to a special school she begins a journey that will lead her from darkness, pain and powerlessness to light, love and self-determination.

US 2008. 109 mins.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

Oscar Nominated

A Single Man (12A)

Dir: Tom Ford. With: Colin firth, Julianne Moore, Matthew Goode, Nicholas Hoult.

Set in LA in 1962, this is the story of a British college professor struggling in the aftermath of the death of his long-term partner, Jim. We follow him through a single day where a series of events and encounters leads him to decide whether there is still meaning to life. A romantic tale of love interrupted, the isolation that is an inherent part of the human condition and the importance of the seemingly smaller moments in life. Based on the novel by Christopher Isherwood.

US 2009. 100 mins.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50   

Oscar Nominated

I'm Gonna Explode (Voy a Explotar) (15)

Dir: Gerardo Naranjo.With: Juan Pablo de Santiago, Maria Deschamps, Daniel Gimenez Cacho

Two troubled teenagers embark on a revolt against everything and everyone and run away to a place where they are free of other people’s expectations. This leads them to an accidental new intimacy and the discovery of their sexuality, a bond that both unites and confuses them. Seeking to expand the limits of their paradise they jeopardize the security of their hiding place. But this means a return to reality, where wounds are genuine and actions have consequences.

Mexico 2008. 106 mins.Subtitled.

Full £5.50    Concession £5.00    Supporter £4.50