If you’re going to make a film about one of the most iconic chart-toppers of all time, it probably helps to have had a number one hit yourself.
Step forward Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen) hitmaker Baz Luhrmann, who’s back to tell the story of Elvis as only he can.
Meanwhile, there’s early Halloween costume inspiration (sorry, can’t bring myself to say inspo) courtesy of Ethan Hawke in The Black Phone…
New releases
Elvis
Expect singing, dancing and hip-swivelling aplenty as Moulin Rouge! director Baz Luhrmann takes us on a typically spectacular tour through the life of the King of Rock and Roll.
The film follows the journey of Elvis Presley (Austin Butler) from humble Mississippi origins to era-defining global superstardom – all framed around his complex relationship with Svengali-like manager Colonel Tom Parker (a rare deviation into villainy for Tom Hanks).
There was widespread critical acclaim for Butler’s performance following the film’s premiere at Cannes last month, with Time Out hailing him as ‘frankly astonishing’ in ‘(Luhrmann’s) best film for 20 years’.
Cert 12A, 159 mins | |
Cineworld, City Screen, Everyman, Vue | |
From Fri Jun 24 | |
More details |
The Black Phone
A teenage boy held captive by a monstrous killer finds help from an unlikely source in this supernatural horror from director Scott Derrickson (Sinister, Doctor Strange).
In a Colorado suburb in 1978, 13-year-old Finney Shaw (Mason Thames) becomes the latest child to be kidnapped by ‘The Grabber’ (Ethan Hawke), who keeps him imprisoned in a soundproof basement.
When the disconnected old phone on the basement wall starts ringing, Finney answers and finds that he’s somehow speaking to the Grabber’s previous victims – and they’re determined to help him avoid their fate.
If that all sounds a little Stephen King, that’s no surprise – the film is adapted from a short story by the horror maestro’s son Joe Hill, who’s carved out his own successful niche in the genre.
Cert 15, 102 mins | |
Cineworld, Everyman, Vue | |
From Weds Jun 22 | |
More details |
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Q&A Screening
Mind-Set + Director Q&A
A disillusioned office clerk contemplates an affair with her colleague in this British comedy-drama.
Lucy (Eilis Cahill) is feeling trapped in her job and her stagnating relationship with slovenly screenwriter Paul (Steve Oram, Sightseers) – but is a fling with new co-worker Daniel (seen recently in ITV’s D.I. Ray) really the answer to her problems?
Shot in black and white, this look at the everyday complexities of modern life features a supporting cast of familiar faces such as Julia Deakin (Spaced) and Jason Isaacs.
Winner of Best UK Feature Film at this year’s Manchester Film Festival, Mind-Set is the debut feature from writer-director Mikey Murray, who will be present at City Screen for a Q&A session after the screening – his website describes him as ‘dedicated to the production of high quality drama films on low budgets’, making this a great chance for budding filmmakers to get the inside story on the work involved in getting your vision onto the screen.
Cert 18, 120 mins | |
City Screen | |
Tues Jun 28, 7:30pm |
Aesthetica at York Theatre Royal: Black British Cinema
Aesthetica Short Film Festival’s season of screenings at the Theatre Royal continues this week with Raised Voices.
Originally curated by the We Are Parable team for the 2021 ASFF, this selection of eight shorts has been designed to speak to the lived experience of being a Black or Brown person in the UK.
Small talk between a taxi driver and his passenger turns awkward in Rear View, while spoken-word film We Are Not the Virus is an ode to black frontline workers and The Last Days (starring Bridgerton’s Adjoa Andoh) is set in a world where people can discover the day of their death.
Tickets are £5.00, and can be booked from Theatre Royal’s website.
York Theatre Royal | |
Fri Jun 24, 7:15pm | |
More details |
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Other screenings
City Screen’s Ennio Morricone season has certainly been treating us to a pleasingly diverse selection of classics so far, from westerns to war films to horror – and this week it’s the turn of a Kafkaesque Italian crime thriller.
Originally released in 1970, Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion (showing on Sun 26th) tells the story of a police inspector investigating a heinous crime which he himself committed, and won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
This month’s Dementia-Friendly screening at City Screen is Cabaret (Mon 27th), back on the big screen for its 50th anniversary – tickets are £4 per person, with a free place for accompanying carers.
On Weds 29th, City Screen have a preview of Nitram, the highly acclaimed new film from Australian director Justin Kurzel (True History of the Kelly Gang).
Caleb Landry-Jones (Get Out) takes the title role in this true-life drama about the perpetrator of the Port Arthur Massacre in Tasmania in 1996.
With this year marking the 25th anniversary of the death of Princess Diana, it’s not surprising to see a new documentary about her life and times arriving on the big screen – previewing at City Screen on Thurs 30th, The Princess uses archival footage to both tell Diana’s story and examine the public’s attitude to the monarchy.
It’s directed by Ed Perkins, whose excellent short Black Sheep took the top prize at the Aesthetica fest in 2018, and a recorded Q&A with Perkins and producer Simon Chinn follows the film.
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Anime fans can catch Cine Matsuri festival pick Pompo: The Cinéphile at City Screen on Weds 29th and Thurs 30th – based on a popular manga series, this celebration of filmmaking sees a jaded B-movie producer set her sights on making something more meaningful.
Over at Vue, there’s a preview of intriguing-sounding British comedy Brian and Charles on Weds 29th – this odd-couple tale follows the friendship of a lonely inventor and his homemade, cabbage-obsessed robot.
Vue also have another screening of George Michael: Freedom Uncut, a rejigged version of the 2017 TV documentary about the singer, on Sat 25th.
Two very different action heroes blaze a trail through Vue this week, as Sly Stallone dons the bandana once more for a 40th anniversary 4K reissue of First Blood (Fri 24th, Tues 28th), while Bond blasts into space in Moonraker (Sat 25th). Honestly, how did Hollywood never think to put these two together in an inter-franchise mismatched buddy movie?
And finally, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 speeds back into cinemas as your budget family-friendly option this week, showing at both Cineworld (Sat 25th/Sun 26th, tickets £2.50) and Vue (Sat 25th/Sun 26th, £2.49) – Vue also have an Autism-Friendly screening of the film on Sun 26th (£2.49) – while City Screen’s Kids’ Club offering is The Secret Life of Pets on Sat 25th (£3.00).
Community cinema
Film at the Folk Hall are bringing a recent big screen hit to New Earswick this week in the form of Kenneth Branagh’s Oscar-winning Belfast.
Writer-director Branagh won the Best Original Screenplay gong for this warm-hearted coming-of-age drama, which was inspired by his own formative years in Northern Ireland.
The film tells the story of nine-year-old Buddy (newcomer Jude Hill) and his working-class family, as they find their happy home life in Belfast suddenly and irrevocably disrupted by the start of The Troubles – forcing Buddy’s parents (played by Caitríona Balfe and Jamie Dornan) to consider the prospect of starting a new life in England.
The screening takes place at the Folk Hall, New Earswick on Fri 24th – doors are at 7pm and the film starts at 7:30pm.
Tickets can be reserved via Eventbrite, or you can secure them in person at the Folk Hall reception or by calling 01904 752211 – the price is £5.00, but there are also a small number of free tickets available for those who need them.