In this newsletter we highlight Once Upon a River, the tale of a Native American girl's search for her estranged mother after her father dies in a tragic accident, and The Bike Thief, which updates Vittorio De Sica’s neorealist classic Bicycle Thieves to gig-economy London. We also have details of a preview and Q&A for The 8th before its main release later this month. This documentary is about the repeal of the abortion laws in the Republic of Ireland and previews from Monday 17 May followed by the Q&A, at 9pm on Tuesday 18 May.

We have two more new films this week: Cowboys, in which a father recently separated from his wife runs off with his trans son into the Montana wilderness after his ex-wife's refusal to let their son live as his authentic self; and The Auschwitz Escape, the true story of two Auschwitz prisoners who escaped to provide a rare first-hand report of genocide at the camp. We will highlight these in next week's newsletters.

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2019 USA 92 MINS
DIRECTOR: Haroula Rose
STARS: Kenadi DelaCerna, John Ashton, Tatanka Means

Margo is a teenager living with her Native American father beside Michigan’s Stark River. The pair were abandoned by her white mother some time before, and Margo has grown up to be self-sufficient – her rifle marksmanship makes her the envy of the boys in the neighbourhood. When her father dies in a tragic accident, Margo packs her rifle and a change of clothes and sets out in her boat to find and re-connect with her mother...

"Newcomer DelaCerna impresses, especially considering she’s in virtually every scene and is required to do almost all of the story’s emotional heavy lifting... Once Upon a River is a strong directorial debut, Rose announcing herself as a talented cinematic craftsman worth keeping an eye on" (The Upcoming). You can read an interview with director Haroula Rose, who is also a singer-songwriter, here.

The David Lean Cinema receives a proportion of the ticket price. 

2020 UK 79 MINS
DIRECTOR: Matt Chambers
STARS: Alec Secareanu, Anamaria Marinca, Alexia Maria Proca

Director Matt Chambers has updated the Italian neo-realist classic Bicycle Thieves (1948) to modern-day London. Just as in the original, the loss of his bike means the loss of the Romanian father-of-two's livelihood as a pizza delivery man, as well as a means of transporting his wife and daughter to work and school respectively. As his search for the moped becomes more desperate, his moral compass goes awry. Alec Secareanu, so good in God's Own Country (2017), "is just as intensely memorable here" (The Guardian).

"The Bike Thief is a superb debut, a film that is stylish, though realistic, beautiful, gritty, and at various points, subtly anxiety-inducing" (The Hollywood News - who also have a great video interview with the director and his star).

The David Lean Cinema receives a proportion of the ticket price. 

The 8th, a documentary telling the story of the campaign to repeal the Irish abortion laws is due to be released nationally on 25 May 2021 but will be available from Monday 17 May as a preview to selected virtual cinemas (including the David Lean). This will be followed by a free bookable Q&A with one of the directors Aideen Keen, award winning activist Ailbhe Smyth and acclaimed campaigner Andrea Horan on Tuesday 18 May at 9pm.

The film can be viewed anytime on Monday or Tuesday before the Q&A. Use the links below for more details. On the Q&A page, scroll down for details of all participants and reserve a place via the "Save my spot!" link. To book the film from the Q&A page, use the link marked Get tickets to watch The 8th ahead of this discussion here! and scroll down to the David Lean Cinema entry. The film only can be booked directly (£9.99 - with a proportion of the ticket price supporting us) via the other link below.