THE QUEEN OF MY DREAMS
2023 | Dir Fawzia Mirza | 97m | 
Canada
Tuesday 08 October 2024 at 7.30pm
When her beloved father dies, Azra returns to Pakistan to re-establish relations with her domineering mother Miriam; but this animosity is undercut by colourful flashbacks of Miriam’s adolescence to show there are many similarities between the two women.
With an introduction by the director.
Despite their shared love of Bollywood films, Azra’s relationship with her mother has been strained since coming out, but they are forced to travel together to Pakistan to mourn a great family loss. In Karachi, we are transported to the city in its 1960s heyday, when Azra’s parents fell in love. Powered by a great mother/daughter double performance from Kaur, fabulous location shots and Bollywood-style set pieces, The Queen of My Dreams is a charming, moving and exhilarating generation-gap comedy-drama.
REAWAKENING
2024 | Dir Virginia Gilbert | 90m | 
UK
Wednesday 09 October 2024 at 7.30pm
Followed by a Q&A with the director Virginia Gilbert.
When parents John and Mary’s daughter reappears after having disappeared in her teens, their joy is short-lived as John begins to doubt whether this is his daughter or not.
John and Mary have never really recovered from the disappearance of their teenage daughter Clare ten years ago. So when a young woman claiming to be Clare suddenly appears, the couple are at odds – Mary is pleased that her daughter has returned safe, but John is not sure that this young woman is quite what she seems. Jared Harris and Juliet Stevenson give powerful performances in this emotional, character-driven thriller.
THE CRITIC
2023 | Dir Anand Tucker | 95m | UK
Thursday 10 October 2024 at 2.30pm *HOH
Thursday 10 October 2024 at 7.30pm
*HOH – Descriptive subtitles for those with hearing loss.
A u3a discussion will follow the afternoon screening – all welcome to attend.
Saturday 19 October 2024 at 2.00pm
1930s London. Sir Ian McKellan plays crusty and cantankerous old theatre critic Jimmy Erskine, who, when he believes he will lose his job, will use any means to protect it, even blackmail.
Adapted from Anthony Quinn’s 2015 novel Curtain Call, this latest film from Ian McKellan is a dark and stylish thriller set in the netherworld of London’s theatre culture in the thirties. McKellan gives a delectable performance as Jimmy Erskine, a notorious theatre reviewer who finds that his all-powerful pen is no match for the new editor (Mark Strong) of the newspaper he writes for, leading him to team up with a fading ingénue (Gemma Arterton) and fights back. But who will come out on top? A wickedly classy British thriller just made to be seen on a chilly October evening.
FLY ME TO THE MOON (Babes In Arms Screening)
2024 | Dir Greg Berlanti | 134m | 
USA
Friday 11 October 2024 at 11.00am
A rom-com set against the backdrop of the Apollo 11 moon landing. When NASA employ marketing expert Scarlett Johansson to sell the mission to the public, launch director Channing Tatum’s task suddenly becomes twice as difficult.
A sharp, stylish comedy-drama set against the 1960s space race, Fly Me to the Moon follows NASA launch director Cole Davis (Channing Tatum) stressed about getting the Apollo 11 mission off the ground. Enter Kelly Jones (Scarlett Johansson), a marketing whiz tasked with spicing up NASA’s image. Their clash intensifies when Kelly is told to secretly film a fake moon landing as a desperate backup plan. Between the mission’s pressure and their undeniable chemistry, can they work together to achieve one giant leap for mankind?
TWISTERS (relaxed)
2024 | Dir Lee Isaac Chung | 122m | USA
Saturday 12 October 2024 at 11.00am – relaxed screening
Retired storm chaser Kate Cooper and annoying social-media superstar Tyler Owens are soon getting in each other’s way as they track a deadly series of storm systems across central Oklahoma.
Don’t miss your chance to catch up on one of the summer’s biggest blockbusters. A meteorologist (Daisy Edgar-Jones) is lured back to Oklahoma by a groundbreaking tracking project, where she meets a stormchasing social media star Tyler Owens (Glen Powell). Amidst escalating tornadoes, the pair navigate the action while fighting to protect the local communities from both natural and human threats.
ALL OF US STRANGERS
2023 | Dir Andrew Haigh | 105m | UK
Saturday 12 October 2024 at 2.00pm
Acclaimed director Andrew Haigh, who grew up in Sanderstead, returns to his childhood home for this story of a young gay man trying to come to terms with the loss of his parents when he was a boy
A third film locations walk will be taking place on Saturday 26 October 2024 – See here.
A ghost story set in Croydon. An orphaned writer searches Sanderstead for his childhood home, and finds far more than he ever expected. Meanwhile, he also begins a relationship with a troubled neighbour in his high-rise flat. Enjoy this encore performance of one of the year’s most acclaimed films, a generation-spanning conversation about love, grief and what we expect from each other.
CLOSE TO YOU
2023 | Dir Dominic Savage | 100m | Canada | UK
Tuesday 15 October 2024 at 7.30pm
Elliot Page stars as a trans man who returns to his hometown for the first time in years, for his father’s birthday. He finds that his family is struggling to accept his transition.
Co-written, co-produced and starring Elliot Page, Close to You is a personal project for the Canadian actor. Page gives a deeply felt lead performance as Sam, a trans man returning home for the first time in years to celebrate his father’s birthday. However, he finds his family struggling to accept his transition, and his feelings are further confused after meeting an old school friend.
THE BATTLE FOR LAIKIPIA
2024 | Dir Daphne Matziaraki and Peter Murimi | 94m | 
Kenya
Wednesday 16 October 2024 at 7.30pm
Documenting the effects of climate change effect Indigenous herdsmen and white landowners in Laikipia, Kenya, a wildlife conservation haven, and the conflicts generated between them as a result.
“Illuminating documentary examines the tensions between indigenous pastoralists and commercial ranchers as resources become more scarce during a drought” (Phuong Le in The Guardian).
Tensions rise between the Samburu herdsmen and the white landowners in the wildlife conservation haven of Laikipia, Kenya, as climate change-delivered drought begins to affect the land they all call home. Once peacefully co-existing, the two sides are now fighting for dwindling resources. The filmmakers concentrate on specific members of both communities to show their differences and similarities between them. “The filmmaking remains distant enough to allow all the subjects the time and space to tell the story” (Variety). Black History Month Screening.
MY FAVOURITE CAKE
2024 | Dir Maryam Moqadam | Behtash Sanaeeha | 97m | 
Iran
Thursday 17 October 2024 at 2.30pm
Thursday 17 October 2024 at 7.30pm
Mahin is a 70 year old widow living alone in Iran, meeting with female friends to discuss their ailments, and defying the morality police; but secretly she is on the lookout for a single man – object, romance.
Mahin is a 70-year-old woman living alone in Tehran. Longing to break free from her solitary routine, she decides to take a chance on love when she meets taxi driver Faramarz. What starts as a simple meeting quickly blossoms into an unexpected romance, leading the pair on a journey of self-discovery and emotional renewal. This heartwarming story beautifully explores the joys and challenges of finding love later in life, reminding us that it’s never too late to experience connection and companionship. Persian with English subtitles.
THE CRITIC
2023 | Dir Anand Tucker | 95m | UK
Saturday 19 October 2024 at 2.00pm
1930s London. Sir Ian McKellan plays crusty and cantankerous old theatre critic Jimmy Erskine, who, when he believes he will lose his job, will use any means to protect it, even blackmail.
Adapted from Anthony Quinn’s 2015 novel Curtain Call, this latest film from Ian McKellan is a dark and stylish thriller set in the netherworld of London’s theatre culture in the thirties. McKellan gives a delectable performance as Jimmy Erskine, a notorious theatre reviewer who finds that his all-powerful pen is no match for the new editor (Mark Strong) of the newspaper he writes for, leading him to team up with a fading ingénue (Gemma Arterton) and fights back. But who will come out on top? A wickedly classy British thriller just made to be seen on a chilly October evening.
SUGARCANE
2024 | Dir Julian Noisecat | Emily Kassie | 107m | Canada
Tuesday 22 October 2024 at 7.30pm
A documentary investigating the multiple abuses carried out at St Joseph’s Mission, a federally-funded, Catholic-run boarding school for indigenous children in British Columbia.
This compelling documentary investigates the abuse and disappearance of Indigenous children at a residential school. Sugarcane follows four intertwined narratives, as it attempts to uncover the truth behind those horrific events through personal stories, including that of co-director Julian Brave Noisecat’s own father. As the community struggles for justice, the documentary sheds light on the dark legacy of residential schools and the lasting trauma inflicted on Indigenous communities. A gripping and deeply moving exploration of memory, survival, and the ongoing fight for truth and reconciliation.
SING SING
2023 | Dir Greg Kwedar | 107m | USA
Wednesday 23 October 2024 at 6.30pm (followed by Q&A)
Saturday 26 October 2024 at 2.00pm
Tuesday 29 October 2024 at 5.30pm
Colman Domingo stars as Divine G, sent to Sing Sing for a crime he didn’t commit, who finds redemption acting in a theatre group alongside other incarcerated men, many played by non- professional ex-convicts.
A moving, inspirational story about the redemptive power of the arts, based on the work of Sing Sing prison’s Rehabilitation Through the Arts theatre program. Colman Domingo heads a cast of mostly former inmates playing versions of themselves in this powerful story of an innocent man’s fight for freedom, and how he and his fellow inmates find themselves in the discipline of drama. Black History Month screening In conjunction with The Croydon BHM Partnership.
LEE
2023 | Dir Ellen Kuras | 116m | UK
Thursday 24 October 2024 at 2.30pm
Thursday 24 October 2024 at 7.30pm *HOH
*HOH – Descriptive subtitles for those with hearing loss.
Kate Winslett stars in this much anticipated biography of acclaimed photographer Lee Miller, who turned from fashion model turned WWII wartime photojournalist for Vogue Magazine.
Lee follows the life of Lee Miller, the legendary Vogue photojournalist whose work took her from the fashion houses of Paris to the front line of World War II. The “polished and awards-ready” (The Hollywood Reporter) biopic shows how her boundary-pushing work capturing images of the War’s most significant moments came at great personal and professional cost, particularly as one of the few women in the field. An eight-year passion project for its lead Kate Winslet, Lee boasts a star-studded cast including Marion Cotillard, Josh O’Connor and Alexander Skarsgård
ALL OF US STRANGERS – FILM LOCATIONS WALKING TOUR
Saturday 26 October 2024 at 2pm
Meet at Riddlesdown Station at 1.45pm – full details and tickets via the link above.
ROB PEACE
2024 | Dir Chiwetel Ejiofor | 120m | USA
Wednesday 30 October 2024 at 6.30pm (followed by Q&A)
Thursday 31 October 2024 at 2.30pm
Based on the book written by Rob Peace’s former roommate, and adapted and directed by Chiwetel Ejiofor, this is the tragic story of a boy with a promising future. Rob is raised by his mother while his father has been jailed for life for first degree murder, which he denies. Rob excels at school and goes to Yale, all the while determined to help free his father. Black History Month screening In conjunction with The Croydon BHM Partnership.
LATE NIGHT DATE WITH THE DEVIL
2023 | Dir Colin & Cameron Cairnes | 93m | 
Australia | USA
Thursday 31 October 2024 at 7.30pm
Halloween horror show. Surviving footage from a 1970s late night talk show could solve the mystery of unexplained events during a Halloween broadcast. Was there a carefully-orchestrated mass hallucination, or did something far more chilling take place?
Competing with Johnny Carson, Jack Delroy hosts Night Owls, a late-night talk show. In 1977, he returns to the screen following the death of his wife, but ratings are low – could an occult-themed Halloween episode revive the show’s fortunes? Special guests include a medium, a sceptic magician, and parapsychologist June Ross-Mitchell, accompanied by the subject of her latest book: 13-year-old Lilly D’Abo, who survived a Satanic church’s mass suicide. During the live broadcast, sinister manifestations indicate that everyone present could be in mortal danger. “Absolutely brilliant. I couldn’t take my eyes off it.” (Stephen King).
