The Brits have played a large part in the cultural landscape since European settlement. While this may be on the wane as the Asian Century continues to gain momentum, it only offers a greater contrast for the stories of what was once known as ‘The Mother Country’.
The inaugural British Film Festival opens on Tuesday 19th November. At Palace Electric Cinema, a broad range of films will be shown over two weeks that celebrates one of the world’s most illustrious and established movie industries.
In this inaugural homage to all things British, audiences can expect what everyone loves of British cinema – superb acting, cracking wit, earnest humanity and quality craftsmanship with many Australian Premieres starring the likes of Jude Law, Richard E Grant, Eric Bana, Judi Dench and Jim Broadbent.
The Opening Night Film on Tuesday 19 November features One Chance, a hilarious telling of the rags to riches story of Paul Potts, the shy winner of the first season of Britain’s Got Talent, directed by David Frankel (The Devil Wears Prada, Hope Springs).
Closing the Festival is Philomena, directed by Stephen Frears and starring Judi Dench and Steve Coogan, which was just awarded Best Screenplay at the Venice Film Festival and is being touted as a hot favourite for an Oscar.
There’s also a fantastic selection of cult British classics we are bringing back to the screen – Alfred Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps (1935); The Third Man (1949), directed by Carol Reed and Brief Encounter (1945), Lawrence Of Arabia (1962), and Great Expectations (1946), all directed by David Lean.
Other notable highlights to look out for include Dom Hemingway starring Jude Law and Richard E Grant; Good Vibrations, based on the true story of Terri Hooley who opened up a record store in Bomb Alley, Belfast during the Troubles; and the Australian Premiere screenings of The Full Monty producer Uberto Pasolini’s beautiful new film Still Life, starring Eddie Marsan (Sherlock Holmes) and Joanne Froggatt (Downton Abbey). The film scooped up four prizes at the recent Venice Film Festival (Horizons section), including Best Director and the Art Cinema Prize for Best Film. (More info below)
Hot off the press also is that Eric Bana will be our special guest at Palace Electric on Friday 22nd November at 6:30pm for a special live Q&A in conjunction to the premiere of his new film, UK gripping political thriller Closed Circuit
