With just 3 days to go until we reopen, the excitement is mounting. While we can’t wait to see you all back at the venue, we know that there’ll be times when you’re flicking through the channels at home desperately looking for something to watch. And that’s when Phoenix at Home comes to the rescue, with handpicked weekly recommendations, specially selected film seasons, and new releases available to stream at home via our Virtual Cinema.
“★★★★ –a fantastic and very funny exercise in tension” – Empire. Attending a day-long shiva – a Jewish gathering after a funeral – college student Danielle is faced with overbearing relatives and rattled by awkward encounters with an ex-girlfriend and also her secret sugar daddy, who arrives unexpectedly with his wife and baby. MyPhoenix Members & Friends get 90 days free access to MUBI.
“★★★★ – it’s different, and it’s delightful” – Guardian. Monica Zanetti’s Australian romcom focuses on 17-year-old Ellie, who is struggling to find the courage to ask her classmate, Abbie, to the school formal. But then her Aunt Tara, a lesbian who died in the 80s, shows up to dish out some advice… whether Ellie wants it or not!
“★★★★ – An unexpectedly insightful look at a piece of lesbian history. Long live magazines!” – Little White Lies. This resonant and compelling new documentary traces the power of lesbian visibility from the early ‘90s to the present day through the success of the best-selling lesbian lifestyle magazine Curve. Part of our Virtual Cinema programme.
★★★★ – Guardian. Played out in long takes and a claustrophobic 4:3 aspect ratio, Robert Machoian’s drama explores an unravelling marriage in a remote, snow-covered Utah. When Niki and David separate temporarily, David struggles to accept that his wife has moved on and refuses to give up on his family. Then his wife begins a new relationship, and David is pushed to the very edge.
“★★★★★ – extraordinarily vivid and fresh” – Guardian. Satyajit Ray’s 1964 masterpiece is based on the 1901 novella Nastanirh (The Broken Nest) by Rabindranath Tagore. Lonely Charulata is the beautiful wife of a newspaper editor who has little to no time for her. When her husband’s cousin Amal comes to visit, Charulata finds herself falling in love with him, with heart-breaking results. Part of our Essential Cinema selection.
★★★★★ – Guardian. One of the best films of 2018, this creative crime drama-documentary hybrid from Bart Layton (The Imposter) chronicles one of the most ill-conceived crimes in the history of the United States as a group of young students attempt an armed heist of their own college library. Featuring a brilliant young cast and directed with real flair, this is a genuine rollercoaster of a film, hurtling head-first off the tracks.
“★★★★ – Billie Piper’s ambitious, darkly funny directorial debut suggests the arrival of a new filmmaker with a vision, verve and a voice” – Empire. Career-driven single mother Mandy is juggling her work as a writer with parenting a ‘difficult’ child and her own parents’ issues. When she meets the troubled and traditional Pete, the sparks fly in this daring anti-romcom. Also available on BFI Player.
“★★★★ – Powerful, gorgeously-rendered tribal-gangster saga” – Empire. Colombia, the late 1960s. Rapayet falls in love with Zaida and to pay her dowry, he gets involved in a marijuana trafficking ring. Set during the ‘marijuana bonanza’, Birds of Passage is a mafia story that subverts all the tropes. In Wayuu/Spanish with English subtitles.
With Euro fever sweeping the country, it’s the perfect time to revisit one of football’s most entertaining films. Michael Sheen is brilliant in this adaptation of David Peace’s best-selling novel about Brian Clough’s infamous 44 day reign as manager of Leeds United. The notoriously contrary Clough ruffles feathers when he calls his new players cheats and tells them to throw their medals in the bin – and it’s downhill all the way from there.
Throughout June
We mark Pride Month 2021 with a season of LGBTQ+ films, including new releases, Oscar winners, archive film and under-seen gems.
Must-see films from across the world that are essential viewing for any self-respecting cineaste.
Put a smile on your face with one of our specially-selected feel-good films. From ’80s classics to under-seen gems, there’s plenty to keep you and your family entertained.
Wednesdays, 7 – 28 Jul, 7pm – 8.30pm
Japan has a long cinematic history, with both world-renowned makers and indie rebels capturing a rich and complex culture on film. Join us as we explore that history, through well-known and lesser-known films, stars, writers and directors.
Thursdays, 8 – 29 Jul, 7pm – 8.30pm
Britain has a reputation for creating some of the funniest, smartest and most surreal comedy in the world. Join us for this 4-week course that looks at how British comedy has developed on the big screen, for home audiences and abroad.
Sat 24 Jul, 10.30am – 4pm
Join tutor Connor Winterton for this fascinating one-day course exploring the history of realist cinema in Europe and North America.
Mon 9 – Fri 13 Aug, 9.30am – 3.30pm | Limited places left
Make a short film in 5 days at our annual summer holiday Film Camp for 16 to 19-year-olds. Enter the room on Monday with just an idea or two and leave on Friday with a film in the can that you shot and starred in.
TBC
screen_share is a new event for artists making screen-based work of any kind to come together, share what they’ve made and talk about it in a friendly and informal environment.
Thu 17 – Sun 20 Jun | Free
Award-winning composer Duncan Speakman invites you to experience Only Expansion - an 'augmented audio' walk through Leicester that seamlessly remixes the sounds of the city in real time to evoke the future impacts of the climate crisis
Online until October
Art-AI Festival is an extended season of exhibitions, public space installations and events taking place across Leicester that focus on creative applications of artificial intelligence.