With Phoenix temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, we’ve turned our attention to other ways in which we can bring you inspiring and entertaining content.
Each week our team shares a handpicked selection of things that we think you’ll enjoy. Read on for this week’s recommendations…
Support Phoenix while you watch! This ambitious international feature documentary reveals the West’s post-war relationship with nuclear power, hearing first hand from the scientists, engineers, politicians and campaigners who have navigated the complex passions and political imperatives surrounding this controversial energy source. Save 10% with discount code PHLEATOM, and Phoenix will receive a portion of the net takings.
As an effect of the country’s now-defunct one-child policy there are 30 million more men than women in China, and single women over the age of 27 face immense public pressure – including the humiliation of “marriage markets” – to marry or risk being shunned by society as “leftover”. This eye-opening documentary follows three women in their search for a husband, weighing the cost of family and society’s approval against their own chances of happiness.
Shimu works gruelling hours for paltry pay in a Bangladesh clothing factory. After a fire leaves a co-worker dead, Shimu is moved to start a union, but her attempts are met with resistance from all quarters – her employers, her colleagues who fear for their jobs, and her family. Rubaiyat Hossain’s drama shines a spotlight on an oppressive industry and demands our attention.
★★★★★ – Empire. Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn (in a rare comedic role) make a dream team in this classic screwball caper. A mild-mannered palaeontologist attempting to raise $1 million for his museum finds his life turned upside down by a madcap heiress and her pet leopard! Just one of over 20 RKO movies available for free on BBC iPlayer – see our pick of the best.
★★★★ – Guardian. Haifaa al-Mansour’s (The Perfect Candidate) landmark feature debut was the first Saudi Arabian film ever to be directed by a woman. Wadjda (Waad Mohammed) is a rebellious Saudi girl living in conservative Riyadh, where girls are barely seen and never heard. She dreams of owning a bicycle, much to her mother’s horror, so she enters a Koran recitation competition in the hope of winning enough money to buy herself one.
Support Phoenix while you watch! Rubika Shah’s award-winning film follows the 1970s Rock Against Racism movement and features archive footage of The Clash and many more. For £9.99 you can watch the film online, PLUS join a live Q&A and musical performance on Friday 29 May at 8pm. Make sure you select ‘Phoenix Leicester’ when you buy, to support us via your purchase.
“★★★★ – A delight… yet another reminder Juliette Binoche is an international treasure who should be cherished” – Empire. Claire Denis’s perceptive romantic drama stars a luminous Juliette Binoche as fifty-something Parisian painter Isabelle – successful, independent, searching for lasting love, but finding mostly disappointment. Will she get her happy ending?
★★★★ – Telegraph. On holiday in the Lake District, the Walker children roam wild and free. When they sail over to an island in the lake, they find themelves in a battle with rival children who have already claimed the island as their own. With a fabulous cast, Philippa Lowthorpe’s (Misbehaviour) adaptation of Arthur Ransome’s classic story is perfect family entertainment.
With less than a week to go until Parasite arrives on Curzon Home Cinema, whet your appetite with a special “lockdown” season of must-see South Korean films from some of the best directors in the business.
The new BFI Japan 2020 season has just launched online on BFI Player, beginning with a collection of incredible films from Seven Samurai director Akira Kurosawa. Over the coming weeks we’ll share our pick of Japan 2020’s archive rarities, contemporary works and cult classics.
★★★★★ – Guardian. Yasujiro Ozu’s masterpiece is a timeless exploration of filial duty, expectation and regret. An elderly couple’s visit to see their grown-up children – who are too busy to look after them – contrasts the measured dignity of age with the hurried insensitivity of a younger generation.
★★★★ – Slant Magazine. Disillusioned with the constant chatter of their elders, two brothers take a vow of silence when their parents refuse to buy them a TV. Yasujiro Ozu’s cheerful comedy simultaneously mocks seemingly meaningless chit-chat whilst gently acknowledging its fundamental role in daily life.
Join The Atom: A Love Affair’s director Vicki Lesley and narrator Lily Cole in conversation with Carol Nahra, as part of Curzon Home Cinema’s series of Living Room Q&As.
MUBI are giving MyPhoenix Members and Friends 90 days access to their fantastic film collection completely free. Not a MyPhoenix Member ? Join online now and we’ll then email you details of how to access MUBI’s incredible offer.
Curzon are offering our customers up to 15% off any films available for streaming in their (NOT) In Cinemas Now selection. Simply enter discount code CHCMAY when purchasing a film from Curzon’s (NOT) In Cinemas Now selection to stream online.
★★★★★ – Time Out. This week’s free-to-view NT Live show is James Graham’s superb political satire This House, set in 1974 when Harold Wilson was PM. Available to watch FREE on the National Theatre’s YouTube channel for just seven days from 7pm on Thursday 28 May.
Watch Shakespeare’s Globe productions FREE on YouTube, with a new title available every fortnight. This time it’s Blanche McIntyre’s 2018 version of The Winter’s Tale – available to stream for free until 31 May.
“Loud, lively, electrifying and weird. Bowie would have liked it” – Evening Standard. Choreographer Michael Clark’s critically acclaimed 2017 show, staged at London’s Barbican, is a stunning dance triptych built around the music of Patti Smith, David Bowie and Erik Satie. Available as part of the BBC’s Culture in Quarantine programme.
Our latest Scratch project creates an interactive instrument, based on the Theremin. We’ve got lots of different projects to choose from – if you haven’t tried any of our FREE Scratch tutorials yet, this is a really fun, simple one to start with.
Our new online Game Design ‘At-Home’ course continues, with the third of four FREE video tutorials. This week we’ll explore using the free, online tool Twine to write interactive fiction and games. The previous parts of this course are still available to watch as well. Suitable for ages 12+.
Simulating a tranquil digital landscape, Downtime is an interactive online artwork that is counter to the hyper-productivity of the online world, virtually embodying the experience of ASMR into a calming interactive environment. The user navigates via their computer arrow keys to explore the aimless world and discover aural sensations.
Our New British Cinema season kicked off online a couple of weeks ago with a trio of films directed by Ben Wheatley. We caught up with Ben to see how he’s coping with life in lockdown.
Join us on our Instagram @PhoenixLeic (in our stories) for our fortnightly virtual film quiz. Whether you’re a regular film quiz attendee or just looking for something fun in lockdown, we’ve got questions to cater for everyone. We’ll announce the winner on our Instagram on Monday.
Fri 29 May, 6.30pm on Instagram @PhoenixLeic
Mixing in-depth interviews with classic clips, this insightful series meets renowned filmmakers to explore the art of filmmaking and the films that have influenced them.