Why not begin the cinematic week by cleansing your mind of those dreadful, tormenting memories of watching Prometheus (2012) by catching The Ritzy’s late night screening of Ridley Scott’s original Alien (1979), one of the best Sci-Fi horrors ever made, with an uncanny resemblance to Mario Bava’s Planet of the Vampires (1965). The latest Jim Jarmusch vehicle Only Lovers Left Alive also gets a late night screening and is one of the most original takes on the vampire genre, with Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton as two bloodsucking, nocturnal immortals making some highly quotable swipes at modern society.
Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel gets a preview this Sunday. Anderson has become somewhat of a divisive filmmaker over the years. There are those that feel his obsession with primary coloured sets and fancy fonts is a bit too artificial and emotionally detached, and then there are those who think he’s one of the most distinct and original directors of his generation. The Grand Budapest Hotel features Ralph Fiennes, Willem Defoe, Bill Murray (yes!), and an all-star cast in a murder mystery comedy adventure that is rumoured to be Anderson’s funniest film since Rushmore (1998).
Narrated by Death and directed by one of the people behind Dowton Abbey, World War II drama The Book Thief features a startling array of good actors doing bad accents. Also being screened this week is The Patrol, which promises to be the British equivalent of The Hurt Locker (2008). Nymphomaniac Volumes I & II, The Stranger by the Lake, Dallas Buyers Club, Her, and The Lego Movie are all still on release so take the opportunity of seeing them on the big screen at one of London’s greatest cinemas.
As a Brixton local I’m really happy my film The Patrol opened in London at The Ritzy, and thanks to everyone who came to last nights Q&A and The Effra after!
Tom Petch