LIVERPOOL'S newest cinema might only hold 56 people, but it has big ideas when it comes to what to show - a diverse, alternative programme of films which are, above all, cheap.
Now getting into its summer stride, A Small Cinema has just released details of its August picture shows. Sci-fi horror Videodrome, the John Waters classic docu-romp I Am Divine and The Duke of Burgundy feature among a packed list. However there are mini film fests too, such as Athens Now! a night of film exploring the plight of the Greeks since 2008's economic meltdown - with all proceeds going to the filmmakers.
Small Cinema is the brainchild of film fan Sam Meech,and Liverpool Confidential visited when the curtain was about to be raised for the first time, just four months ago. Based in the old magistrates building in Victoria Street, it is being run by volunteers and arts collective Re-Dock.
They say: "Films are programmed by local artists and film groups with the aim of providing new ways for people in Liverpool to engage with film, and the group is committed to providing cinematic experiences that are both alternative and affordable."
We say: "Home Bargains does very reasonably priced popcorn."
AUGUST LISTINGS
Sunday 2nd August
I AM DIVINE (15)
6:00pm-8:00pm £4/£3
To celebrate Liverpool Pride, A Small Cinema presents I Am Divine, a documentary about a larger-than-life character, Divine, notorious as John Waters’ muse. This is the story of how Divine, born Harris Glenn Milstead, grew from humble origins to be an internationally renowned drag queen at the center of the Pope of Trash’s cinematic universe.
Featuring exclusive clips from Divine’s famous roles (Female Trouble, Hairspray, Polyester and Pink Flamingos) the documentary showcases extensive interview footage of Waters, Divine’s mother Frances Milstead and surviving members of the Dreamlanders.
Thursday 6th August
SAVE THE TAVERN
7:30pm-8:30pm £3
Save The Tavern focuses on The Royal Vauxhall Tavern in south London, believed to be the oldest operating LGBTQ community venue in the UK. Built in around 1860, it has been a space for LGBTQ drinking, socialising and cabaret since the post-war years.
Featuring contributions from performers and punters including Paul O’Grady, Bette Bourne and David Hoyle, Save the Tavern highlights the importance of community spaces and the fight to protect them from radical re-development.
Sunday 9th August
LIVERPOOL RADICAL FILM FEST & PURGE present ATHENS NOW!
6:30pm-9:00pm £3
Athens Now! is a programme of films rooted in and responding to the humanitarian crisis experienced by the people of Greece since 2008. Curated by Stanley Schtinter, the films cover the struggle of the past seven years and demonstrate a positive and creative outcome.
All proceeds from the evening will go directly to supporting the filmmakers.
Cria CuervosThursday 13th August
THINK CINEMA presents CRIA CUERVOS (12A)
6:30pm-8:30pm £3
Cria Cuervos centres on an eight-year-old orphan who believes she has poisoned her cold, authoritarian father. A hauntingly vivid depiction of a child’s fantasy-imbued reality, Cria Cuervos is darkly unsettling, deeply touching and comic by turns.
A Small Cinema and Think Cinema bring this acclaimed film to screens on Thursday 13th August.
Saturday 15th August
MAD MAX: FURY ROAD (15)
7:30pm-9:30pm £5/4
Scream ‘VALHALLA’ as one of the biggest action films of the year roars into Liverpool Small Cinema. Mad Max: Fury Road, the sequel 12 years in the making, is two hours of explosions, car chases and deafening engine roar.
Join A Small Cinema for a final chance to see Mad Max: Fury Road on the big screen before it goes to home entertainment.
Sunday 16th August
ADMIT ALL & A SMALL CINEMA present APPROPRIATE BEHAVIOUR (15)
6:00pm-7:00pm £4/3
A Small Cinema and Admit All are giving guests another chance to see 2014 stand out British comedy Appropriate Behaviour. The film stars director Desiree Akhavan as Shirin, a bisexual Persian American woman from Brooklyn struggling to be an ideal Persian daughter, a politically correct bisexual and a hip young Brooklynite, yet failing miserably at all her identities.
Thursday 20th August
ELSEWHERE CINEMA presents UNDERGROUND (15)
7:30pm-9:00pm £3
Elsewhere Cinema brings Underground to A Small Cinema, which follows a black marketeer who smuggles weapons to partisans, but doesn’t mention to the workers that the war is over, so that they keep producing. Years later, they break out of their underground shelter only to convince themselves that the war is still going on.
The Palme d’Or winner, directed by Emir Kusturica is a frenetic allegory of Yugoslavian history.
Duke of BurgundySunday 23RD August
THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY (18)
6:00pm-8:00pm £4/3
Reviewed by The Guardian as ‘a considerable work of art’, Liverpool Small Cinema brings The Duke Of Burgundy to screens this August. Peter Strickland’s film explores the mysterious world of a butterfly professor and her maid as they embark upon an S&M romance.
Thursday 27th August
CHEAP THRILLS presents VIDEODROME (18)
7:30pm-9:30pm £5/4
Set in Toronto, Videodrome is David Cronenberg’s sci-fi horror film about VHS, cable TV, political manipulation, BDSM and censorship, following the CEO of a small television station who discovers a broadcast signal featuring extreme violence and torture.
A Small Cinema’s screening will feature drive-in adverts and horror trailers.
The diverse film programme is supported by Film Hub North West Central, a partner in the BFI’s Film Audience Network, which aims to build audiences for film and present cinema in new and exciting ways.
For more info:
http://liverpoolsmallcinema.org.uk/
