15 September 2023: 7 Boxes Paraguay    2012  110 mins Directed by Juan Carlos Maneglia   "The rules are simple: deliver or die" reads the strapline of the film poster. Teenage porter Victor jumps at the chance to earn $100 simply by transporting seven boxes across a busy street market. Soon it seems that all eyes are on him. But is the prize worth the possible price? 22 September 2023: Five Easy Pieces USA    1970  98 mins Directed by Bob Rafelson   Worth seeing for the sardonic "side order of wheat toast" scene alone, Rafelson's film is a triumphant starting gun for Hollywood's second Golden Age - a powerful meditation on families, alienation, loss and a picture that announced Jack Nicholson's arrival as an actor of complexity and depth. 20 October 2023: Petite Maman France    2021  72 mins Directed by Celine Sciamma   Sciamma's charming fantasy sees eight-year-old Nelly befriending a girl her own age while exploring the woods near her late grandmother's home. But her new friend somehow has links with Nelly's past - and possible future - and those links become clearer yet somehow more complicated with time. Society AGM to be held at this meeting. 27 October 2023: The Maltese Falcon USA    1941  101 mins Directed by John Huston   "I'll tell you right out - I like talking to a man who likes to talk". Sidney Greenstreet (in his debut role as The Fat Man) imbues the line with jovial menace as he aims to haggle with Sam Spade to recover the priceless bird statue. Huston's bravura adaptation of the classic Dashiel Hammet novel is now recognized as the first American film noir. 10 November 2023: A Season in France France    2017  100 mins Directed by Mahamet Saleh Haroun   Haroun's film centres on the humiliations and traumas of sans papiers immigrants in the Parisian banlieues. Having lost his wife to civil war in the Central African Republic, Abbas struggles to find a new life for his fractured family. A budding relationship with a local woman promises hope, but will love be enough? 24 November 2023: Murina Croatia    2021  92 mins Directed by Antoneta Alamat Kusijanovic   Nearly every review tells us that "murina" means "moray eel" in Croatian. It's not surprising, since this film's central (human) character, Julija, is an adept spear fisher. The question is, who is her prey? Tensions build when a guest from abroad visits their idyllic island, stoking tensions between Julija and her domineering father, Ante. Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water... 8 December 2023: Monsieur Hulot's Holiday France    1953  98 mins Directed by Jacques Tati   Buster Keaton meets Mister Bean...in Biarritz. Tati's beloved comedy has always attracted glib comparisons with other films and cinematic characters, but the writer/director/star's pipe-smoking Everyman is a unique creation. Hulot breezes into a seaside resort oblivious to the chaos that he creates. It's a whirlwind of pratfalls and sight gags, with the charm of a silent film while using background noise and half-heard dialogue to build comic effect.

NEXT FILM  12 January 2024: I'm Your Man Germany    2021  105 mins Directed by Maria Schrader   Never slow to pick up on the zeitgeist, the Bath Film Society turns its attention to the subject of artificial intelligence. Rest assured that your brochure has been produced by a human, but this German film posits the idea of "an AI rom-com", as one charmed reviewer termed it. Pergamon Museum archaeologist and AI sceptic Alma agrees to test robot capabilities in return for a research grant and is soon introduced to "Tom". Hmm. Alma never thought she'd meet her perfect man. Has something just clicked? 26 January 2024: The Quiet Girl Ireland    2022  94 mins Directed by Colm Bairead   When the BFS screened an earlier Irish film, there were calls for subtitles, and The Guard was in English! The Quiet Girl is different, with most of its dialogue "as Gaeilge" (as native Irish speakers would term it). Nine-year-old Cait is sent to spend a summer with "her mother's people". There she finds a tender welcome tinged with a mysterious sadness. Fine, subtle performances prove, as one critic noted, that "the smallest stories can have a global impact". 9 February 2024: Ae Fond Kiss UK    2004  104 mins Directed by Ken Loach   Taking its title from the poignant Robert Burns poem, Loach's film traces the path of star-crossed lovers in Glasgow. Casim, the only son of Pakistani immigrants, falls for Roisin, a music teacher in a Catholic school. The relationship upends his proposed arranged marriage, her job and anything resembling happy families. But can love overcome these odds? 23 February 2024: Summer of Soul USA    2021  117 mins Directed by Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson   Staged over six successive Sundays in the "Summer of 69", the Harlem Cultural Festival was an explosion and celebration of African-American music. The world knows about Woodstock, taking place about 100 miles to the north, but this exciting documentary unearths forgotten footage to showcase Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, B.B. King, Sly and the Family Stone and many others bursting with joyous Black Pride. 8 March 2024: Jean de Florette France    1986  120 mins Directed by Claude Berri   Now accorded "classic film" status, this adaptation of a Marcel Pagnol novel is a moving tale of family rivalries and gritty determination. It's set in a Provençal landscape that's fecund and colourful...provided that there's enough water. Stalwarts Montand, Depardieu and Auteuil provide acting heft. 22 March 2024: Balloon China    2019  102 mins Directed by Pema Tseden   A largely non-professional cast adds to this story of traditional Tibetan culture and Chinese influence. A condom ("balloon") is linked to Beijing's one-child policy. One farming family weighs up this "policy from afar" (also promising more freedom for women) against age-old customs laced with Tibetan spirituality. 05 April 2024: All About My Mother Spain    1999  104 mins Directed by Pedro Almodovar   How to describe this Oscar-winning channelling of Cukor, Sirk, Capote, Williams, and All About Eve? Leave it to its tagline: "Part of every woman is a mother/actress/saint/sinner. And part of every man is a woman."

 
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