Truffaut Tuesdays, a ‘Twin Peaks’ all-nighter and a Q&A with Tony Servillo: this week’s top five film events
Each week, we round up the most exciting film events happening in London over the coming week, from pop-ups and one-offs to regular film clubs, outdoor screenings and festivals. Here’s this week’s top five…
1. Twin Peaks: Into the Night
You’re a fan of David Lynch’s iconic TV detective show ‘Twin Peaks’, right? You’ve got the DVD box set, the soundtrack, you occasionally say things like ‘damn fine coffee!’, and maybe you even fork out for the annual Twin Peaks UK Festival at the Riverside, to clap your eyes on the show’s stars in person. But would you – could you – endure the entire show, plus spin-off movie ‘Fire Walk With Me’, in one 30-hour sitting? Twin Peaks: Into the Night is a marathon screening designed to separate the hardcore Peakies from the hipster bandwagon jumpers – the Sheriff Trumans from the James Hurleys, if you will. Time to get lost in those woods… Riverside Studios, Crisp Rd, W6 9RL. 10am. Sat Mar 29 – £27.50.
2. It Was the Son + Toni Servillo Q&A
He’s appearing in a play at the Barbican this weekend (Eduardo de Filippo’s ‘Heavy Voices’), so it would’ve seemed churlish for Italian acting icon and ‘The Great Beauty’ star Toni Servillo to pass through without letting us quiz him on his spectacular film career. Following a screening of ‘It Was the Son’ – a 2012 crime comedy which was nominated for the top prize at the London Film Festival – Servillo will take his audience on a tour through his career in cinema. Expect wry humour, terrific anecdotes and bags of Latin charm. Barbican Centre, Silk St, EC2Y 8DS. 4pm. Sat Mar 29 – £11.50, £10.50 concs.
3. Breadcrumb Trail
Slint were one of the most important and influential bands of modern times, a gang of hardcore punks from Louisville, Kentucky who slowed down, got into King Crimson and inadvertently invented a whole genre of their own, pseudishly entitled ‘post rock’ – and all this before any of them were 21. ‘Breadcrumb Trail’ is the first official feature-length portrait of the band, speaking to key members like David Pajo and Brian McMahon, alongside collaborators and fans including Steve Albini, Will Oldham and Ian Mackaye. Director Lance Bangs will be on hand to introduce what looks like a unique and fascinating film. ICA, Nash House, The Mall, SW1Y 5AH. 6pm. Sun Mar 30 – £10, £8 concs.
4. 49th Parallel
Commissioned by the Ministry of Information in hopes of swaying public opinion in favour of America’s entry into the war, Powell and Pressburger’s wartime road movie now seems a little dated in patches, with the characterisations all too self-consciously tailored to the propagandist idea of providing a cross-section of ethnic types united in their resistance to Nazism. But the episodic account of a stranded U-Boat crew’s brutal foray into Canada still grips, and the running debate on democracy vs dictatorship is conducted in terms far from simplistic. Stratford East Picturehouse, Salway Rd, E15 1BX. 6.30pm. Wed Mar 26 – £6.50.
5. Truffaut Tuesdays: ‘The Last Metro’
The Lexi Cinema’s Truffaut Tuesdays strand doesn’t just offer up great movies, but fine wines, fancy cheeses, even an accordion player. Sacre bleu! ‘The Last Metro’ may not be the iconic New Wave director’s very finest hour – once the Prince Charming of the French cinema, by his point he had carried his talent for crowd-pleasing to the brink of turning into an Ugly Sister. But it’s a fascinating story of how important cinema was for those suffering under German occupation. And average Truffaut beats pretty much every other director at the top of their game. Lexi Cinema, 194b Chamberlayne Rd, NW10 3JU. 6.30pm. Tue Mar 25 – £13, £10 concs.
For the full list, go to Time Out’s film events page.