• Friday 8 August for 2 weeks

MAN ON A WIRE (12A)

(UK 2008) dir. James Marsh 94m. Digital
Philippe Petit, Jean-Louis Blondeau, Annie Allix, Jim Moore, Mark Lewis, Jean-Francois Heckel.

This delightfully compelling documentary focuses on eccentric daredevil Philippe Petit, most famous for his staggering stunt of 1974 when he walked across a high-wire from one World Trade Centre tower to the other. While the film builds up to this moment through cleverly put-together reconstructions, the narrative is simultaneously driven forward by details of Petit’s earlier stunts, with superb archive footage of accomplishments at Notre Dame and the Sydney Bridge. Insightful interviews with the wonderfully charismatic Petit all help to make this the most entertaining documentary of recent years, and fully-deserved of both its audience and jury prizes at this year’s Sundance Festival.

• Friday 15 August for 1 week

THE ELITE SQUAD (18)

(Brazil 2007) dir. José Padilha 115m. Subtitles. Digital.
Wagner Moura, Andre Ramiro, Caio Junqueira, Milhem Cortaz, Fernanda Machado, Maria Ribeiro.

A powerful and violent story of law enforcement in the Rio favellas and winner of the Golden Bear at this year's Berlin Film Festival. Captain Nascimento’s (Wagner Moura) impending fatherhood has made him ready to leave BOPE, the small tactical force regularly sent into the slums to kill without question. His last job is to find his replacement, and he thinks he has found his successor in either intellectual Andre (Andre Ramiro) or impulsive Neto (Caio Junqueira), both honest police rookies. Dividing opinion on the actions of this unique enforcement unit, Brazil’s top grossing film of 2007 is an honest and unique rollercoaster ride through unimaginable drug-ravaged poverty, and the urban military mission to end it.

• Friday 22 August for 2 weeks

SOMERS TOWN (12A)

(UK 2008) dir. Shane Meadows 71m. Digital.
Thomas Turgoose, Kate Dickie, Piotr Jagiello, Ireneusz Czop, Perry Benson, Elisa Lasowski.

Shane Meadows’ latest venture exceeds the considerable expectations placed on him since the phenomenal success of THIS IS ENGLAND. Moving the action from the Midlands to London, the film is centered on the unlikely teenage friendship between Nottingham runaway Tomo (Thomas Turgoose) and Polish teenager Malek (Piotr Jagiello). Settling in Somers Town, an impoverished area situated between Euston and Kings Cross, the bond between the two is tested by their desire for a French waitress (Elisa Lasowski). Shot in beautiful monochrome, Meadows proves once again his ability to gain scene-stealing performances from younger cast members, with both Turgoose and Jagiello excelling in this coming-of-age wonder from one of Britain’s most gifted directors.

• Friday 29 August for 1 week

BEN X (15)

(Belgium 2007) dir. Nic Balthazar 93m. Subtitles. Digital.
Greg Timmermans, Laura Verlinden, Marijke Pinoy, Pol Goossen, Titus De Voogdt, Maarten Claeyssens, Gilles De Schrijver.

Virtual reality meets real life in one of the year's most powerful and original movies. Ben is different: a bright but autistic teenager who lives in his own universe. His only solace is the time spent playing sword-and-sorcery game “Overlord,” and the closest thing he has to a friendship is with Scarlite, a female online gamer he’s never met. Ben devises a plan but his love for the game will soon turn into something more threatening... First-time director Nic Balthazar mixes some striking visual effects and a superb star performance by newcomer Greg Timmermans to deliver a bold and memorable movie-going experience.

• Friday 5 September for 2 weeks

THE DUCHESS (12A)

(UK 2008) dir. Saul Dibb 110m. Digital.
Kiera Knightly, Dominic Cooper, Ralph Fiennes, Hayley Atwell, Charlotte Rampling, Simon McBurney, Aidan McArdle.

Kiera Knightly continues to prove herself as one of Britain’s leading talents in this ravishing costume drama chronicling the life of 18th century aristocrat Georgina, Duchess of Devonshire. A celebrated beauty of her time, this royal celebrity was renowned for her extravagant and scandalous lifestyle, causing fascination and intrigue across the country. With striking cinematography and confident direction gaining landmark performances from the young cast, this harks back to the golden age of the British heritage film, and looks set to take the rest of the world by storm.

• Friday 19 September for 1 week

THE WAVE (15)

(Germny 2008) dir. Dennis Gansel 107m. Subtitles. Digital.
Jürgen Vogel, Frederick Lau, Max Riemelt, Jennifer Ulrich, Christiane Paul.

Based on real events in a Californian High School in 1967 and transferred to modern day Germany, this gripping thriller looks certain to shine come awards season. When a high school teacher (Vogel) decides to set up an experiment on dictatorship, it gathers momentum faster than anyone could have expected, with students actually embracing such strictures and opting in to the system. But as members of this system feel their dominance grow, so too does campus resistance and violence. Drumming up broad examinations of fascism, and more focused questions of the emergence of a Third Reich for a new generation, THE WAVE reveals how simply an ideology of supremacy can take hold.

LINHA DE PASSE (15)

(Brazil 2008) dirs. Walter Salles & Daniela Thomas 113m. Subtitles.
Sandra Corveloni, João Baldasserini, Vinícius de Oliveira, José Geraldo Rodrigues, Kaique Jesus Santos.

A touching tale of four brothers from a poor Brazilian family, superbly directed by the man behind THE MOTORCYLCE DIARIES. An alternative to recent Brazilian offerings immersed in drugs and death, these siblings centre their lives on everything from football to faith, desperately attempting to hold onto their dream of making it out of the slums and its cycle of grinding poverty without wading into illegal terrain. As dramatic as it is moving, this is a poignant story that reveals the softer side of Brazilian cinema while negating none of its hard-hitting impact.