The character that made Christopher Reeve famous was so much a reflection of the person who played him, as this moving documentary portrait reveals.

The story of Christopher Reeve is an astonishing rise from unknown actor to iconic movie star, and his definitive portrayal of Clark Kent/Superman set the benchmark for the superhero cinematic universes that dominate cinema today. Reeve portrayed the Man of Steel in four Superman films and played dozens of other roles that displayed his talent and range as an actor, before being injured in a near-fatal horse-riding accident in 1995 that left him paralyzed from the neck down.

After becoming a quadriplegic, he became a charismatic leader and activist in the quest to find a cure for spinal cord injuries, as well as a passionate advocate for disability rights and care - all while continuing his career in cinema in front of and behind the camera and dedicating himself to his beloved family.

From the directors of McQueen, Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui, this film includes never-before-seen intimate home movies and an extraordinary trove of personal archive material, as well as the first extended interviews ever filmed with Reeve’s three children about their father, and interviews with the A-list Hollywood actors who were Reeve’s colleagues and friends. The film is a moving and vivid cinematic telling of Reeve’s remarkable story.

We're screening the original SUPERMAN (1978) on Saturday 7th December at 3:45pm

Ralph Fiennes and Stanley Tucci revel in the ritual and intrigue surrounding the process of choosing a new pontiff, in this tantalisingly tense Vatican-set drama.

The Pope has died. Cardinal Lawrence must lead the Conclave to select the new leader of the Catholic world. But as high-ranking cardinals gather, he discovers sides have been drawn and secrets that might destroy a future pope, perhaps even the Church itself, threaten to be revealed. Following his Oscar-winning success with All Quiet on the Western Front, Edward Berger presents us with another tale of conflict, albeit one where battles are waged in hushed tones in hallowed hallways. Fiennes, Tucci and John Lithgow make the most of Peter Straughan’s (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) screenplay, based on Robert Harris’ 2016 novel, albeit with Isabella Rossellini almost stealing the film as the formidable Sister Agnes.

The film recounts the troubled life of French child prodigy sculptor Camille Claudel and her long relationship with the married sculptor Auguste Rodin. Claudel was the daughter of a devoutly Catholic, socialite mother and a wealthy French businessman. While the latter was sympathetic to her highly iconoclastic, secular art, her mother found it odious.

Beginning in the 1880s, with the young Claudel's first meeting with Rodin, the film traces the development of their intense romantic bond. The growth of this relationship coincides with the rise of Claudel's career as she overcomes prejudices against female artists.

However, their romance soon sours due to the increasing pressures of Rodin's fame and his love for another woman. After Claudel's father dies, she's at the mercy of her mother's ire. These difficulties combine with her increasing doubts about the value of her work, driving Claudel into emotional tumult.

While her zealot mother wants her institutionalized, her sympathetic brother tries to comfort her and promote her artwork. The film contributes to a broader exploration of mental illness in films, depicting Camille Claudel's emotional tumult and the societal challenges she faced.

Juror #2 is a 2024 courtroom drama-thriller directed by Clint Eastwood, starring Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, J.K. Simmons, and Kiefer Sutherland. The film follows Justin Kemp (Hoult), a devoted family man serving as a juror in a high-profile murder trial. As the case unfolds, Justin realizes that he may have been responsible for the victim's death in a reckless driving accident. This discovery forces him into a moral dilemma: should he use his knowledge to sway the jury’s verdict and protect himself, or let an innocent person face conviction? Kemp’s struggle between justice and self-preservation is at the heart of this tense thriller.

Joe Dante's hilariously overblown comedy horror cheerfully pits man against beast in a cosy suburban setting. Zach Galligan is the hapless teenager who receives the oh-so-loveable Mogwai, Gizmo, for Christmas, completely disregards the instructions not to get it wet or feed it after midnight, and watches, along with his girlfriend Phoebe Cates, the mayhem unfold when the goggle-eyed cutie starts birthing evil sprites as a result. Played almost totally for laughs (even Cates' monologue on how she found out there's no Santa Claus has a vein of pitch black humour in it), this serves as a delightfully offbeat reminder of how inventive and witty blockbusters seemed when you were a kid.

Dante’s critters-run-amok-in-snowbound-Spielberg-suburbia satire takes the Christmas milieu of It’s A Wonderful Life (Screening as part of this season on 18th December) and splatters it with cartoony carnage, anarchic comedy and a stripe of gleeful subversion a mile wide.

Screening as part of our 6 for £6 each Christmas Films Season