A celebration of youth, friendship and the everlasting magic of the movies, Cinema Paradiso won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film and is considered a classic of world cinema. Restored in 4K.

Giuseppe Tornatore’s loving homage to the cinema tells the story of Salvatore, a successful film director, returning home for the funeral of Alfredo, his old friend who was the projectionist at the local cinema throughout his childhood.

Soon memories of his first love affair with the beautiful Elena and all the highs and lows that shaped his life come flooding back, as Salvatore reconnects with the community he left 30 years earlier.

A homage to the inspirational power of the moving image, played out to a gorgeous score by the maestro Ennio Morricone..

Screening as part of our year-long season - CINEMA ON SCREEN

Please note this screening is part of Woodbridge Film Society's 2024/2025 Season and therefore not open to the public. You can read more about the Film Society and how to join here

Two childhood friends meet after years apart and rekindle a deep bond, in Celine Song’s remarkably assured feature debut.

This outstanding first feature by Celine Song is a beautiful, deeply romantic modern love story that embraces destiny, nostalgia and the immigrant experience. Na Young’s family emigrated from Seoul to Canada when she was 12. She left behind and lost contact with her childhood best friend Hae Sung. A decade later, Na Young is now ‘Nora’, an aspiring New York playwright. She becomes curious as to the whereabouts of her playground sweetheart, so searches for him online, only to find him looking for her.

Song’s profound romantic drama is an astonishing debut. Greta Lee and Teo Yoo bring nuance and sensitivity to their portrayal of Na Young and Hae Sung at different points in their lives, drawing out the subtleties of their internal selves. The relationship unfolds against a gorgeously shot backdrop, which is complemented by Daniel Rossen and Christopher Bear’s (Grizzly Bear) elegant score. A divine cinematic experience, this is what we go to the movies for.

"a must-see story of lost loves, childhood crushes and changing identities" - Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian - 5 Stars

The film is partly in English and in Korean with English subtitles

Olivier award-winning director Damiano Michieletto (Carmen, Cavalleria rusticana/Pagliacci) returns to The Royal Opera for a new production of Offenbach’s The Tales of Hoffmann. Conductor Antonello Manacorda, with whom Michieletto previously collaborated on Carmen, leads Juan Diego Flórez and Leonardo Caimi, who share the role of the poet E.T.A. Hoffmann, Alex Esposito as the Four Villains, Julie Boulianne as Nicklausse and Ermonela Jaho, Olga Pudova and Marina Costa-Jackson as Hoffmann’s unforgettable trio of lovers.

Helsinki, 1945. The end of the war brings a new sense of artistic and social freedom for painter Tove Jansson. Modern art, dizzying parties and an open relationship with a married politician: Her unconventional life puts her at odds with her sculptor father's strict ideals.

Tove's desire for liberty is put to the test when she meets theatre director Vivica Bandler. Her love for Vivica is electric and all-consuming but Tove begins to realise that the love she truly yearns has to be reciprocated. As she struggles with her personal life, her creative endeavours take her in an unexpected direction. While focusing her artistic dreams on her painting, the work that started as a side project, the melancholic, haunting tales she told scared children in bomb shelters, rapidly takes on a life of its own.

The exploits of the Moomins, infused with inspiration from her own life, bring Tove international fame and financial freedom. There's a daily comic strip, a stage play and stories that continue to delight people around the world. But as she begins to find her artistic identity she has to learn to find herself. Her unrequited love for Vivica is preventing her true liberty and only by learning to break away from her can she truly be free.

TOVE is a captivating drama about the creative energy of an iconic talent and her turbulent search for identity, desire and freedom.