The good, the bad and The Cube

When the Bristol Scalarama calendar launched last month, it featured a total of 31 screening events across Bristol (and one in Clevedon). A whopping 12 of those films will run at just one venue: Bristol's totally volunteer-run community arts project and cinema, The Cube.

Now that Scalarama has kicked off around the UK, two last-minute gems – Dziga Vertov’s 'Man With a Movie Camera' (1929) and a special Baby Cinema screening of 'The Punk Singer' (2013) – have been added to the already monster month of film about to begin at The Cube.

But even for a venue where multiple people manage events, 14 non-standard film screenings is a large ask, so there's a need for a wider volunteer base to stage and manage events under various guises.

With that in mind, it’s useful to think of the Scalarama screenings at The Cube as a collection of disparate voices, speaking up for a wide range of passionately programmed film culture.

Here’s a run down of who's putting on what at The Cube in September...

Bristol Radical Film Festival, Monday September 7, 8pm

Bringing radical programming to multiple venues in Bristol (there's also a season upcoming at the Arnolfini in October), Bristol Radical Film Festival has teamed up with Transition Network (a charitable organisation in support of communities in transition to ecological and economic sustainability), and are presenting a documentary about this new sweeping social change.

'In Transition 2.0' (2012) will be accompanied by a speaker from the Bristol Transition Initiative, and discussion is encouraged following the film.

Studio 54 Party Night, Friday September 11, 7.30pm

Another enthusiastically staged event, by long-term volunteer Jamie, 'Studio 54 – The Director’s Cut' (1998/2015) is showing as part of a huge party night at The Cube.

Apparently, we're to expect ‘polyester enhanced pansexual performances from Tom Marshman, Joseph Waugh, John Smith and friends.’ There’ll also be a disco in the bar until late.

Wear your best ‘70s threads and get your boogie on.

Female Trouble, Sunday September 13, 8.30pm

A brand new addition to the regular strand of focused screenings at the Cube, Female Trouble is a night that celebrates ‘non-conformist representations of women in cinema’, which pretty much means it’s feminist and hopes to widen the otherwise limited representations we’re used to seeing in films.

Bringing together two stories about female friendship, this double bill kicks off with Agnes Varda’s brilliant story about a woman finding her way back to herself, 'L'une Chante, l'autre Pas' (1977) and is followed by a rare 16mm film print screening of Claudia Weill’s cult feminist classic, 'Girlfriends' (1978).

Baby Cinema, Wednesday September 16, 11am

After a short hiatus, Baby Cinema at The Cube is back, and it's added a special Scalarama feminist film screening of Sini Anderson’s 'The Punk Singer'.

A bold, intimate documentary, focusing on the lyrical politics and emotional ups and downs of original 'Riot Grrrl' Kathleen Hanna, this session is predominantly aimed at parents/carers with babies, but is open to a wider audience. Radical and right on, this is required viewing for newborns.

Video Nasty Night, Wednesday September 16, 8pm 

Another cult-tastic evening from an enthusiast at the Cube, this one involves an almost unpronounceable film title, 'Anthropophagus' (1980), which has been newly cleared in its original uncut form by the BBFC.

A little like Hellfire, the screening will also include a trailer reel, of you guessed it: video nasties! It’s also set to have themed food and drink – think pastry intestines and blood punch – to truly celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of Video Recordings Act being enacted.

20th Century Flicks, Thursday September 17, 8pm

Bristol’s still-standing video shop also stage a monthly repertory film at The Cube. This month it's dug deep to find a stunning restoration of a little seen Polish gem by Walerian Borowczyk: 'The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Miss Osbourne'.

Having seen the restoration at the Rotterdam Film Festival earlier this year, the crew at 20th Century Flicks couldn’t wait to get it back up on the big screen. A classic, strange tale retold with Udo Kier – what’s not to like? The screening will be introduced and accompanied by a video essay from the shop’s resident essayist, Jonathan Bygraves.

Hellfire Video Club, Friday September 18, 8pm 

Matt and Joe from the Hellfire Video Club bring wildly entertaining cult films to the venue every month, and what they call ‘suitably deranged vinyl’ in the bar to match the mood of the movies.

This month’s spectacular is Kung Fu Bananas!, featuring a film called 'Buddha’s Palm' (1982). From Shaw Brothers Studios, the night focuses on the Kung-Fu films of the ‘70s and ‘80s that had massive budgets thrown at them to create the ‘genre-busting films’.

Matt and Joe have watched a LOT of Shaw Brothers’ films to select the one they feel is the most fun, and they’re putting it together with original 35mm Shaw Brothers’ trailer reels that were found in the annals of The Cube. 

Shirley Clarke Double Bill, Wednesday September 23, 8.15pm 

Shirley Clarke isn’t a household name, but she should be and these are by far the most the most exciting screenings on Bristol's Scalarama schedule. A contemporary of late Beat, early Underground and French New Wave filmmakers, Clarke’s name is missing from the bill of popular film history.

Blurring the lines between reality and fiction, constantly probing her subjects in search of something akin to the truth, or authenticity, Clarke’s films 'The Connection' and 'Portrait of Jason' are explosive pieces of fictional cinema verite. Run as two single sessions, but with a discount as a double bill, these are two rare beauties that ought to be seen. 

Yorgos Lanthimos, Sunday September 27, 6pm

Yorgos Lanthimos’ 'Kinetta' (2005) and 'Dogtooth' (2009) are both listed as single session screenings.

However, if anyone thinks they have a strong enough disposition to stomach the back-to-back double bill of this talented Greek filmmaker’s terrifying, violent portraits of human behaviour, then the Cube’s film team are willing to reward you with a discounted ticket price. And some potential psychological disturbances for the days and weeks that follow…

Valerie and Her Week of Wonders, Wednesday September 30, 8pm 

'Valerie and Her Week of Wonders' (1970) is a Czech Freudian fantasy, and a cult classic made available by the good people at Second Run. Scalarama discounted terms, and the additional promotional push that comes with it, make it a viable risk where it might otherwise have missed getting a big screen outing in Bristol.

One for lovers of magical coming-of-age fantasy stories – which is totally a genre.

For more listings and reviews, check out our film listings.