Massively iconic figures bookend this week’s screenings. We start with a second chance to see the instant cultural phenomena that are Margot Robbie’s and Ryan Gosling’s portrayals of Barbie and Ken, while we close out with the legendary Bruce Lee. But rest assured that our offerings between these two are no less tasty, with the unique homegrown eco-poetry of the Nettle Dress and the aquatic thriller The Dive providing the kind of entertainment you won’t find on regular cinema screens.
Barbie
Thurs 28th Sept (HoH matinee) at 4.15pm
Surely there can’t be a corner of the planet that doesn’t know about dolls-come-to-life fantasy comedy Barbie. If you’re one of the few who hasn’t seen it yet, or among the record breaking numbers who have, we are giving you another opportunity to catch this cinematic phenomenon on our big screen. You'll get the full effect of those incredible sets and mind-blowing colour schemes, as well as the brilliantly post-modern performances of Robbie, Gosling and (let us not forget) Will Ferrell.
The Nettle Dress + Q&A
Thurs 28th Sept at 7pm
It’s possible there is a film out there that’s as different from Barbie as The Nettle Dress, but No.6 can’t think of one offhand. The Nettle Dress is a beautiful, slow-moving documentary that shows how compelling cinema can be created from the most elemental components. Director Dylan Howitt’s modern-day fairytale depicts the seven years it takes textile artist Allan Brown to produce a dress by hand just from the fibre of locally foraged stinging nettles. It's described by the Guardian as having ‘a meditative effect, with its soothing, gentle rhythms, watching the seasons changing, and sense of time passing’. The film is accompanied by a prerecorded Q&A.
The Dive
Fri 29th Sept at 7pm
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, german thriller The Dive is earning accolades galore for its sheer tension and suspense. Maximilian Erlenwein’s film stars Sophie Lowe and Louisa Krause as scuba diving sisters who go to one of the world’s most remote diving spots. In the tradition of Buried and 127 Hours, a heart-stopping race against the clock ensues as one of the sisters is trapped by a landslide 28 metres below the surface and the other has to rescue her before the oxygen runs out. As Empire states, the film ‘cleverly subverts adrenaline-fuelled, frenetic horror tactics, as its characters must slow their breath and relax to survive.’
Enter the Dragon
Sat 30th Sept at 7pm
Iconography doesn’t come more memorable or influential than Enter The Dragon – the island tournament set up, the ‘kung fu slippers and no top’ look, tasting his own blood - the film is part of our cultural fabric. Bruce Lee’s final movie was his first on a big Hollywood budget, and it's hard to say whether he was on the cusp of superstardom anyway or if his premature death is what fuelled his legend. 50 years on, the film remains equal parts absurdity and thrill-ride. With great backup from period stars John Saxon and Jim Kelly, and an of-the-moment Blaxploitation-style score by Lalo Schifrin, still the film hinges on the impossible feats of the greatest kung fu master of them all.
Coming Soon...
With the summer almost over, you may already be missing the music festival season, so at No.6 we’re bringing it back to your big, friendly independent cinema screen. During October we’re thrilled to be presenting Talking Heads’ concert classic, the much-acclaimed Stop Making Sense (get those oversize suits out for that one), as well as the 1972 ‘Black Woodstock’ film Wattstax, featuring a stack-o-Stax funk and soul stars from Isaac Hayes on down. After screening Angel Headed Hipster, Moonage Daydream and Summer of Soul, who could argue that No.6 isn’t the music capital of Portsmouth? Not us, that’s for sure.
