Spotlight Events
Our selection of unmissable screenings in our event programme, including milestone anniversaries, exciting collaborations, special events and other Festival highlights.
Our selection of unmissable screenings in our event programme, including milestone anniversaries, exciting collaborations, special events and other Festival highlights.
2024 marks the 20th anniversary of The Motorcycle Diaries, the critically acclaimed biopic recounting Ernesto ‘Che’ Guavara’s fateful and formative road trip that set the young medical student on the path to becoming one of the most famous figures of the century. We’ll be pairing the film with wines from some of the countries and regions that Che and his friend Alberto visit on their journey through South America.
Our second collaboration with Everyman Bristol is a 25th anniversary screening of Magnolia, which truly embodies “epic” in its rich mosaic of weird and wonderful characters played to perfection by an ensemble cast from Tom Cruise and Philip Seymour Hoffmann to Juliane Moore and William H. Macy. Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson (There Will Be Blood, The Master), this haunting anthology that will linger long in the memory.
As the weather (hopefully!) warms up towards the end of May, celebrating the 25th anniversary of a sun-soaked but chilling contemporary classic. Anthony Minghella’s star-studded, Oscar-nominated adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s 1955 novel sees Matt Damon transform into the sociopathic conman Tom Ripley - and given the film’s glorious Italian setting, we’ll be pairing it with wines from across this fantastic country.
This May we’re celebrating the 70th anniversary of On The Waterfront. Widely considered one of the greatest films ever made, this brooding drama won Marlon Brando his first Oscar (along with seven other Academy Awards out of twelve nominations!) and set a benchmark for acting in Hollywood that changed the course of movie history.
Voted by the BFI as the 6th best British film ever made, enjoy Ealing comedy Kind Hearts and Coronets in Averys Wine Cellar - with a ‘variation on a theme’ wine tasting - as part of our celebration of several Ealing comedies’ 75th birthdays in 2024.
2024 marks 60 years since Peter Sellers’ second outing as Inspector Clouseau in this hilarious standalone sequel to The Pink Panther. In honour of both the bumbling detective and the film’s story - a mysterious murder in a château - we’ll be pairing it with some delicious French wines, highlighting a range of the country’s finest regions.
This year’s programme launches with a 25th anniversary screening of The Mummy! Brendan Fraser leads a stellar cast in this delightfully dark blockbuster that deftly blends swashbuckling action-adventure with skin-crawling comedy-horror - stick to the lit path as you enter the Caves, and mind the scarab beetles…
Saturday’s matinee screening at the Underground Cinema is Ishirō Honda’s original Godzilla film. Almost 40 films and seven decades later, the franchise is as unstoppable as the kaiju itself - join us for this special opportunity to view its very first screen outing in an HD restoration of the original Japanese masterpiece.
Saturday’s Underground Cinema selections explore dystopia and the darker side of the human psyche, and where better to begin than a 60th anniversary screening of Dr Strangelove? Stanley Kubrick’s satirical magnum opus is somehow as equally hysterical, chilling and relevant now as it was upon its release, and it remains a must-see for any cinema fan.
Our dystopian films at Redcliffe Caves continue with a 40th anniversary screening of Nineteen Eighty-Four (aptly released in 1984!). John Hurt shines in this chilling adaptation of George Orwell’s infamous novel, which also features Richard Burton in his final film role.
Saturday’s programme continues with one of the most controversial and original films of the 1990s, Oliver Stone’s Natural Born Killers. This shocking study of crime and violence - and the media’s obsession with them - is a bleak and bloody deep dive into the darkest corners of the soul; its whirlwind, psychedelic editing and high-octane soundtrack help make it an exhilarating and unforgettable watch that will linger long in the memory!
Saturday’s programme of dark and dystopian films concludes with a 25th anniversary screening of David Fincher’s infamous Chuck Palahniuk adaptation Fight Club. This cult sensation remains a subject of debate to this day, but it still packs a punch and remains a visceral viewing experience a quarter of a century on.
Our double bill of films featuring monstrous worms continues with David Lynch’s adaptation of Dune, one of the most iconic sci-fi novels ever written. With the new films reviving interest in Frank Herbert’s magnum opus, revisit the original screen adaptation for its 40th anniversary - just remember to walk without rhythm, and it won’t attract the worms…
A weekend of vintage psychological thrillers at Averys begins with an 80th anniversary Vintage Screening of Gaslight. Ingrid Bergman’s Oscar-winning performance is one of her finest, and the film remains so infamous that it has leant its name to the 21st Century term ‘gaslighting’. We’ll be pairing this extraordinary film with wines inspired by the characters and cast.
Our weekend of vintage psychological thrillers at Averys concludes with a 70th anniversary screening of Hitchcock’s timeless classic Rear Window. James Stewart’s second collaboration with Hitchcock is one of his finest hours, and we’re pairing it with wines that each have a Hitchcockian twist to them that make them unusual in their respective categories… Intrigued? We hope so!
Our second Halloween-themed Vintage Screening is the silver screen adaptation of the late, great Anne Rice’s Interview With The Vampire. Featuring Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise and an acclaimed breakout performance from a young Kirsten Dunst, this deliciously dark tale still has bite 30 years on from its release…
we’re thrilled to be concluding our trio of Halloween-themed Vintage Screenings with a 50th anniversary screening of Mel Brooks’ frightfully funny comedy-horror spoof. We’ll be pairing it with a flight of wines from Eastern Europe, showcasing countries and varieties that are at last beginning to earn their rightful reputation in the international scene.
This November, we’re celebrating the 90th anniversary of one of the all-time great comedies, It Happened One Night. Frank Capra’s screwball romcom prototype is one of only three films to date to win ‘The Big Five’ at the Oscars – Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor and Best Actress – so we’re pairing it with wines from around the world that have won a similarly impressive number of awards and accolades.
Our Autumn Vintage Screenings continue with the film noir classic The Third Man, which turns 75 this year. In tribute to this film’s moody Vienna setting, this tasting will focus on Austrian wines to enjoy alongside this seminal piece of cinema history.
The Oscar-winning musical comedy Seven Brides For Seven Brothers turns 70 this year; it features some stunning choreography, including "one of the most rousing dance numbers ever put on screen.” In honour of the eponymous Pontipee brothers, we’re focussing on wines from around the world made with multiple grape varieties, showcasing how producers carefully balance their blends to create signature styles.
