A TASTE OF HONEY    1961
Directed by Tony Richardson
100 minutes
In English with English subtitles

"The moving story of a plain young girl who becomes pregnant by a black sailor, befriends a homosexual, and gradually becomes a woman." This is a prime example of British social-realist cinema... often referred to as the "angry young men" or "kitchen sink" movement that occurred in the late 50s. It stars cult teen-actress Rita Tushingham (The Knack and How to get it).

Set in greater Manchester, with its backdrop of broken poverty-stricken streets and industrial landscapes, this film vividly conveys the struggles of the youth growing up in a Britain that is still trying to recover after the devastation of World War II. Despite all the greyness, there is an incredible bittersweet charm about this film, a sort of northern romanticism that creates its own kind of poetry. It's thick with brooding atmosphere and brilliant acting... and despite the fact that it's 50 years old it still stays raw and fresh.

This is the kind of film with a sort of beauty and sincerity that films today can't even get close to.

"Nowhere is that romantic streak more evident than in Richardson's images of Salford's grimy yet beautifully shot industrial landscape, and the simple sequence in which Jo, silhouetted beneath the railway arches, stretches out her arms and proclaims her indestructible spirit: "We're bloody marvellous!"

This will be a high-definition screening.