Billy Connolly’s lightning-ina-bottle moment in the 1970s
Billy Connolly: Big Banana Feet (12)
Rarely seen in its entirety since the late 1970s, Murray Grigor’s newly restored Billy Connolly tour film Big Banana Feet is one of those incredible lightning-ina-bottle cultural artefacts that demystifies and re-mystifies its subject in fascinating ways. Shot just as Connolly was breaking into the mainstream, the film follows him as he flies to Dublin then Belfast for a handful of shows at the height of the Troubles.
Inspired by D.A. Pennebaker’s direct cinema approach on Don’t Look Back, which a decade earlier had followed Bob Dylan on his 1965 tour of England, Grigor’s film provides an unvarnished portrait of the greatest British comedian of the last 50 years in embryonic form, when it wasn’t yet clear if he was a stand-up, a professional raconteur or a folk singer who told funny stories. Watched today, though, it also provides crucial context for why Connolly mattered then and, more importantly, why he’ll continue to matter for a long time to come.
On selected release and available on DVD & Blu-ray from 20 May Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger (12A) JJJJJ
There’s no greater guide through cinema history than Martin Scorsese. Following similar cine-essay projects tracing his deep love for American and Italian cinema, this sees Scorsese turn his attention to the revered, then forgotten, now revered again filmmaking partnership between Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, whose most famous films – The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, A Matter of Life and Death, The Red Shoes – showcase a creative ambition not seen before or since in British cinema outside of Hitchcock. Rare archival footage offers insights into the duo’s working relationship, though mostly director David Hinton allows it to function as a generous act of cinephilia – a chance to revel in Powell and Pressburger's startling images via Scorsese’s own love-struck gaze.
On selected release
JJJJJ La Chimera (15) JJJJ
Italian Alice Rohrwacherher’s protagonist Arthur (Josh O’connor) is a British ex-con who has immersed himself in the world of Italian grave robbers. He’s also haunted by the disappearance of his girlfriend, Beniamina (Yile Yara Vianello), whose mother (Isabella Rossellini) believes that his talent for unearthing treasure will somehow help him find her daughter. Selected release and on demand via Curzon Home Cinema
Alistair Harkness