Friday 10th May - Distant Voices, Still Lives (Terence Davies, 1988, Cert 15, 85mins)

Post-war working-class Liverpool life is impressionistically evoked in Terence Davies’ two-part film, by turns lyrical, humorous and horrific.

Set in a world before Elvis, a Liverpool before the Beatles, Terence Davies' debut feature is a remarkable evocation of working-class family life in the 40s and 50s and a visionary exploration of memory. These companion pieces, shot two years apart on tight budgets with BFI support, evoke his upbringing in Liverpool after the war in a working-class home dominated by the violence of his father, fearsomely played by then newcomer Pete Postlethwaite.

Davies achieves the rare feat of nostalgia without sentimentality, using dynamic lighting, a superb soundtrack and a fragmented structure to construct a distinctive drama suffused with both beauty and horror. From the home to the pub, the cinema to the beach, each locale suggests both charm and stifling limitation in a film that’s as concerned with the operation of memory as with its material setting.

Venue: Waltham Forest Town Hall, Forest Road, Walthamstow E17 4JF

Doors: Open 7pm, Film 7.45pm, Close 10.30pm

Refreshments: Alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks will be available We will be serving freshly made popcorn.