This Image: Fitz Traverse – Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell, by Austin Siadak
Pro Moviemaker’s Zena Toscani tells us why February is for (movie) lovers
With the weather markedly colder, Easter eggs on the shelves already and shop windows covered in love hearts and rose petals, February elicits despondent groans from many. Fortunately, your local cinemas are the perfect antidote to all of the above with cracking line-ups of award-nominated films, and venues like the Corn Exchange holding an exciting night out for adventure film lovers.
A highlight in the calendar for cinephiles the world over, 28 February marks the 88th Academy Awards – so there’s no shortage of great films to see this month. As the Oscars recognise films that have been released in the last year, you may find that some have already been and gone. However, there’s plenty of late January releases like The Revenant, Room, The Big Short and Spotlight to choose from. The Arts Picturehouse is also screening Carol on glorious 35mm in early March if you can wait that long.
“A BANFF screening will provoke a serious case of wanderlust”
If, however, you’d rather see your leading ladies in duvet jackets than diamond necklaces, you might be more excited a few days before the Oscars when the Banff Mountain Film Festival lands at the Corn Exchange. With the RED film programme hitting the screen on 10 February at 7.30pm, attendees can expect to see an exhilarating collection of films covering modern alpinism, an epic horseback journey, big mountain skiing and more. If you’ve not been to a Banff screening before, beware, it’ll provoke a serious case of wanderlust. Tickets cost £15 (£13.50 for concessions), but keep an eye on the @CambsEdition Twitter as we have a pair to give away to a lucky reader.
Twitter: @ProMoviemaker
This Image: Unbranded by Ben Masters
Sadly, living on this side of the pond means you’ll have to stay up until around 4am to finish watching the Academy Awards live – which is a tall ask for many. Instead you could always build up to the event with a home cinema roster of nominated films that are already available on DVD like Mad Max: Fury Road, The Martian, Inside Out and Amy. Or even delve into the Academy archives to brush up on some past winners.
In fact, our own editor Nicola Foley has embarked on a journey of cinematic discovery with a plan to watch every Best Picture Oscar winner since the advent of the Academy Awards in 1929. With 87 (soon to be 88) films on that list it’s no small undertaking, especially considering that some of the older ones will be quite hard to locate. Fancy joining her? Keep an eye on the Cambridge Edition Twitter feed over the coming weeks where we’ll be testing your knowledge with an Oscar themed quiz.
