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As part of Film Feels Curious, a UK-wide cinema season, supported by the National Lottery and BFI Film Audience Network, Riverside Studios is delighted to present A Peter Strickland Retrospective from 2nd - 3rd July, featuring double bills, live Q&A's with Peter Strickland, and a live introduction from film critic Be Manzini. We will also be serving Ukrainian vodka-based "Curious Cocktails" from our cinema bar.
We're deep diving into the weird and wonderful films of the British indie director's work to help celebrate his upcoming release FLUX GOURMET. This retrospective is the perfect opportunity to delve into the Strickland's niche and strange films which stimulate the mind and senses.
KATALIN VARGA (2009, 81 mins)
Romanian with subtitles
★★★★ “Fantasy-tinged psychodrama, owing debts to Tarkovsky and Lynch” -The Telegraph
★★★★ “Peter Strickland’s debut is a strikingly original thriller” - The Guardian
Praised for its sound design as well as its ominous atmosphere, the award-winning revenge fable marks British director Peter Strickland’s (‘In Fabric’, ‘Berberian Sound Studio’) directorial debut.
Banished by her husband and her village after an incident in her past is revealed, Katalin Varga is left with no other choice than to set out on a quest to find the real father of her son, Orbán. Taking Orbán with her under another pretence, Katalin travels through the Carpathians, determined to revisit the sinister chapter and exact revenge. This quest for redemption leads her to a place she prayed she would never set foot in again.
The story that accompanies the making of ‘Katalin Varga’ is almost as remarkable as the film itself, with director Strickland achieving his ambition to make a feature film after receiving an inheritance from the death of a relative. Making superb use of its Transylvania locations, this is a captivating and audacious work that confirms Strickland as one of the UK’s most exciting filmmakers.
BERBERIAN SOUND STUDIO (2012, 88 mins)
English
“With his weird, giallo-inspired drama about an English sound engineer coming apart in Italy, director Peter Strickland confirms himself as a serious British film-making talent”-The Guardian ★★★★★
In 1976, a timid sound engineer (Toby Jones) arrives in Italy to work on a mysterious horror film, mixing bloodcurdling screams with the grotesque sounds of hacked vegetables. But as the on-screen violence seeps into his consciousness, reality and fantasy become blurred in nightmarish ways.
Daringly original and masterfully constructed, this inspired homage to 70s Giallo horror is a devastating assault on the eyes, ears and brain - drawing comparisons with the films of David Lynch and being hailed as a modern cult masterpiece from Peter Strickland, the hugely acclaimed director of Katalin Varga.
About Peter Strickland
After more than a decade of making short films, Peter Strickland rose to international prominence in 2009 with his first feature film, KATALIN VARGA. His sophomore effort in 2012 was BERBERIAN SOUND STUDIO, which was adapted into a play at the Donmar Warehouse. In between films he co-directed a concert film for Björk during her tour in 2013. After his third acclaimed film in 2015, THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY, Peter continued his exploration of sound and went on to write and direct several immersive radio plays. His recent film, IN FABRIC, starring Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Gwendoline Christie was released in 2019 by Curzon/Artificial Eye in the UK and A24 in the States. Strickland's upcoming feature, FLUX GOURMET, starring Sex Education's Asa Butterfield, will be released later on this year.