The Bridgeway

This highly engaging film takes us on a journey through the life of one of the most prevalent female icons: Frida Kahlo. She was a prolific self-portraitist, using the canvas as a mirror through all stages of her turbulent and, at times, tragic life. Guided with interview, commentary and Frida’s own words, EXHIBITION ON SCREEN uncovers that this, however, was not a life defined by tragedy. Featuring key exhibitions and interviews with world-renowned Kahlo curators, EXHIBITION ON SCREEN explores the extraordinary symbolism and themes in these personal canvases to seek a deeper understanding of the real Frida Kahlo. Using cinema to take an up-close and intimate look at her works we examine how great an artist she can be considered. Displaying a treasure trove of colour and a feast of vibrancy on screen, this personal and intimate film offers privileged access to her works and highlights the source of her feverish creativity, her resilience and her unmatched lust for life, men, women, politics and her cultural heritage. We might think we already know Frida Kahlo – the image of floral crowns, big brows and folk style clothing have made her a muse to generations – but what lies beneath the surface of this intensely passionate woman?

From Academy Award® winning writer/director Chloé Zhao, HAMNET tells the powerful love story that inspired the creation of Shakespeare’s timeless masterpiece, Hamlet.

From the team behind the Kiwi hit Uproar, Holy Days is a hilarious, heartwarming 1970s dramedy with a star-studded cast: Judy Davis, Miriam Margolyes, and Jacki Weaver. When young Brian discovers plans to close a convent of delightfully eccentric nuns, he sets off on a wild road trip across New Zealand to save them. Packed with laughs, quirky characters, and heart, this is a joyful adventure the young at heart will adore.

A film by Taika Waititi. Based on the book Wild Pork and Watercress by Barry Crump, Hunt for the Wilderpeople tells the story of Ricky (Julian Dennison), a defiant young city kid who finds himself on the run with his cantankerous foster uncle (Sam Neill) in the New Zealand bush. A national manhunt ensues, forcing the pair to put aside their differences and work together.

I Swear follows the true story of Tourette Syndrome campaigner John Davidson's journey with Tourette's through his troubled teens and early adulthood, having been diagnosed at 15 years old in 1980s Britain - a time when the condition was little known and entirely misunderstood. Initially alienated from his peers and his family, Davidson perseveres in his attempt to live a 'normal' life against the odds, finding some unlikely champions along the way.

After being forgotten at a highway service station during a family vacation, a housewife decides to start a new, independent life in Venice. She finds a new job, friends, and romance, forcing her to choose between her old life and her newfound freedom.

Set in the 1970s, this film follows the lives of the Canova sisters and their employees in a prestigious Roman dressmaker's shop. It explores their personal and professional struggles within a world of high fashion and glamour.

Against the racy backdrop of Italy in the 1980s and ‘90s, Riccardo Schicchi and his agency translate free love into the phenomenon of porn. This raunchy comedy follows antics at porn studio Diva Futura as fresh-faced ‘girls next door’ such as Ilona Staller, Moana Pozzi, Eva Henger and others become stars thanks to the video tape boom. Staller – better known as ‘Cicciolina’ – gets elected to Parliament and Pozzi runs for Mayor of Rome, with the film offering a fascinating insight into Italian society.

Giuseppe Tornatore (Cinema Paradiso NZIFF 1990) pays tribute to legendary composer Ennio Morricone and his prolific career that spanned over seven decades and included the scores to more than 70 award-winning films.

Rome, 1980. Unable to get her novel The Art of Joy published, author Goliarda Sapienza finds herself briefly imprisoned after she steals some jewellery from a wealthy friend. The experience turns out to be life-changing, as Goliarda discovers a world without class barriers, and forms a deep bond with some of the younger inmates.

Set in the late 19th century, this surreal Italian-American anti-Western follows Rosa and her lover, the outlaw-turned-folk-hero Santino, as they flee across the Italian wilderness after a deadly confrontation, pursued by an American showman (John C. Reilly). As their tale grows into a legend, it transforms into a whimsical, and sometimes ghostly journey that merges local folklore with the myth of the American Wild West.

As the 1930’s African Campaign casts its shadow, the tranquil life of a small Italian village is upendedby Ras Abraham, a captive Ethiopian leader. Young Emilio, the daydreaming son of the fascist mayor,finds an unexpected friend in the prisoner. Their deepening bond exposes Emilio to Italy's harshreality, challenging his worldview and igniting a quest for freedom. This story poignantly captures ajourney of friendship, awakening, and defiance against oppression.

Set during a surreal January heatwave in Rome, various characters struggle to maintain control as temperatures reach an unprecedented 50 degrees Celsius. The intense heat causes people and animals to lose their inhibitions, resulting in a chaotic examination of human anxiety.

Antonio (Alessandro Siani) and Pieraldo (Leonardo Pieraccioni) are two police officers with a "not-so-brilliant" career and a slightly bruised friendship. Their lives are quiet until they find themselves facing a real, intricate, and risky crime. This brings unexpected twists and forces the duo to change their lives forever.

Outgoing Italian President Mariano De Santis navigates his final term while grappling with moral dilemmas, including a bill on euthanasia and personal petitions for presidential pardons. Amidst the political pressure, he faces intense personal grief and nostalgia for his late wife, bringing to light questions about love and memory.

Starring Ludovica Martino (SKAM Italia) and Marco Leonardi (Cinema Paradiso) My Place Is Here is a compelling tale of a woman’s pursuit of happiness. Written and co-directed by Daniela Porto and Cristiano Bortone, based on the eponymous novel by Daniela Porto, this thoughtful drama is set in 1940s Southern Italy, at the time of the first feminist movement.

In the aftermath of World War II, two Neapolitan children, Carmine and Celestina, escape the poverty of their hometown by sneaking onto a ship bound for the United States. Relying on each other and a kindly ship’s officer, they journey to New York City to find a better life, navigating misadventures and a new world together.

A mysterious, harmonica-playing stranger and a notorious bandit form an uneasy alliance to protect a widowed settler from a ruthless hired gun working for the railroad. Set against the backdrop of the dying American frontier, this epic Western revolves around a bloody land battle and a quest for vengeance.

A fun dramedy, Siblings is inspired by the true story of Margherita and Damiano Tercon. Irene (Matilda De Angelis) is trying to build a regular life in Rome when she is forced to return to her hometown Rimini, to take care of Omar (newcomer Yuri Tuci), her 40-year-old autistic brother.

From Fabio Grassadoni and Antonio Piazza (Sicilian Ghost Story), this fictionalised mafia story features standout performances from Elio Germano and Toni Servillo. A dangerous liaisons crime drama with blackly comic elements, Sicilian Letters is loosely inspired by true events and real ‘pizzini’ messages by fugitive Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro.

After the global success of 2016’s Perfect Strangers, writer/director Paolo Genovese has struck gold again with his record-breaking hit Somebody to Love, an hilarious, all-star romantic comedy that reveals the innermost thoughts and uncertainties of an Italian couple on their awkward first date.

A cultural phenomenon and box office sensation in Italy, this emotional drama set in a Rome high school explores the real story behind Italy’s first publicised case of online bullying.

Elio Germano delivers a standout performance as Enrico Berlinguer in this meticulous, intelligent biopic of a man for whom life and politics, private and collective, were inextricably linked. Italy, 1970s. Enrico Berlinguer is the Secretary of the most important Communist party in the western world, with over one million seven hundred thousand card-holding members and more than twelve million voters, united by the great ambition of achieving socialism within a democracy.

Starring popular comic duo Salvatore Ficarra & Valentino Picone (Strangeness IFF23) and festival favourite Toni Servillo (also in La Grazia and Sicilian Letters), The Illusion is a fun re-imagining of Giuseppe Garibaldi’s 1860 campaign that unified Italy.

Two blustery 50-somethings, have an obsession: going for their last drink. One night, they run into Giulio, a shy architecture student, whose way of seeing the world and love will be transformed as the trio wander from bar to bar of Veneto

The Sleeper. El Caravaggio perdido (2025) is a documentary-thriller tracking the frantic, high-stakes hunt for a lost Caravaggio masterpiece, Ecce Homo, discovered in 2021 in a Madrid home, valued at over €300 million. Directed by Álvaro Longoria, the film documents the intense, three-year process of authentication, restoration, and auction.

Adapted from Rosella Postorino’s bestselling novel At The Wolf’s Table, the new film from multi award-winning writer/director Silvio Soldini (Bread and Tulips, Days and Clouds) is a gripping historical drama inspired by the incredible true story of Margot Wölk, a woman who was conscripted to be one of Hitler’s food tasters.

Trifole (2025) is a drama about Dalia, a young woman who travels to Italy's Piedmont region to care for her aging grandfather, Igor, a reclusive expert forager. Together with his loyal dog Birba, they search for a legendary truffle to save their family home, exploring themes of tradition, dementia, and the changing landscape of rural life.

The documentary serves as a loving portrait of a brilliant mind and a testament to the enduring power of literature and knowledge, often featuring scenes of the author navigating his labyrinthine, book-lined shelves.

Jasmine (Marilena Amato) is a hairdresser in her 40s and appears to have everything she ever wanted: a devoted husband, three loving sons, and a thriving salon just south of Naples. But after her father’s passing, she is haunted by a recurring dream in which a young girl runs into her arms, offering Jasmine a new sense of fulfilment and completeness she cannot ignore.

Fabio De Luigi and Valentina Lodovini return as Carlo and Giulia Rovelli and this time, the family is heading to sunny Puglia, where their eldest daughter, eighteen-year-old Camilla, is moving to attend university with her boyfriend, Antonio Paradiso. However, Carlo is not ready to let go of his firstborn—especially if it means having her live with a young man he does not trust at all.

A comedy about a couple who are desperately looking to conceive a child and move to Spain to get the help of a renowned doctor. Their plans change after they meet an apparently perfect girl that volunteers to carry on the pregnancy in their place.

Never-before-seen footage, exclusive voice messages, and accounts from Jeff Buckley's inner circle paint a captivating portrait of the gifted musician who died tragically in 1997, having only released one album.

ACT I Spring, 1789, at the Château de Coigny near Paris. Gérard, servant to the Countess de Coigny, mocks the aristocracy and their manners. Observing his father struggle with a piece of furniture, Gérard laments the suffering of all servants under their arrogant masters (“Son sessant’anni”). Maddalena, the Countess’s daughter, appears and Gérard realizes how much he loves her. Busy with preparations for a soirée that evening, the Countess scolds Maddalena for not yet being dressed. Maddalena complains to her servant, Bersi, about the discomfort of the current fashions and then runs out to change. Among the guests to arrive is Fléville, a novelist, who has brought with him the rising poet Andrea Chénier. After the Abbé relates the latest depressing news from Paris, Fléville enlivens the party with a pastorale he has written for the occasion. Maddalena then teases a reluctant Chénier into improvising a poem (“Un dì all’azzurro spazio”). Chénier scandalizes the guests with his criticism of the indifference of the clergy and the aristocracy to the suffering of the impoverished. The guests’ gavotte is interrupted by Gérard, who brings in a group of starving peasants. The Countess orders Gérard out along with the rabble. The guests are then invited to return to the gavotte, but they depart instead, and the Countess is left alone. ACT II Spring, 1794, along the Cours-la-Reine in Paris. The Revolution has begun, and the Reign of Terror is in full force. To fend off the Incredibile, a spy, Bersi pretends to be a daughter of the Revolution (“Temer? Perchè?”). The Incredibile is not deceived and notices that Chénier is waiting for someone in the Café Hottot. Chénier is joined by his friend Roucher, who has brought a passport so that Chénier may leave the country safely. Chénier says his destiny is to remain to find the love he has never had and to discover who has been writing him anonymous letters (“Credo a una possanza arcana”). A procession of dignitaries led by Gérard interrupts their conversation. The Incredibile takes Gérard aside to ask about the woman he is looking for. Gérard describes Maddalena to him. Meanwhile, Bersi asks Chénier to wait at the café for someone who wants to meet him. Maddalena appears and reveals to Chénier that it was she who wrote the letters. They pledge to love each other until death (“Ora soave”). The Incredibile, having seen Chénier and Maddalena together, brings Gérard to the scene. Gérard is wounded as Chénier defends Maddalena. Gérard, however, recognizes Chénier and sends him away, asking him to protect Maddalena. When the gathering crowd asks who wounded Gérard, he answers that his assailant was unknown. ACT III July 24, 1794, in the courtroom of the Revolutionary Tribunal. Mathieu, a revolutionary, is unsuccessfully urging the crowd to donate to the cause. Gérard, recovered from his wound, makes an impassioned plea for the motherland. Madelon, an old woman who has already lost her son and a grandson in the war, offers her last grandson as a soldier (“Son la vecchia Madelon”). As the crowd disperses, the Incredibile appears. If Gérard wants to have Maddalena, the Incredibile insists, he must first arrest her lover, Chénier. As Gérard writes the accusation, he is filled with remorse at the bloodshed he has caused in his rise to power. He concedes that his new master is passion (“Nemico della patria”). No sooner does he hand Chénier’s indictment to the court clerk than Maddalena appears. Gérard admits that he has laid a trap for her and that he loves her. Maddalena offers herself to Gérard if he will save Chénier. She has been a fugitive, her mother was killed in the Revolution and their home was burned (“La mamma morta”). Touched by her love for Chénier, Gérard promises to try to save him. The Tribunal convenes with an unruly mob in attendance. Chénier pleads for his life (“Sì, fui soldato”) and Gérard admits to the judges that the accusation he wrote was false. Nevertheless, Chénier is sentenced to death and taken away. ACT IV July 25, 1794, in the ruins of Paris’ St. Lazare prison. Chénier reads a final poem (“Come un bel dì di maggio”) to his friend Roucher, who then bids him a final farewell. Gérard and Maddalena are met by the jailer, Schmidt, whom Maddalena bribes with some jewels to allow her to take the place of another young woman sentenced to death. Gérard leaves to once again plead Chénier’s case with Robespierre. Maddalena tells Chénier she is there to die with him. As the day dawns, they share one final moment together (“Vicino a te”) before being taken to the guillotine.

American composer Gabriela Lena Frank makes her Met debut with her first opera, a magical-realist portrait of Mexico’s painterly power couple Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, with libretto by Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright Nilo Cruz. Fashioned as a reversal of the Orpheus and Euridice myth, the story depicts Frida, sung by leading mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard, leaving the underworld on the Day of the Dead and reuniting with Diego, portrayed by baritone Carlos Álvarez. The famously feuding pair briefly relive their tumultuous love, embracing both the passion and the pain before bidding the land of the living a final farewell. Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts the Met premiere of Frank’s opera, a “confident, richly imagined score” (The New Yorker) that “bursts with color and fresh individuality” (Los Angeles Times). The vibrant new production, taking enthusiastic inspiration from Frida and Diego’s paintings, is directed and choreographed by Deborah Colker, following her remarkable 2024 debut staging of Ainadamar.

ACT I Russia, 19th century. Autumn in the country. On the Larin estate. Madame Larina reflects upon the days before she married, when she was courted by her husband but loved another. She is now a widow with two daughters: Tatiana and Olga. While Tatiana spends her time reading novels, with whose heroines she closely identifies, Olga is being courted by their neighbor, the poet Lenski. He arrives unexpectedly, bringing with him a new visitor, Eugene Onegin, with whom Tatiana falls in love. Tatiana asks her nurse Filippyevna to tell her of her first love and marriage. Tatiana stays up all night writing a passionate letter to Onegin and persuades Filippyevna to have her grandson deliver it in the morning. Tatiana waits for Onegin’s response in the garden. He admits that he was touched by her declaration but explains that he cannot accept it and can only offer her friendship. He advises her to control her emotions, lest another man take advantage of her innocence. ACT II January. The local community has been invited to the Larin estate to celebrate Tatiana’s name day. Onegin has reluctantly agreed to accompany Lenski to what he mistakenly believes will be an intimate family celebration. Annoyed to find himself trapped at an enormous party and bored by the occasion, Onegin takes his revenge on Lenski by flirting and dancing with Olga. Lenski’s jealousy is aroused to such a height that he challenges Onegin to a duel. The party breaks up. Before the duel, Lenski meditates upon his poetry, upon his love for Olga, and upon death. Lenski’s second finds Onegin’s late arrival and his choice of a second insulting. Although both Lenski and Onegin are full of remorse, neither stops the duel. Lenski is killed. ACT III St. Petersburg. Having travelled abroad for several years since the duel, Onegin has returned to the capital. At a ball, Prince Gremin introduces his young wife. Onegin is astonished to recognize her as Tatiana and to realize that he is in love with her. Onegin has sent a letter to Tatiana. He arrives at the Gremin palace and begs her to run away with him. Tatiana admits that she still loves him, but that she has made her decision and will not leave her husband. Onegin is left desperate. —Reprinted courtesy of English National Opera

ACT I England, around 1650. Plymouth, a Puritan stronghold, is threatened by siege from the Royalist troops. Distant voices herald the wedding day of Elvira, daughter of Gualtiero, the fortress’s commander. Riccardo enters lamenting that his promised bride, Elvira, loves another man—a Stuart partisan. Her father will not force her to marry against her will, it seems, so Riccardo’s friend Sir Bruno urges him to devote his life to leading the parliamentary forces. Elvira tells her uncle, Giorgio, that she would rather die than marry Riccardo. Her uncle reassures her that he has persuaded her father to let her marry her lover, Arturo. Although Arturo is a Royalist, he is heralded as he approaches the castle. Everyone gathers for the wedding celebration and Arturo greets his bride. He learns that King Charles’s widow, Queen Enrichetta, is a prisoner in the castle and soon to be taken to trial in London. Alone with the queen, Arturo offers to save her even if it means his death. Elvira returns with the bridal veil and capriciously places it over Enrichetta’s head. When he is alone again with the queen, Arturo explains that the veil will provide the perfect disguise for escape from the castle. As they are about to leave, Riccardo stops them, determined to kill his rival. Enrichetta separates them and reveals her identity. Riccardo lets them get away, knowing this will ruin Arturo. The others return for the wedding, and Riccardo tells of Arturo’s escape with Enrichetta. Soldiers rush off in pursuit. Elvira, believing herself betrayed, is overcome by madness. ACT II The townsfolk mourn Elvira’s mental breakdown. Giorgio explains that she continues to long for Arturo. Riccardo arrives to announce that Arturo has been condemned to death by Parliament. The Puritans depart. Elvira wanders in, reliving her happy past. In her madness, she mistakes Riccardo for Arturo and dreams of her wedding. When she leaves, Giorgio tries to convince Riccardo to save Arturo. At first indignant, Riccardo is finally moved to help Elvira, and the two men unite in patriotism: if Arturo returns as a friend, he shall live—if as an armed enemy, he shall die. ACT III In Elvira’s garden, Arturo reveals that love for her has brought him back to Plymouth. He overhears her sing their old love song and is torn between his affection and his loyalty to the Stuarts. Elvira herself appears and Arturo reassures her that she is his only love. Soldiers rush in to arrest Arturo. Just then, a diplomat arrives with the news of the Royalists’ final defeat and a general amnesty for all the offenders. The shock of this news restores Elvira’s senses, and all rejoice in the peace as Elvira and Arturo embrace their new happiness.

ACT I Isolde, an Irish princess, is being taken to Cornwall aboard the ship of Tristan, whose uncle, King Marke, plans to marry her. She becomes enraged by a sailor’s song about an Irish girl, and her maid, Brangäne, tries to calm her. Isolde interrogates Tristan, but he replies evasively. His companion Kurwenal loudly ridicules the Irish women and sings a mocking verse about Morold, Isolde’s fiancé, who was killed by Tristan when he came to Cornwall to exact tribute for Ireland. Isolde, barely able to control her anger, tells Brangäne how the wounded Tristan came to her in disguise after his fight with Morold so that he could be healed by Isolde’s knowledge of herbs and magic, which she learned from her mother. Isolde explains to Brangäne that she recognized Tristan, but her determination to take revenge for Morold’s death dissolved when he pleadingly looked her in the eyes. She now bitterly regrets her reluctance to kill him and wishes death for him and herself. Brangäne reminds her that to marry a king is no dishonor and that Tristan is simply performing his duty. Isolde maintains that his behavior shows his lack of love for her, and asks Brangäne to prepare her mother’s death potion. Kurwenal tells the women to prepare to leave the ship, as shouts from the deck announce the sighting of land. Isolde insists that she will not accompany Tristan until he apologizes for his offenses. He appears and greets her with cool courtesy. When she tells him she wants satisfaction for Morold’s death, Tristan offers her his sword, but she will not kill him. Instead, Isolde suggests that she and Tristan make peace with a drink of friendship. He understands that she means to poison them both, but still drinks, and she does the same. Expecting death, they exchange a long look of love, then fall into each other’s arms. Brangäne admits that she has in fact mixed a love potion, as sailors’ voices announce the ship’s arrival in Cornwall. ACT II In the garden of Marke’s castle, Isolde waits impatiently for a rendezvous with Tristan, while distant horns signal the king’s departure on a hunting party. Isolde believes that the party is far off, but Brangäne warns her about spies, particularly Melot, a jealous knight whom she has noticed watching Tristan. Isolde replies that Melot is Tristan’s friend. She sends Brangäne off to stand watch and puts out the warning torch. When Tristan appears, she welcomes him passionately. They praise the darkness that shuts out the light of conventionality and false appearances and agree that they feel secure in the night’s embrace. Brangäne’s distant voice warns that it will be daylight soon, but the lovers are oblivious to any danger and compare the night to death, which will ultimately unite them. Kurwenal rushes in with a warning: the king and his followers have returned, led by Melot, who denounces the lovers. Moved and disturbed, Marke declares that it was Tristan himself who urged him to marry and choose the bride. He does not understand how someone so dear to him could dishonor him in such a way. Tristan cannot answer. He asks Isolde if she will follow him into the realm of death. When she accepts, Melot attacks Tristan, who falls wounded into Kurwenal’s arms. ACT III Back at his castle, the mortally ill Tristan is tended by Kurwenal. A shepherd inquires about his master, and Kurwenal explains that only Isolde, with her magic arts, could save him. The shepherd agrees to play a cheerful tune on his pipe as soon as he sees a ship approaching. Hallucinating, Tristan imagines the realm of night where he will return with Isolde. He thanks Kurwenal for his devotion, then envisions Isolde’s ship approaching, but the shepherd’s mournful tune signals that the sea is still empty. Tristan recalls the melody, which he heard as a child. It reminds him of the duel with Morold, and he wishes Isolde’s medicine had killed him then instead of making him suffer now. The shepherd’s tune finally turns cheerful. Tristan gets up from his sickbed in growing agitation and tears off his bandages, letting his wounds bleed. Isolde rushes in, and he falls, dying, in her arms. When the shepherd announces the arrival of another ship, Kurwenal assumes it carries Marke and Melot, and barricades the gate. Brangäne’s voice is heard from outside, trying to calm Kurwenal, but he will not listen and stabs Melot before he is killed himself by the king’s soldiers. Marke is overwhelmed with grief at the sight of the dead Tristan, while Brangäne explains to Isolde that the king has come to pardon the lovers. Isolde, transfigured, does not hear her, and with a vision of Tristan beckoning her to the world beyond, she sinks dying upon his body.

Dir. David Borenstein, Pavel Talankin | Denmark, Czech Republic | 2025 | 90 min | NZ Premiere
 The incredible story of an ordinary Russian teacher who exposed Putin's propaganda machine.

In New Zealand’s heartland, teams of aspiring female rugby players must shatter glass ceilings both on and off the field to achieve their improbable dream of international glory. Directed by Doc Edge alumna Burd (Changing Gear, Monterey, Let’s Talk About Sex), the film is more than rugby, it is about resilience and authenticity at its best; young women daring to dream big but taken out by curveballs that leave you gasping, belly laughing, and ultimately feeling like anything is possible. It follows a season of women’s grassroots rugby in Taranaki from club players to sporting superheroes Michaela Blyde. You will be cheering from the sideline.

Wallflower Colin (Harry Melling) leads a humdrum existence until he meets the impossibly handsome Ray (Alexander Skarsgård), a mysterious biker he is soon desperately devoted to. As Colin submits to Ray and enters an exciting new world of desire, he must decide the limits of his devotion. Hilarious, subversive and sexy, PILLION is the acclaimed and surprisingly tender love story from writer-director Harry Lighton, starring Melling and Skarsgård in fearless performances as a mild young man and his leather-clad lover.

Science teacher Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) wakes up on a spaceship light years from home with no recollection of who he is or how he got there. As his memory returns, he begins to uncover his mission: solve the riddle of the mysterious substance causing the sun to die out. He must call on his scientific knowledge and unorthodox ideas to save everything on Earth from extinction… but an unexpected friendship means he may not have to do it alone.

The peasant girl Giselle has fallen in love with Albrecht. When she discovers that he is actually a nobleman promised to another, she kills herself in despair. Her spirit joins the Wilis: the vengeful ghosts of women hell-bent on killing any man who crosses their path in a dance to the death. Wracked with guilt, Albrecht visits Giselle’s grave, where he must face the Wilis – and Giselle’s ghost. Peter Wright’s 1985 production of this quintessential Romantic ballet is a classic of The Royal Ballet repertory. Set to Adolphe Adam’s evocative score and with atmospheric designs by John Macfarlane, Giselle conjures up the earthly and otherworldly realms in a tale of love, betrayal and redemption.

Raised by a scheming dwarf and unaware of his true family origins, a young man embarks on an epic journey. Soon, destiny brings him face-to-face with a shattered sword, a fearsome dragon and the cursed ring it guards, and a Valkyrie forced into enchanted slumber... Moments of transcendent beauty and heroic triumph sparkle in the third chapter of Wagner’s Ring cycle, brought to life under Barrie Kosky’s inspired eye following his spectacular Das Rheingold (2023) and Die Walküre (2025). Andreas Schager, in his much-anticipated debut with The Royal Opera, stars as Siegfried’s titular hero, alongside Christopher Maltman’s towering Wanderer, Peter Hoare’s treacherous Mime and Elisabet Strid’s radiant Brünnhilde. Antonio Pappano conducts, drawing out the unspoken tensions and ethereal mysticism of Wagner’s dynamic score.

Princess Pamina has been captured. Her mother, the Queen of the Night, tasks the young Prince Tamino with her daughter’s rescue. But when Tamino and his friendly sidekick, Papageno, embark on their adventure, they soon learn that when it comes to the quest for love, nothing is as it really seems. Guided by a magic flute, they encounter monsters, villains, and a mysterious brotherhood of men – but help, it turns out, comes when you least expect it. Mozart’s fantastical opera glitters in David McVicar’s enchanting production. A star cast including Julia Bullock as Pamina, Amitai Pati as Tamino, Huw Montague Rendall as Papageno, Kathryn Lewek as the Queen of the Night, and Soloman Howard as Sarastro, led by French conductor Marie Jacquot in her Covent Garden debut.

An intimate and moving exploration of family, memories, and the reconciliatory power of art.

Haane Manahi of the 28th Māori Battalion is told that taking the German desert fortress of Takrouna will be a 'cakewalk'. But when the chain of command collapses under enemy fire, Haane leads a small group of Māori Battalion soldiers – all related, all cousins – up a precipitous cliff face and into the pages of history – where his Victoria Cross recommendation and its downgrade continue to echo throughout his descendants today. WWII. True story.

After being left at the altar in Rome, a man decides to go on his honeymoon alone.

This music-packed documentary tells the story of Pene Pati and his brother Amitai Pati, and their against-the-odds journey from Samoa to platinum-selling success in the trio Sol3 Mio and on to the world’s greatest opera stages. Bursting with humour, heart and soaring performances, the film reveals the resilience born of adversity, the richness of family and culture, and the rewards that come from following an unlikely dream.

An original comedy musical about two teenage girls attending a debutante ball in a small rural town.

Almost twenty years after making their iconic turns as Miranda, Andy, Emily and Nigel—Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci return to the fashionable streets of New York City and the sleek offices of Runway Magazine in the eagerly awaited sequel to the 2006 phenomenon that defined a generation. The film reunites the original main cast with director David Frankel and writer Aline Brosh McKenna, and introduces an all-new runway of characters including Kenneth Branagh, Simone Ashley, Justin Theroux, Lucy Liu, Patrick Brammall, Caleb Hearon, Helen J. Shen, Pauline Chalamet, B.J. Novak and Conrad Ricamora. Tracie Thoms and Tibor Feldman also reprise their roles as “Lily” and “Irv” from the first film. “The Devil Wears Prada 2” is produced by Wendy Finerman, and executive produced by Michael Bederman, Karen Rosenfelt and McKenna. The film debuts exclusively in cinemas April 30, 2026.

A couple, in the days leading up to their wedding, faces a crisis when unexpected revelations derail what one of them thought they knew about the other.

THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE follows Polly and Tim and their children Beth, Joe and Fran – a modern family who find themselves forced to relocate to the remote English countryside. Soon after the family’s arrival in the countryside, the children discover a magical tree and its extraordinary and eccentric residents including treasured characters Moonface, Silky, Dame Washalot and Saucepan Man. At the top of the tree, they are transported to spectacular and fantastical lands and, through the joys and challenges of their adventures, the family learn to reconnect and value each other for the first time in years.

MARCH 29: Q&A SCREENING WITH DIRECTOR BART SCHRIJVER IN PERSON MODERATED BY FILMMAKER FERGUS GRADY. Two old friends are walking 600 kilometers through the Scottish highlands, to reconnect with each other, with nature and with parts of themselves they have lost.

In 1990s Iraq, 9-year-old Lamia must bake Saddam Hussein's birthday cake. She scrambles to find ingredients for this compulsory task while facing potential punishment if she fails.

The host of a popular paranormal podcast becomes haunted by terrifying recordings mysteriously sent her way.