Sam Taunton Shown as part of 'Into the Depths' 2026 Sometimes life needs to be taken on the slower side, allowing yourself small moments of reflection. In Huw Wahl’s Wind, Tide & Oar, there’s nothing like gently rocking side-to-side on a sailing boat, wind in your face, for some nice, quiet contemplation. Shot on a hand-cranked 16mm Bolex camera, Wind, Tide & Oar follows several communities who continue to champion the art of engineless sailing. Harnessing the natural elements alone, sailors from the UK, Netherlands and France paint a pretty picture of letting both wind and water be your guide. One of the film’s main subjects is Rose Ravetz (the director’s sister), who, after her motor conks out, decides to remodel her 23-foot vessel, the ‘Defiance’, as an engineless sailing boat. Traversing the rivers around Essex and beyond, Wahl’s intimate footage does a beautiful job of capturing Rose’s practice as one of your more traditional sailors. One image sees the ‘Defiance’ moor onto a beac

Sam Taunton Run up the colours, batten down the hatches, prepare for battle. And prepare for an action-packed voyage like no other, it’s Peter Weir’s Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. The year is 1805 and British ship, ‘HMS Surprise’, has been ambushed by French vessel ‘Archeron’ off the coast of Brazil. With both ship and men wounded, Captain ‘Lucky Jack’ Aubrey (Russell Crowe), a firm but fair leader, must reassemble his hearty crew and brave the treacherous open seas in pursuit of the opposition. Based on the novels of Patrick O’Brian, Master and Commander is essential maritime viewing, a historical epic with its fair share of swashbuckling, cannon fire and seamen sporting seriously impressive sideburns. Weir’s world of water is truly immersive, transportive in its scale and depth. The constant presence of the deep, dark ocean and its biblical waves helps cast a layer of gloom over the screen as well as a great sense of foreboding. The film’s central battle scenes are

Post our Movie at the Museum screening of Brief Encounter, we asked volunteer Joe Xavier to recall his experience at this special event: “Volunteering as an usher at the museum’s special screening of Brief Encounter was a uniquely enjoyable experience - made all the more memorable by the setting. Rather than a traditional cinema environment, the audience gathered among the museum’s collection of 1920s–1940s industrial equipment in an atmosphere that perfectly echoed the film’s era and emotional tone. It felt charmingly subversive, much like the film’s furtive meeting amongst old machinery, the polished steel and worn wood, and the faint scent of old industry – created a sense of stepping back in time. It felt less like hosting a film event and more like guiding people into a living vignette of the past. “As an usher, I had the pleasure of welcoming guests, telling them of the gratis teas and coffees and encouraging them to take in the exhibits and surroundings before the film. A few co

Ben Whiting Few movie monsters have been resurrected as often as Frankenstein’s Creature. Born from Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel, made iconic by Universal’s 1931 classic, then revived in Hammer’s Gothic Technicolor, the Creature just won’t stay dead. Every generation creates him again, bending the story to fit its own fears and fascinations of the times. For Guillermo del Toro, this isn’t just another chance to play mad scientist with a timeless myth. Frankenstein is the one that got under his skin as a kid, the story he’s been dreaming, sketching, and obsessing over for decades. So when his long-gestating version finally hits the screen, it won’t just be another Frankenstein movie; it’ll be the distillation of a career built on monsters, empathy, and the blurry line where horror meets beauty. That’s what we’re digging into here: first, the long, weird, fascinating cinematic history of Frankenstein and then how del Toro’s influences and obsessions might come together to finally give us th

Five Hammer Studio films to explore the past, from the prehistoric to the 20th Century Ellie Hendricks One Million Years B.C (1966) Dir. Don Chaffey In the beginning… There were fur bikinis. To kick off this list we have the cult classic and widely derided ‘One Million Years B.C.’, a non-stop action film starring Raquel Welch and John Richardson as a loved-up cave couple. The films tagline ‘This is the way it was’ couldn’t be further from the truth but it’s a fun enough watch that we can look past the farming, tools and dinosaur inaccuracies. One Million Years B.C. is notable for its fantastic stop motion by hero of film Ray Harryhausen, whose creatures and creepy crawlies bring the film to life. The Viking Queen (1967) Dir. Don Chaffey One year on from One Million Years B.C, Don Chaffey’s back with another historical feature. VERY loosely based on Queen Boudica and her revolt against the Romans, ‘The Viking Queen’ stars Carita as protagonist Salina. Following the wishes of a dying fat

Peter Knowles Mati Diop’s Dahomey (2024) covers the return of 26 treasures from a French museum to their home of Benin, Nigeria. Through stunning footage, the film displays a variety of perspectives on this historic moment, particularly the impact it has had on the cultural identity of the people of Benin. Perspectives are mostly expressed within a floor for debates between students of the University of Abomey-Calavi following the grand unveiling of the treasures at the Presidential Palace. On the debate floor, one student argues that the format of a museum does not suit the nature of the treasures themselves as some of these treasures were designed to be carried after a loved one’s death as a commemoration, not to sit behind glass and be looked at by passers-by. This comments on how the museum itself is a Western invention, and, as seen with the French Museum, can act as a pillar of colonialism by displaying the treasures of the colonised within a symbol of the country’s own national