This season as part of the Film Feels Curious a UK-wide cinema season Broadway Cinema presented Double Take, a weekend-long film festival screening of films about doubles and dreams. In this season the film festival included a 3D screening of Bi Gan’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night (2018), Robert Altman’s 3 Women (1977), David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive (2001) plus a screening of the short film Meshes of the Afternoon (1943) and the 35mm presentation of Jacques Rivette’s Celine and Julie Go Boating (1974).
The festival screenings took place between the 22nd - 24th of July with a Double Take after party on the 23rd. I was able to make it to 2 of the 4-day film screenings; viewing Long Day’s Journey Into Night and Mulholland Drive plus Meshes of the Afternoon. Being that most of the films were a mystery to me I approached the festival with hope and excitement anticipating a new journey into the world of dreams and doubles. I found Long Day’s Journey Into Night quite interesting but also really confusing as the story takes you in and out of the reality of Luo Hongwu’s dream state and reality. The film was quite appealing, especially the hour-long 3D shot but I was a bit disappointed with the limited storyline/plot. However, after reflecting I felt the film was fair in the sense it did take the audience in and out of Luo Hongwu’s memories and dreams. Overall I felt Long Day’s Journey Into Night was beautifully produced and directed, however it just didn’t hit me in terms of storyline and direction.
When it came to the screening of Mulholland Drive plus Meshes of the Afternoon I found myself with a set of different emotions as during the first half of the film I was a bit weary of the direction the film was going, due to the lack of direction, but tired to keep an open mind. However, as the film went on I found the film made me more and more upset and uncomfortable, not in the good sense that it was challenging views and mind, but in the sense, that it made me upset with the way the director used the women leads Betty Elms (Naomi Watts) and Rita (Laura Harring) as pawns in male power and exploitation. As I felt the director didn’t do his job of trying to display the horrors and evils of Hollywood but rather took part in the problem. This is because while watching I couldn’t see the claimed plot of the film but rather saw two sets of women who were used as pawns in a misogynistic fantasy.
Overall, even though I didn’t enjoy the film screening of Long Day’s Journey Into Night and Mulholland Drive plus Meshes of the Afternoon I do want to say the organisation and production of the event were amazing. As the festival was a pleasure to attend with the minor details for example; the design of the Double Take schedules/brochures, the friendliness of the staff, the poster giveaway during Saturday evening screening, the spacious screening rooms and the amazing artwork by Kim Thompson; made the event truly exciting and enjoyable.
Broadway Cinema’s next film season will be taking place between the 11th-26th of August presenting The Nottingham Horror Collective’s Satanic Season with a series of 4 hell-raising horrors; The Witch, The Exorcist, The Evil Dead and Rosemary’s Baby.
For more details visit and view their monthly What’s On Guide:
https://www.broadway.org.uk/monthly-whats-guide
This sounds so interesting!