Mysteries of London - Screening Series

Mysteries of London

'City mysteries' were a popular new form of fiction in the 19th century, pioneered in Paris, but soon produced in industrial quantities in Britain and many other countries. Combining crime and its detection with a whiff of the occult, this was a genre which reflected the baffling and often terrifying complexity of modern city life, while offering its readers the satisfaction of mysteries explained. It was taken up with enthusiasm by early filmmakers, and has since incorporated elements of science fiction as well as fiendish plotters of all kinds, comic as well as obsessive and demonic. These modern London mysteries explore how cinema has continued to update this old form of storytelling. – Ian Christie

2 Oct               The Man Who Knew Too Much (Alfred Hitchcock, 1934)

9 Oct               Contraband (Michael Powell,1940)

16 Oct             The Ministry of Fear (Fritz Lang, 1944)

23 Oct             Night of the Demon (Jacques Tourneur, 1957)

30 Oct             The Two Faces of Dr Jekyll (Terence Fisher, 1960)

6 Nov              Help! (Dick Lester, 1965)

13 Nov            Blow-Up (Antonioni, 1966)

20 Nov            Secret Ceremony (Losey, 1968)

27 Nov            The Abominable Dr Phibes (Robert Fuest, 1971)

4 Dec              The Lost Prince (Stephen Poliakoff, 2003)

11 Dec           Sherlock Holmes (Guy Ritchie, 2009)

All screenings at 2.30 in the Birkbeck Cinema, 43 Gordon Square, WC1H 0PD.

The LSSC at Birkbeck College and Film exists to promote public awareness of and research into London’s screen history, as part of London’s Screen Archives: the Regional Network. Further information from: lsscbbk@gmail.com.