5 Cinema Highlights for December 2023
Whilst some of us are looking forwarding to winding down for Christmas, here in cinema land we’re gearing up for some major releases on the road to Awards Season. Whether you want to relax into the festive season with a classic or tick off a potential Oscar nominee, you’ll find it on our screens this December.
The Eternal Daughter
Tilda Swinton gives a towering dual performance as an artist and her elderly mother in Joanna Hogg’s (The Souvenir) gothic ghost story, The Eternal Daughter (From Fri 1 Dec). As they return to their formerly family home, now a hotel, they face ghostly presences and looming shadows as long-buried secrets come to the surface.
Maestro
Following up his phenomenally successful A Star is Born, Bradley Cooper directs and stars alongside Carey Mulligan in the transfixing Maestro (From Fri 8 Dec). Playing Leonard Bernstein and his wife Felicia Montealegre Cohn, Cooper and Mulligan compose an emotional portrait of long-term love with career best performances.
The Peasants
From the creators of Loving Vincent comes The Peasants (From Fri 8 Dec), a stunning new painted animation. Filmed in live action, then transposed into 40,000 oil paintings, The Peasants tells the late 19th century story of Jagna, a beautiful young woman who lives in a Polish village rooted in tradition and patriarchy.
Ferrari
Adam Driver is Enzo Ferrari in Michael Mann’s (Heat) electrifying biopic of the racing car legend, Ferrari (From Wed 27 Dec). Co-starring Penélope Cruz as his wife Laura, Ferrari sees the automobile entrepreneur take huge risks in business and on the track as he enters his company in the iconic but treacherous endurance race across Italy, the Mille Miglia.
Christmas Films
We’re sprinkling some festive magic onto our screens as we celebrate 20 years of Elf (From Sat 16 Dec) and the ultimate Christmas classic, It’s A Wonderful Life (From Sun 17 Dec). And enjoy the brand new origin story of everyone’s favourite eccentric chocolatier, Wonka (From Fri 15 Dec) starring Timothée Chalamet and a scene stealing Hugh Grant as an Oompa Loompa.