Valentine’s at CULTPLEX
Tom Grieve, Cinema Editor
Get your heart pumping at CULTPLEX this February, as the indie cinema presents a surprising smorgasbord of Valentine’s treats. Scheduled from 10 – 18 February, there’s over a week’s worth of big screen romance, ranging from classical courtships, to passionate flings, and violent Tarantino-scripted affairs.
The films start with Elliot Page and Michael Cera in Diablo Cody’s 2007 teen pregnancy drama Juno on Saturday 10 February. The following night, it’s time for cult favourite True Romance (Sun 11 Feb). Written by a young Quentin Tarantino, the film opens with a meet-cute at a kung fu marathon, where a nerdy film fan (Christian Slater) meets the blonde bombshell of his dreams (Patricia Arquette), only to have to hightail it out of town when her violent pimp (Gary Oldman) takes exception.
On Wednesday 14 February — Valentine’s itself — there’s a special edition of CULTPLEX’s movie trivia night Quiz Show, where participants can discover who knows their Casablanca‘s from their Cruel Intentions‘. Then, on Saturday 17 February, there’s a chance to see the Wachowski sisters’ glorious, pulpy queer noir Bound. Starring Gina Gerson and Jennifer Tilly as new lovers looking to abscond with a mobsters millions, this 1996 erotic thriller is an absolute blast.
Finally, rounding out the season, there’s a double bill featuring wildly different ideas of amour on Sunday 18 February. Audiences can catch Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy in Richard Linklater’s enchanting walk-and-talk romance Before Sunset, followed by Ben Wheatley’s darkly comedic, bloody British caper Sightseers, starring Alice Lowe and Steve Oram.
