David Bowie summarised it best with the refrain "We can be heroes, just for one day." Whilst he was singing about a lover's embrace in front of the Berlin Wall, a hero can be anyone admired for their courage, achievements, or noble qualities in a fleeting moment, or captured for eternity on celluloid. This retrospective is a specially curated ode to some of Britain’s cinematic heroes.
From the quintessential British hero, James Bond, in Goldfinger to heroic performances from Jeremy Irons, in the multiple-Academy Award nominee, The French Lieutenants Woman; Maggie Smith, Judi Dench and Helena Bonham-Carter in Merchant Ivory's A Room With A View, and Sean Connery in Highlander.
Academy Award heroes: Oliver! which won Best Picture and Best Director in 1968 and Room At The Top winning Best Actress and Best Screenplay in 1960. Musical heroes; David Bowie, playing a humanoid alien, in The Man Who Fell To Earth and Sid Vicious, played by Gary Oldman, in a newly restored, 30th-anniversary re-release of Sid And Nancy. Rounding out the program we have box office heroes Carry On Camping and Carry On Up The Khyber – The 'Carry On' franchise films, went on to become the most successful British comedy film series of all time.
