Verve’s film picks for the month of May
JOIKA
In cinemas 16 May
Joika is based on the true story of Joy Womack, who made history as an American ballerina who was accepted into the Bolshoi Ballet Academy. At 15 years old, she left her family home in Texas to travel to Moscow to follow her dream – to become a Prima Ballerina at the world-renowned Bolshoi Ballet Company. Starring Diane Kruger and Talia Ryder, and directed by James Napier Robertson (Whina, The Dark Horse).
FREUD’S LAST SESSION
In cinemas 30 May
On the eve of the second world war, two of the greatest minds of the 20th century, father of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud (Anthony Hopkins) and children’s author C.S. Lewis (Matthew Goode) converge for their own personal battle over the existence of God, the future of mankind, and the complex relationships that shaped them.
Academy Award-winner Anthony Hopkins (The Father) and Emmy nominee Matthew Goode (The Crown, Downton Abbey) deliver “sterling performances” (Deadline) as these two titans of the 20th century.
COPA 71
In cinemas 23 May
It is August 1971. Teams from England, Argentina, Mexico, France, Denmark, and Italy are gathered in Mexico City for a watershed soccer tournament: lavish sponsorship, extensive TV coverage, merchandise on every street corner, and over 100,000 roaring fans turned the historic Azteca stadium into a cauldron of noise while a fawning media treated the players like rock stars. This is the greatest show on Earth but, despite being one of the most groundbreaking moments in soccer history, you’ve probably never heard of it. And why? Because the players were all women, and the heroic event that unfolded, has been sidelined from history – until now.
A film by Rachel Ramsay and James Erskine, Executive produced by Serena Williams and Venus Williams.
DIVERTIMENTO
Playing at French Film Festival 2024
29 May
Classical symphonic music is everything for 17-year-old Zahia Ziouani and her twin sister, Fettouma. Nevertheless, living in underprivileged Parisian suburbs in 1995 with their Algerian background, they struggle arduously to approach their dreams of becoming an orchestra conductor and a cellist. Driven by determination, passion, and courage, they create their own orchestra, Divertimento. It will be a game-changer.
Divertimento is inspired by the life of Zahia Ziouani, one of the few worldwide renowned female conductors.
A film by Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar.
