Category Archives: Feedback

Message from Peter Bunyan

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Dear Members and Friends of Chelmsford Film Club

Another season of films is approaching, starting on Monday 21 September. My thanks go to our Booking Secretary and Website Manager Bob Foale for selecting the films and booking them. Looking at the programme (attached below), I hope you will agree with me that it is a varied and attractive one, in keeping with our core policy of showing independent arthous world cinema. There is a documentary – Our Land – and a ‘feature’ of two films focussing on Jean-Luc Godard’s classic Breathless (A Bout de Souffe), amongst others.

We are keeping the subscription the same as for the last two seasons. Membership is still £75, representing excellent value at £7.50 to see a film. Guests are welcome at £12.50. Agai, each paid-up member will receive two Guest Discount Tickets to use at their discretion, allowing a guest admission for £7.50. And no advertising or trailers!

However, as I pointed out at last year’s AGM, the Club’s resources are at a critical point, virtually all its reserves now being used to hire The Studio for this coming season. It is absolutely vital that we sustain our membership at last year’s level, and even increase it, to ensure we can pay for the screening licences for ten films and, hopefully, be able to plan for yet another season in 2027/28. I do hope all of you will be in a position to support the Club for this coming season and do everything you can to encourage others to do so. In a few weeks’ time, Malcolm will be sending you full details on how to join.

Our first, inaugural, programme for CFC was in 1988/89. It is difficult to believe that we have been showing films at the Studio (The Cramphorn, as it was) for nearly 40 years! I know that many of you will remember those early days and I am deeply grateful for all the support the Club has had since then.

Best wishes

Peter Bunyan
CFC Chairperson

Audience reaction to “The Room Next Door”

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15 response slips were returned. The breakdown, and comments were:

  • ‘Excellent’: 9 votes
    • Trademark Almodóvar – bold colours, meticulously planned shots, the single conversation that began at the bar in the cinema and ended back in Martha’s apartment.
    • Sensitive handling of a difficult subject.  Beautifully acted and gripping.
    • Sensational cinematic style!  A painful subject, but so well presented.
    • A lot to think about
    • Beautifully acted.  Wonderful use of vibrant colours and music.
    • Very thought provoking.  Easier for the person that chooses to die.
    • The perfect clothes, the perfect houses, the perfect fruit!  Not sure I could watch that again.  At times I could not believe in Tilda Swinton though.
  • ‘Very Good’: 3 votes
    • The film covered a painful subject effortlessly.  The early scenes were more like a play than a film; however, the second part gathered momentum and became increasingly cinematic.  The use of reds and greens key to the film’s impact, most dramatically in the scene where Ingrid finds Martha on the lounger, a scene prepared for by the Hopper picture shown when they first arrived.
      The value of life, and friendship, tested as it slips away.
    • Well played by all concerned.  The music was an integral part of the film.  The musicians certainly found their work cut out!
    • “We had joy, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun”
  • ‘Good’: 2 votes
  • ‘Satisfactory’: 0 votes
  • ‘Poor’: 1 vote
    • Codswallop! Didn’t get it – not even the scenery.

Download the comments by clicking on the following link:
Feedback for ‘The Room Next Door’

We are always interested to receive any additional comments people may have on this film and welcome all contributions to this forum. If you did not leave comments after the screening, but still wish to do so, you can leave them here.

This was the final film of the season, we hope you have a great summer and look forward to seeing you again for our next season, which starts on Monday 21 September. Details to follow.

Audience reaction to “On Falling”

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14 response slips were returned. The breakdown, and comments were:

  • ‘Excellent’: 5 votes
    • Touching portrayal of the impossible position many people in the gig-economy find themselves in, one unexpected expense being the difference between just about surviving and abject poverty.
    • Real and very, very uncomfortable film [?] lives of people we had maybe never deeply thought about.  Poverty in isolation.
      this was a deeply moving film.
    • A mesmeric performance from Joana Santas.  More than a hint of Ken loach here, and I had always thought that teaching was bad…!
    • Pete Seeger sang about Little Boxes –  only 100 times worse.
  • ‘Very Good’: 5 votes
    • Down the Ken Loach/Paul Laverty road, but from the female perspective.
    • Great choice – heartbreaking ending.  Very natural performance by the lead.
    • Depressing but it made me feel grateful.  The fragility of her world was very carefully portrayed[?]. Understated – but hidden warmth.
    • Ken Loach like.  A savage assessment of the world of work we’ve created.  Not the utopia technology was promised to deliver.
    • Memories of shared living as a young adult.   The interview was uncomfortable as out of work she was merely trying to survive.
  • ‘Good’: 4 votes
    • Unrelenting, but sadly so true for “fulfilment” centre workers.
    • Watching people – fascinating.  But what was all the ‘junk’ (made in China?) that the poor girl was ‘processing’?  All she seemed to need was the comfort of strangers.
    • Film about surviving depression.  Great symbolism, subtle foreshadowing.  Love an open ending.  Despite being slow paced, still managed to keep interest the whole way.
    • Was definitely a slow burn but I did leave smiling in the end – just grateful it wasn’t a sad ending.  I like that all the workers had names in the credits, even if they never said them on screen.
  • ‘Satisfactory’: 0 votes
  • ‘Poor’: 0 votes

Download the comments by clicking on the following link:
Feedback for ‘On Falling’

We are always interested to receive any additional comments people may have on this film and welcome all contributions to this forum. If you did not leave comments after the screening, but still wish to do so, you can leave them here.