Brief Encounter is David Lean’s third Noël Coward adaptation and one of the most popular romantic British films of all time. It is a small masterpiece of construction, in which the director starts the film at the end of the story, and then recounts earlier events in flashback before revisiting the first scene, now expanded and made all the more poignant by what the audience knows. It is with this film that Lean announces himself as a poet of the cinema, using the imagery of shadowy subway passages and platforms lit by sudden bursts of harsh light from passing trains to convey the atmosphere of Alec and Laura’s illicit liaison. The small town locations are beautifully used, and Celia Johnson and Trevor Howard provide impeccable and very moving lead performances. The IFI hosts a film club for older people, Wild Strawberries, screening a movie every month. The films are introduced beforehand and time permitting, there is a discussion afterwards. Anyone over 50 is welcome to attend FREE OF CHARGE, either as part of a group or individually, but you must ring to reserve a place (01 679 5744).