1917; Lionel (Paul Mescal), a gifted singer from rural Kentucky, and David (Josh O’Connor), a privileged musicologist at the Boston Music Conservatory have an intense yet necessarily clandestine affair. They reconnect on a New England field recording trip in 1919 recording folk songs on wax cylinders – the dominant recording device of the early 20th century – where they sleep under the stars and fall in love. And when fate parts them in the years after, their love story becomes something more profound. Oliver Hermanus’s (Moffie, 2019; Living, 2022) film, adapted from Ben Shattock’s short story, is a delicate, beautifully composed and achingly poignant exploration of unspoken love, memory, and the enduring impact of fleeting connections.

There will be Open Captioned screenings at 13.15 on Friday 23rd, and 18.00 on Wednesday 28th.

Notes by David O’Mahony