Reflections on romance at Showroom Cinema

Love is in the air... but it doesn’t always smell sweet. This month, films in the Showroom Cinema programme explore the complexities of romance. Diving deep into the heart of the topic, this selection of films will allow you to reflect on notions of chance, connection, and choice and the roles they play in all our relationships.

These films may contain dreamy cinematography, emotive soundtracks, and undoubtable chemistry between lovers; all elements that you have come to expect from a typical romance.

But what really connects the films that I highlight below is how they also contrast these with a subversion of expectations, rejecting traditions and tropes, taking their meaning to a deeper level.

Starting with Passages on 1 September, Ira Sachs’ latest film follows volatile director Tomas and his husband Martin. Their marriage is thrown into chaos when Tomas spends a night with schoolteacher Agathe, creating a messy, bisexual love triangle. Raising questions about sexual fluidity and monogamy, as well as the selfish decisions people make in the throes of passion, Passages is as layered as it is steamy.

Taking the theme of love triangles in a different direction, Past Lives comes to Showroom Cinema as an early preview on 7 September and opens fully the following day. Nora and Hae Sung are childhood friends, torn apart after Nora’s family emigrates from South Korea. Two decades later, after the passing of time, new relationships and an ever-widening cultural divide between them, they are reunited in New York for one fateful week. Past Lives pits romantic idealism against the realities of life with some reviews labelling it “all of the Before Trilogy at once”.

If you’re yet to discover the Before Trilogy from masterful director Richard Linklater, you have an opportunity to catch it on the big screen from 8 September at Showroom Cinema.

The trilogy introduces Jesse and Celine, who meet on a train bound for Vienna. Impulsively spending the following night together, walking and talking through the city, the beloved films follow the trajectory of their relationship over three fateful days across almost 20 years, unpacking the concept of love at first sight.

Perfect to see alone for a good cry, these films could act as a comforting reminder of the trials and tribulations of romance. However, if you bring a date, these films will inspire great conversation, and you too can walk out into the night, putting the world to rights like Jesse and Celine…

Tickets are on sale now: /guide/