Juliet, Naked (15)

Our Main film for May will be Juliet, Naked...

a fun and feelgood British romcom set in a seaside town and based on a novel by Nick Hornby (Fever Pitch, High Fidelity, About a Boy). Annie (Rose Byrne) and Duncan (Chris O’Dowd) have been together for 15 years and she’s getting a bit fed up with his obsession over the elusive American rocker Tucker Crowe and with her small-town life. ‘Juliet’ isn’t a nude woman, it’s Tucker Crowe’s last album, which he has released in an acoustic ‘naked’ version. When Annie says exactly what she thinks about the new record in an online comment, Crowe (Ethan Hawke) agrees wholeheartedly. He gets in touch, they meet – and you can guess what happens next.

The story centres on Annie, and it is Rose Byrne’s nuanced performance, and her chemistry with Ethan Hawke that drive the film. Director Jesse Peretz deftly mixes the humour with deeper themes of ageing and lost opportunities as well as Nick Hornby’s perennial interest in the relationship between fans and their idols. There’s music too, Hawke performs songs from the fictional album (written for the film by Ryan Adams) – and he makes a pretty convincing indy rock star. All in all, this is a good old fashioned romantic comedy with strong acting and enough layers to add a bit of grit and interest.

 “enchanting romantic comedy (what a rare, rare pleasure to write those words)…There are truths about age. There are truths about the lies we tell ourselves... An unexpected delight.” Donald Clarke, Irish Times

“Juliet, Naked Is everything a mainstream Rom-Com should be but no longer is…When the movie premiered at Sundance in January, the audience was buzzing.”   David Edelstein, Vulture.com

Tickets cost £4 for adults and £2 for under 18s, and are available online now or in advance from Watts Trading or on the door if not already sold out.