The Souvenir

Wednesday 21 July at 7.30pm

Joanna Hogg│UK/USA│2019│120 mins│rating tbc

This coming-of-age drama about a student falling for an older man is an enigmatic and intensely personal portrait of director Joanna Hogg as a young woman, and an account of her experiences at film school.

“Joanna Hogg’s dream-like, visually splendid tale of first love stars Honor Swinton Byrne (in a breakout performance) alongside her mother, Tilda Swinton, and Tom Burke… The Souvenir centres around Julie (Swinton Byrne), a 1980s film student from a privileged background who wishes to make films depicting the harsh social realities of Thatcherite Britain. Into her life comes Anthony (Tom Burke), who’s older and charismatic and expresses serious interest in, and ideas about, the films Julie wishes to make… The dapper and sophisticated Anthony says he works for the Foreign Office, and hints at daring, secretive missions. While Julie’s mother (Swinton) and her friends express some apprehension, Julie remains devoted, borrowing increasingly large sums of money from her parents to hand over to Anthony… [The Souvenir] is a film of great power and unforgettable imagery, perfectly capturing the social milieu, and all the euphoria of first love and its accompanying harsh realisations.” – Sydney Film Festival 2019