Queen At Sea (15)

2025 UK

Directed by Lance Hammer

Receiving its world premiere in competition at the Berlin International Film Festival earlier this year, Queen At Sea won both the Silver Bear Jury Prize and the Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance for both Tim Courtenay and Anna Calder.

The film follows Amanda and her stepfather, Martin, at odds over a moral quandary involving Amanda’s mother, Leslie, in the advanced stages of dementia. They quarrel over whether Leslie has lost all ability to make critical decisions in her own best interests, and, if so, who is responsible – a spouse, a child, an institution – for making such a determination? As Amanda and Martin are forced to make increasingly difficult choices, the repercussions spiral out of their control.

★★★★★ “a lacerating movie…a startling portrait of intimacy” Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Tickets are £6 (£1 child/student) available on the door or in advance from the Buxton Opera House box-office (01298 72190) or online.