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Just when you thought it was safe to watch a film outdoors, Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece of sky-high suspense swoops onto the big-screen at Somerset House. Presenting the first-ever screening of the brand-new digital print, specially restored by Universal Pictures to celebrate their 100th anniversary, the evening will be even more memorable thanks to a personal appearance by Tippi Hedren, as part of our collaboration with the BFI’s The Genius of Hitchcock season.

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One of the all-time greats, this classic of social cinema follows one man’s desperate bid to reclaim his livelihood – the bicycle that allows him to work – after it’s stolen from under his nose. As the man searches the streets of post-war Rome with his young son, tension and tenderness blend beautifully in a film that exemplifies the Italian cinematic movement ‘neorealism’. To see Vittorio De Sica’s film today is to be reminded of how subtle yet how powerful cinema can be. 
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A man walks alone in the desert, seemingly content to remain lost forever, only to find his past catching up with him in Wim Wenders’ haunting tale of redemption and reconciliation. Harry Dean Stanton plays Travis in an iconic performance that gradually reveals layers of hidden emotion; his progress back to life is charted by Ry Cooder’s evocative and expansive guitar score. A beautiful film in so many ways, from the wide-open blue sky of the opening to the intimate secret at the film’s heart. 

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A high-school romantic-comedy from the mind of John Hughes and starring Molly Ringwald, the filmmaker-and-muse pairing that came to define ‘80s teen movies. Molly is the quirky girl from the wrong side of town, while dreamy Andrew McCarthy is the rich kid who finds himself drawn to her. Oh, it’s all so complicated! But no doubt true love will find a way, especially when helped along by a sharp soundtrack, supportive friends and, of course, trusty teen-movie conventions…