This film is currently unavailable
Stella
Alun Owen and director Alan Clarke's extraordinary power-play charts the explosive sexual dynamic between the titular heroine and her obsessive lover.
Director: Alan Clarke
Overview
This extraordinary power-play between the titular heroine and her obsessive lover is a showcase for the talents of writer Alun Owen and director Alan Clarke. Like their earlier collaboration, Shelter, it reveals Owen’s penchant for charting the dynamics of male-female relationships and the emotional weaponry each gender enlists when engaging in psychological warfare.
With its crackling, waspish dialogue and barbed sexual tension, Stella would be a fine TV if filmed entirely straight, but Alan Clarke’s shrewd direction elevates it further. Revelling in the confines of the 4:3 ratio, Clarke films his lovers in tight, claustrophobic closeups, revealing unusual angles and intimate juxtapositions. Critics at the time felt Clarke’s camerawork was too showy for the material, but seen today in the context of Clarke’s career it’s a fascinating forerunner of his later exercises in style for the BBC. Digitisation supported by the Mohamed S. Farsi Foundation.
References to sexual violence
Related
Possession Possession
Horror 1981 124 mins Director: Andrzej Zulawski
Andrzej Zulawski’s out-of-control horror masterpiece is one of cinema’s most bare-souled and open-veined accounts of a broken relationship.
A Bigger Splash A Bigger Splash
Thriller 2015 125 mins Director: Luca Guadagnino
Ralph Fiennes delivers a sensational performance as one of four passionate souls sharing a villa in the Sicilian sunshine, with jealousy, intrigue and violence simmering beneath the surface.
Sightseers Sightseers
Comedy 2012 88 mins Director: Ben Wheatley
Young lovers Chris and Tina turn their first holiday together into a rural killing spree in Ben Wheatley's priceless black comedy.
The Lovers & the Despot The Lovers & the Despot
Documentary 2016 98 mins Director: Ross Adam and Rob Cannan
Discover one of cinema’s strangest stories: a film director and his star are kidnapped by Kim Jong-il to make movies in the world’s weirdest state.
American Translation American Translation
Drama 2010 115 mins Director: Pascal Ascandes Arnold and Jean-Marc Barr
A sexually ambiguous Frenchman tours his native countryside with his naive American lover in pursuit of the ultimate thrill.
Racer and the Jailbird Racer and the Jailbird
Thriller 2017 130 mins Director: Michaël R. Roskam
Adèle Exarchopoulos (Blue is the Warmest Colour) and Matthias Schoenaerts (A Bigger Splash) are lovers entangled in a world of crime in this tough, twisty thriller-romance
Palestine 36 Palestine 36
Period drama 2025 120 mins Director: Annemarie Jacir
Acclaimed Palestinian director Annemarie Jacir’s most ambitious work is a powerful exploration of the events leading up to the Arab Revolt of 1936.
Ghost Trail Ghost Trail
Thriller 2024 106 mins Director: Jonathan Millet
Tense, morally complex political thriller about a man hunting down fugitive war criminals from the Assad regime in Syria, inspired by true events.
Plainclothes Plainclothes
Drama 2025 97 mins Director: Carmen Emmi
Tom Blyth and Russell Tovey lead a Sundance-prize winning ensemble in this knockout cruising drama from debut director Carmen Emmi.
What Have You Done Today Mervyn Day? What Have You Done Today Mervyn Day?
Documentary 2005 45 mins Director: Paul Kelly
Paul Kelly’s second collaboration with pop band Saint Etienne traces the hidden history of East London’s Lower Lea Valley before its Olympic makeover.
Young Hearts Young Hearts
Drama 2024 99 mins Director: Anthony Schatteman
A gentle and sincere story of queer love between two young teenage boys, told with warmth and humour.
Finisterre Finisterre
Documentary 2003 59 mins Director: Kieran Evans and Paul Kelly
A journey from London’s suburbs to its heart, charting the influence of the city on indie pop band Saint Etienne.