David Farnor | On 18, Nov 2020

Steve McQueen’s Small Axe anthology continues this weekend with Lovers Rock, and a new trailer gives us a proper look at the remarkable film.

An ode to the romantic reggae genre of the same name, Lovers Rock tells a fictional story of young love and music at a house party in 1980. Amarah-Jae St Aubyn makes her screen debut opposite the BAFTA 2020 Rising Star Award winner Micheal Ward (Blue Story). Shaniqua Okwok (Boys), Kedar Williams-Stirling (Sex Education), Ellis George (Dr Who), Alexander James-Blake (Top Boy) and Kadeem Ramsay (Blue Story) also star, as well as Francis Lovehall and Daniel Francis-Swaby who make their screen debuts.

Co-written by Courttia Newland and Steve McQueen, the film played at the London Film Festival last month and marks the second episode in Small Axe, which is airing weekly on Sundays on BBC One. The series began last week with Mangrove.

“Steve McQueen’s retelling of the Mangrove 9 case is vital, urgent and passionate TV,” we wrote in our review.

Lovers Rock will debut at 9pm on Sunday 22nd November. Here’s the trailer:

 

Lovers Rock joins 2020 London Film Festival

23rd September 2020

Steve McQueen’s Lovers Rock has joined the line-up of the 2020 London Film Festival.

Running from 7th to 18th October, this year’s event takes place digitally as well as in person, with cinemas across the UK joining in to host special preview screenings.

It opens with Mangrove, part of Steve McQueen’s upcoming BBC anthology series Small Axe. Now, another of the five films from the collection is heading to the festival too.

An ode to the romantic reggae genre of the same name, Lovers Rock tells a fictional story of young love and music at a house party in 1980. Amarah-Jae St Aubyn makes her screen debut opposite the BAFTA 2020 Rising Star Award winner Micheal Ward (Blue Story). Shaniqua Okwok (Boys), Kedar Williams-Stirling (Sex Education), Ellis George (Dr Who), Alexander James-Blake (Top Boy) and Kadeem Ramsay (Blue Story) also star, as well as Francis Lovehall and Daniel Francis-Swaby who make their screen debuts.

Co-written by Courttia Newland and Steve McQueen, the film will screen on Sunday 18th October across two screenings at BFI Southbank as part of the LFF’s Love strand. While it will not be among the titles made available online during the festival, it will air on BBC One this November.

McQueen said: “I’m so happy to be screening Love Rocks at the London Film Festival, to show it here where it belongs is a privilege. I hope this film will bring back memories of parties past and look to the future of parties to come.”

For more on how the festival will work, click here – or head this way for our guide to what to watch at the fest, including Supernova.

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