Recent events - the celebrations of the 50th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the continuing spotlight on General Pinochet - have stimulated for many people a renewed and keen interest in the question of human rights. The 3rd annual Human Rights Watch International Film Festival which plays for one week from 25 February-4 March at its new home, the Ritzy in Brixton, and then for the first time at the Cameo in Edinburgh from 12-15 March, brings an inspiring, lively and eye-opening programme of documentaries, dramas and debates, which unflinchingly delve into past and present human rights issues from around the world.

The Festival opens at the Ritzy with a Benefit Gala Screening on 25 February for Human Rights Watch of Sergei Eisenstein’s acclaimed silent classic STRIKE, accompanied for the first time in the UK by the eclectic and extraordinary Alloy Orchestra from Boston, Massachusetts. The inventive Alloy Orchestra, a three man ensemble who coax unlikely sounds from unlikely sources, has attracted widespread acclaim from critics and audiences in the States as the country’s leading interpreter of silent films, especially for their interpretation of STRIKE. As the New York Post put it, “...the mix of Eisenstein and the Alloy has produced a spellbinding collaboration”. STRIKE will play again during the main section of the festival.

There is a load more going on as well and if you missed Mr Mohammed Ali rolling past the Ritzy earlier this week, don’t miss this.

Ritzy Cinema 0171 733 2229