Memoir of a Snail (2024) M

Director: Adam Elliot
Stars: Jackie Weaver, Sarah Snook, Eric Bana, Nick Cave
Duration: 95 minutes

Nominated this year for the Best Animated Feature Oscar, this is the second feature film from Australian animator Adam Elliot. With a plot loosely inspired by Elliot's own life, it is a bittersweet memoir of a melancholic woman called Grace Pudel - a hoarder of snails, romance novels, and guinea pigs. 

Created in stop-motion animation, it lovingly recreates 1970s Melbourne, Australia, where Grace lives with her twin brother Gilbert and their French father Percy, a former juggler who is now a paraplegic alcoholic. The twins have a close and supportive relationship, and Gilbert defends Grace from schoolmates who tease her for her cleft lip. As a teenager, Grace eventually befriends an eccentric but kind elderly woman named Pinky, who always finds silver linings in her life despite some misfortunes, such as losing two husbands and many jobs.

Rotten Tomatoes (where it has a 95% critics score) says "this stop motion odyssey of hope triumphing over life's despair with humanity to spare makes Memoir of a Snail a deft, heartfelt tale." It tackles some weighty themes but will win your heart and fill up your cup.

Screening for members with doors opening at 6.30pm for a 7pm start. Join via our Membership page beforehand to beat the queue or you can join on the night and pay online or with cash (give yourself time to do this before the film starts at 7pm).