Written by Zoe Crombie

It’s been a summer of megahits, from the Barbenheimer phenomenon to animated showstoppers like the latest Spiderverse outing. But autumn has arrived now; the temperature has cooled, the leaves are turning brown, and it feels like the perfect time for something more low-key. Every year there are dozens of critically acclaimed mid to low budget films that come out of the festival circuit, and all of them are worth a watch, but there’s always one or two that seem to touch something within audiences and skyrocket to a higher level of popularity and success than the filmmakers could ever have predicted.

This year, the indie hit setting the US ablaze is Past Lives, and it’s about time for the flames to spread to our side of the Atlantic. The feature directorial debut of South Korean-Canadian Celine Song is a fresh variation on an immigrant story that follows a boy and girl from Seoul as they grow up and find each once again in New York City. These kinds of romantic dramas live and die on the chemistry between the two leads, and fortunately, what rising stars Greta Lee and Teo Yoo share is electric, holding the emotional core of the film together and making most audience members quietly sob in their seats on more than one occasion.

The buzz around directors like Greta Gerwig and Christopher Nolan may have taken us through the summer, but a new season is here, and Celine Song is the name on every film critic’s lips – so get in on Past Lives and see for yourself what all the fuss is about.

Past Lives is showing from 15th - 21st September 

Book tickets here