Eighth Grade

Dir. Bo Burnham | USA 2018 | 93 mins | 15

"A flat-out triumph - a film that is both indelibly of the moment and achingly timeless." - ★★★★★ The Rolling Stone

"A film that should be a rite of passage for all, no matter the age." - ★★★★ The Guardian 

"Poignantly funny, wrenchingly wise and meltingly beautiful, "Eighth Grade" is a not-so-small miracle of independent filmmaking." - The Wall Street Journal

Eighth-grader Kayla Day always has her phone in hand, hoping to find connections online that might make up for those she’s unable to forge in everyday life. She makes YouTube videos aimed at other adolescents dealing with similar issues – feelings of isolation, anxiety and invisibility. But after so easily summoning this wisdom and confidence when addressing her (barely existent) audience, Kayla finds it paralysingly difficult to apply in real situations. In the final week of a disastrous school year – and with high school looming on the horizon – Kayla struggles to bridge the gap between how she perceives herself and who she believes she should be.

Making his feature-film debut, writer/director Bo Burnham delivers a keenly observed and achingly funny portrait of the insecurities and absurdities of being 13 in a world where one’s private experience is lived publicly online. While Eighth Grade depicts the seeming impossibility of making it through middle school alive, it also celebrates the debut of its star, Elsie Fisher, whose dynamic portrayal feels both incredibly specific and heartbreakingly universal.

Tickets: £7.75 / £6.00 (inc. Poly Fund)