Radio On

Chris Petit's 1979 film follows a London radio broadcaster driving to Bristol after learning of his brother's suicide. Almost nothing is uncovered along the way; the man asks questions, gets no answers and keeps driving. Unusually for British cinema, the film leans on the German road movie tradition. Wim Wenders's company was involved in the production, and the cinematographer came from the circle Wenders worked with. Black and white, wide framing, empty motorway. Music is the film's second narrator. Kraftwerk, David Bowie and British post-punk groups of the moment come out of the car radio, and the selection itself becomes a document of the mood at the end of the seventies. Sting appears in a small role. Who it's for: those who like road movies, the post-punk period and British independent cinema. Who it's not for: viewers waiting for a murder or a mystery to be solved; the film ends without answering its question.