Though best known for his multiple Oscar-winners The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and Philadelphia (1993), Jonathan Demme is in fact a hugely eclectic director, with a filmography that spans everything from Roger Corman B-movies and scrappy indies to concert films and large-scale literary adaptations. 1986’s Something Wild – one of his best and most undervalued pictures – marked Demme’s triumphant return in the 1980s after the troubled production of Swing Shift (1984). A genre-bending classic with a hint of kink, Something Wild stars Melanie Griffith as erratic free-spirit Audrey who “kidnaps” buttoned-up Wall Street guy Charles (Jeff Daniels) to embark on a bizarre cross-country road trip.

A unique oddity, Something Wild is a spiky, unpredictable comedy caper that shows off Demme’s mastery of tone, especially as events take a more ominous turn with the introduction of Audrey’s criminal ex-boyfriend, played by a terrifying Ray Liotta. Pitched somewhere between a frothy screwball and a darker thriller, Something Wild is a reminder of an era when even glossy high-concept studio comedies could have an adventurous thematic palette and a surprisingly acidic edge.

It was delightful to return to The Prince Charles Cinema to celebrate the 30th anniversary of this brilliant and underseen film with a 35mm screening.

You can view a pdf of the programme booklet for this event here.