Part of Steve McQueen’s Small Axe anthology, Lovers Rock captures the intimate energy of a West London house party in the early 1980s. Over the course of a single night, young people from the Caribbean diaspora gather in a private home to dance, flirt and find moments of connection to the sounds of reggae and lovers rock.

At its centre is a tender romance between Martha and Franklyn, but the film is less about plot than atmosphere—celebrating music, community and fleeting freedom within a society marked by racism and social tension.