Coco Before Chanel12A

Directed by Anne Fontaine | France | 2009 | 1h 50m | French w/ English subtitles | Starring Audrey Tautou, Benoît Poelvoorde, Alessandro Nivola, Marie Gillain, Emmanuelle Devos

Young Coco Chanel works as a seamstress by day and a cabaret entertainer by night, then she meets a wealthy heir and becomes his lover and fashion consultant. Tired of the flowery hats, tight corsets and yards of lace that define women’s fashion, Coco uses her lover’s clothing as a starting point to distill an elegant and sophisticated line of women’s clothing that propels her to the top of Parisian haute couture.

The Oxford International Women’s Festival will host a post-screening discussion on Monday 13th March.

Reviews

‘Fontaine’s film is gorgeous, but its beauty is practical, almost textile, like a Chanel tweed.’
★★★★
Nina Caplan, Time Out

‘An epic story that gradually develops into a beautiful and beguiling homage to the first lady of fashion.’
Monisha Rajesh, Little White Lies

Sorry - you missed it!

We showed Coco Before Chanel between March 12, 2023 and March 13, 2023.

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What else is on?

Today (Thursday 2nd May)

12:30

Ratatouille PG
Parent + Baby Screening
1h 51m
Brad Bird's five-star animated family classic (with a zero-star hygiene rating) following the highs and lows of Linguini, a clumsy aspiring chef, and his highly skilled co-cook Remy...who happens to be a rat.

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16:00

Evil Does Not Exist 12A
1h 46m | Japanese w/ English subtitles
Residents of a rural village outside Tokyo oppose the development of a nearby luxury "glamping" site in this captivating eco-drama by Oscar-winning director Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Drive My Car).

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18:30

Late Night with the Devil 15
1h 33m
A late night talk show descends into bloody chaos as an evil force is unleashed on an unsuspecting TV audience. A devilishly constructed and wickedly funny found-footage horror set in 1970s America.

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20:30

Omen 15
1h 30m | French & Swahili w/ English subtitles
Award-winning directorial debut by Belgian rapper-turned-filmmaker Baloji following a young Congolese man's fraught return to his hometown. Screenings plus intro by Maona director Tatenda Jamera.

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Tomorrow (Friday 3rd May)

16:00

The Teachers' Lounge 12A
1h 39m | German w/ English subtitles
When one of her students becomes a suspect in a theft, a teacher resolves to uncover the truth. German director lker Çatak explores the school microcosm as a reflection of our society in this Oscar-nominated drama.

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18:15

The Sweet East 18
1h 44m
Jacob Elordi and Ayo Edebiri star in this hazy road-movie about a teenager on a cross-country trip across America where she encounters pseudo-intellectuals, wannabe artists, and a gang of Neo-Nazis.

Book here

20:45

Monkey Man 18
2h 1m
In an underground boxing club, a young fighter unleashes furious rage on the city’s corrupt elite who destroyed his family. A bone-crunching action revenge thriller directed by Dev Patel (The Green Knight).

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Plan your visit

Our beautiful art deco inspired auditorium can be found just off East Oxford's Cowley Road. We are open 7 days a week. We open the cinema and box office 30 minutes before the scheduled start time of each film, and the Box Office then closes 10 minutes after the film starts. We don’t show adverts, just a couple of trailers, so don't be late as the film itself starts very close to the advertised time!