Return to Seoul15

Directed by Davy Chou | South Korea | 2022 | 1h 59m | Korean & French w/ English subtitles | Starring Park Ji-min, Oh Kwang-rok, Kim Sun-young, Louis-Do de Lencquesaing, Guka Han

Wanting to reconnect with her origins, a 25-year-old woman impulsively returns to South Korea, the country of her birth before she was adopted by a French couple. As she begins the search for her biological parents in a country she knows little about, her life begins to move in new and unexpected directions. Featuring a stunning debut performance from Ji-Min, this shapeshifting character portrait of a restless woman caught between two worlds sensitively explores identity, belonging, and cultural duality.

Reviews

‘Few movies have ever been more perfectly in tune with their protagonists than Davy Chou’s jagged, restless, and rivetingly unpredictable Return to Seoul.’
★★★★★
David Ehrlich, IndieWire

‘This one will stand the test of time: knotty, electric, powerful, soul-searching.’
★★★★
Ella Kemp, Little White Lies

Sorry - you missed it!

We showed Return to Seoul between May 19, 2023 and May 27, 2023.

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What else is on?

Tomorrow (Thursday 27th August)

15:00

The Summer Book PG
1h 35m
Eight-year-old Sophia spends the summer with her father and grandmother on their family island in Finland's Gulf, all three grieving her mother's recent death. Directed by Charlie McDowell and starring Glenn Close, this quiet drama adapts Tove Jansson's novel.

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17:45

The Summer Book PG
1h 35m
Eight-year-old Sophia spends the summer with her father and grandmother on their family island in Finland's Gulf, all three grieving her mother's recent death. Directed by Charlie McDowell and starring Glenn Close, this quiet drama adapts Tove Jansson's novel.

Book here

20:00

The Odyssey 15
2h 52m
Odysseus, King of Ithaca, journeys home after the Trojan War, confronting vengeful gods and monstrous trials along the way. Christopher Nolan adapts Homer's epic, starring Matt Damon as Odysseus, alongside Tom Holland, Zendaya and Robert Pattinson.

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Friday 28th August

15:30

On the Sea 15
1h 51m
In rural North Wales, mussel harvester Jack has been married to Maggie for over half his life, troubled by a son who rejects the family trade. When he meets Daniel, an itinerant deckhand, attraction creates an impossible dilemma. Directed by Helen Walsh.

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18:15

Tony 15
1h 46m
In a chaotic restaurant kitchen during the summer of 1975, Tony stumbles into a job that will shape his life. Dominic Sessa (The Holdovers) stars as chef Anthony Bourdain in this biographical drama, directed by Matt Johnson (Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie).

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20:45

Thief 18
+ Introduction
1h 59m
Professional safecracker Frank wants one last big score before he walks away from crime for good, but the underworld won't let him go easily. Starring James Caan, Michael Mann's directorial debut is a tightly controlled, hyper-real crime thriller.

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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 only show a few adverts – less than most cinemas – and we only play a couple of trailers, so please don’t be late as the film itself starts very close to the advertised time!