Ali & Ava15

Directed by Clio Barnard | UK | 2021 | 1h 34m | Starring Claire Rushbrook, Adeel Akhtar, Ellora Torchia, Shaun Thomas

In modern day Bradford, a friendship sparks up between a good-humoured part-time DJ and a widowed mother of three. Their relationship grows stronger as the two bond over their shared love of music, but tensions soon begin to rise amongst their respective families. An honest and heartfelt contemporary love story written and directed by award-winning director Clio Barnard (The Selfish Giant).

Reviews

‘Barnard once again proves herself the bard of the British working class. In Ali & Ava, she abandons her occasionally bleak realism for a kind of stubborn hopefulness, letting the delight of unexpected connection break through the storm clouds.’
★★★★★
Jude Dry, IndieWire

‘Ali & Ava marks an organic evolution in Barnard’s film-making, striking a celebratory tone that feels like a revelation’
★★★★
Mark Kermode, The Observer

Sorry - you missed it!

We showed Ali & Ava between March 18, 2022 and March 25, 2022.

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What else is on?

Tomorrow (Monday 2nd June)

18:30

Maisie 15
1h 16m
At 85, Britain’s oldest drag queen Maisie Trollette is still stealing the show! But what happens when she meets Darcelle XV, the world’s reigning queen? Join us for this hilarious and heartfelt documentary presented by Oxford Pride.

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20:45

Good One 15
1h 30m
On a three-day backpacking trip, 17-year-old Sam navigates the tense dynamics between her father and his oldest friend. When boundaries are crossed and trust is broken, simmering conflicts erupt in India Donaldson's perceptive debut.

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Tuesday 3rd June

18:00

Motel Destino 18
£6 for Members
1h 55m | Portuguese w/ English subtitles
At a neon-lit sex motel, a young fugitive’s arrival sparks a dangerous spiral of seduction, violence, and power. Award-winning filmmaker Karim Aïnouz (The Invisible Life of Eurídice Gusmão) returns with this erotic neo-noir set under the scorching blue skies of Brazil.

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20:30

Cemetery of Splendor 12A
£6 for Members
2h 1m | Thai w/ English subtitles
A mysterious sleeping illness affects Thai soldiers in a former school turned clinic. As a volunteer forms bonds with the comatose and the spiritual world, Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s hypnotic film explores dreams, memory, and history with quiet surrealism.

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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!