Balloon12A

Dir. Pema Tseden | Tibet | 2019 | 1h 43m | Tibetan w/ English subs | Starring Sonam Wangmo, Jinpa, Druklha Dorje, Dudul, Yangshik Tso.

Living under the newly established rule of China’s one-child policy, a Tibetan couple must be careful not to have any more children. However, their two sons find a stash of condoms and parade them around town mistaking them for balloons. Not only does this outrage the entire village, but more practically: they have no more condoms. Pema Tseden deftly examines the collision between modernity and tradition in 1980s Tibet in this wryly humorous and award-winning drama.

Reviews

‘[A] mix of tranquillity, playfulness and a touch of melancholy becomes the evocative thread that runs through this leisurely film’
★★★★ Phuong Le, The Guardian

‘You come away not knowing if what you’ve seen was comedy or tragedy. Or maybe something else entirely.’
★★★★ David Jenkins, Little White Lies

Sorry - you missed it!

We showed Balloon between October 15, 2021 and October 22, 2021.

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What else is on?

Today (Tuesday 3rd October)

18:15

Once Upon a Time in Uganda 15
1h 34m
Playful documentary looking at the world of “Wakaliwood”, Uganda's own DIY action movie industry, and the creative endeavours of bricklayer-turned-filmmaker, Isaac Nabwana.

Book here

20:30

Past Lives 12A
1h 46m | Korean w/ English subtitles
Celine Song's critically-acclaimed and deeply romantic feature debut about two childhood friends from South Korea who reunite for one week in New York after two decades spent apart.

Book here


Tomorrow (Wednesday 4th October)

15:00

Love Life 12A
2h 3m | Japanese & Korean w/ English subtitles
An intricately plotted domestic drama following a Japanese couple whose marriage is thrown into question following a sequence of fateful events. Directed by the award-winning filmmaker Kôji Fukada.

Book here


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!