Islands15

Directed by Jan-Ole Gerster | Germany | 2025 | 2h | German & Spanish with English subtitles | Starring Sam Riley, Stacy Martin, Jack Farthing, Bruna Cusí, Fatima Adoum

Tom, a jaded tennis coach at an all-inclusive resort in the Canary Islands, drifts through his days teaching tourists and spends his nights drinking himself into oblivion. When he grows close to a visiting family, he begins to glimpse the possibility of escape. But after rising tensions culminate in the sudden disappearance of a hotel guest, Tom is drawn into the heart of a mystery. Jan-Ole Gerster’s seductive slow-burn thriller builds an atmosphere of mounting unease, heightened by Dascha Dauenhauer’s moody, dreamlike score.

Reviews

‘Islands is a holiday mystery that wrong-foots us with clever backhand.’
★★★★
Tim Robey, The Telegraph

‘Hypnotic from start to finish and unexpectedly hopeful for a movie with so much arsenic in its blood.’
★★★★
David Ehrlich, IndieWire

Sorry - you missed it!

We showed Islands between October 10, 2025 and October 15, 2025.

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What else is on?

Today (Wednesday 26th August)

14:00

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.

Book here

17:30

Love Me Tender 15
2h 14m | French w/ English subtitles
After her divorce, writer Clémence begins dating women, exploring her sexuality for the first time. When her ex-husband finds out, he cuts off access to their son, sparking a custody battle. Adapted from Constance Debré's novel, starring Vicky Krieps.

Book here

20:30

David Byrne's American Utopia 12A
1h 46m
David Byrne, former Talking Heads frontman, reflects on human connection in this concert film based on his Broadway show. Directed by Spike Lee, it blends music and dance into immersive cinema, featuring solo work and Talking Heads classics.

Book here


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.

Book here

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.

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 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!