Naked Lunch - The Ultimate Picture Palace

Naked Lunch18

Directed by David Cronenberg | Canada | 1991 | 1h 55m (+ 20min short film) | Starring Peter Weller, Judy Davis, Ian Holm, Julian Sands, Roy Scheider, Monique Mercure

Bug exterminator Bill Lee discovers that the insecticide he uses has potent hallucinogenic effects. After becoming deeply addicted, Bill descends into the nightmarish Interzone, a bizarre underworld filled with sinister government conspiracies and giant, talking insects. Equal parts darkly humorous and grotesque, cult filmmaker David Cronenberg (The Fly, Videodrome, Crash) brings to life this surreal adaptation of William S. Burroughs’ hallucinatory novel, once considered impossible to film.

Naked Lunch will be preceded by a special presentation of Kōji Yamamura’s short film Franz Kafka’s A Country Doctor (2007).

Kafkaesque Klassics

Reviews

‘Obviously this is not everybody’s cup of weird tea: you must have a taste for the aesthetics of disgust. For those up to the dare, it’s one clammily compelling movie.’
David Ansen, Newsweek

Sorry - you missed it!

We showed Naked Lunch between October 21, 2024 and October 25, 2024.

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What else is on?

Today (Wednesday 4th March)

17:30

My Father's Shadow 12A

1h 33m

During Nigeria’s 1993 election crisis, two brothers journey across Lagos with their estranged father, discovering the city’s vastness and political unrest. Told through a child’s eyes, this is a vivid and deeply personal debut from British-Nigerian filmmaker Akinola Davies Jr.

19:45

Franz Cert-TBC

+ Director Q&A

2h 7m | Czech, German, Yiddish w/ English subtitles

Award-winning director Agnieszka Holland traces Franz Kafka’s life from Prague to Vienna, revealing a writer torn between ordinary life and obsessive creation. One-off preview screening followed by an in-person Q&A with director Agnieszka Holland.

Tomorrow (Thursday 5th March)

12:30

My Father's Shadow 12A

Parent + Baby Screening

1h 33m

During Nigeria’s 1993 election crisis, two brothers journey across Lagos with their estranged father, discovering the city’s vastness and political unrest. Told through a child’s eyes, this is a vivid and deeply personal debut from British-Nigerian filmmaker Akinola Davies Jr.

15:30

My Father's Shadow 12A

1h 33m

During Nigeria’s 1993 election crisis, two brothers journey across Lagos with their estranged father, discovering the city’s vastness and political unrest. Told through a child’s eyes, this is a vivid and deeply personal debut from British-Nigerian filmmaker Akinola Davies Jr.

17:45

Hamlet 15

1h 53m

Hamlet (Riz Ahmed) returns home after his father’s death, and is haunted by the ghosts of revenge. Amid political corruption, family loyalty and moral responsibility collide in this gripping, contemporary re-telling of Shakespeare’s famous tragedy.

20:15

The Handmaiden 18

2h 25m | Korean w/ English subtitles

Park Chan-wook’s lush erotic thriller dazzles with deception, desire and double-crosses. Set in 1930s Korea and based on Fingersmith, this modern classic is a masterwork of suspense and sensuality. A bold reimagining of the period drama.

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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!