Nightmare Alley15

Directed by Guillermo del Toro | USA | 2021 | 2h 30m | Starring Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe, Rooney Mara, Richard Jenkins

In 1940s News York, a down-on-this-luck grifter joins a travelling carnival and gains favour by helping them swindle the wealthy elite. Hoping for a big score, he hatches a scheme to con a dangerous tycoon with help from a mysterious psychiatrist – but can she be trusted? A stellar ensemble cast enriches this visually flamboyant and fantastically sinister film noir by Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro (Pan Labyrinth, The Shape of Water). Nominated for four Academy Awards (including Best Picture) and three BAFTAs.

Reviews

‘The monsters of Nightmare Alley are human-made – byproducts of guilt and greed…a neo-noir knockout’
★★★★★
Mark Kermode, The Observer

‘It’s hard to think of a noir story that would be better suited to del Toro as a director — the arch-fabulist who fears men more than he does monsters.’
★★★★★
Clarisse Loughery, The Independent

Sorry - you missed it!

We showed Nightmare Alley between February 11, 2022 and February 18, 2022.

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What else is on?

Tomorrow (Monday 15th June)

18:00

North Cormorant Island Cert-TBC
1h 26m
Join us in person for a free screening of North Cormorant Island, an award-winning documentary film about time, place, mortality and human relationships with the land and the sea. Followed by a Q&A with writer, producer, and director John Williams (Oxford Brookes).

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20:30

Backrooms 15
Descriptive Subtitles
1h 45m
When a patient vanishes through a strange basement doorway of a furniture showroom, his therapist follows him into a disorienting dimension. Expanding Kane Parsons’ cult online series, this feature-length adaptation stars Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve and bringing “liminal horror” to the big screen.

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Tuesday 16th June

17:45

Fairyland 15
£6 for Members
1h 56m
Set in San Francisco from the 1970s to 1980s, this drama follows a father and daughter navigating bohemian life and social change as their bond is tested by the AIDS crisis. Adapted from Alysia Abbott’s memoir, it’s a tender coming-of-age story of love and resilience.

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20:30

The Holy Mountain U
£6 for Members
1h 45m
Made in 1926 by Arnold Fanck, The Holy Mountain is a landmark German Bergfilm featuring Leni Riefenstahl. Set in the Alps, it blends a romantic triangle with spectacular mountaineering, skiing and avalanches. Presented by Rethinking Weimar Cinema.

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!