The Nickel | Independent Cinema in Clerkenwell, London

Please note we are unable to offer refunds or exchanges on tickets. No late admissions from 15 minutes after showtime.

MATADOR

(1986, Spain, Pedro Almodóvar)

A young man obsessed with bullfighting and death becomes entangled with a former matador and a mysterious lawyer, both of whom are driven by a shared fascination with eroticism and killing. As their paths converge, desire and violence become inseparable, leading them into a dangerous, obsessive relationship where pleasure and death are intertwined.

A provocative blend of melodrama, dark comedy, and psychological thriller, the film explores the connection between sex, death, and spectacle with bold, stylised intensity. Its heightened tone and fixation on obsession and performance make it one of the more striking early works in its director’s filmography.

FUCKTOYS

(2025, USA, Annapurna Sriram)

For her debut feature, Annapurna Sriram delivers a gleeful slice of queer bubblegum grindhouse shot on gorgeous 16mm.

Psychics have predicted she has been cursed, and the only way out is to deliver one thousand dollars and slaughter a lamb. As she rides the streets of Trashtown, encountering violence, sex and love, the spirit of John Waters never feels far away. But here, we’re treated to a staunchly female gaze. Camp, trashy, distasteful and thoroughly enjoyable, this is a cult classic in the making.

BLUE MONDAY - MYSTERY EROTIC CINEMA

Blue Monday presents the best of horny cult cinema - encapsulating everything from erotic thrillers, carnal noir, golden age porno and transgressive sleaze from both the underground and the mainstream.

This screening will feature adult-themed content, including sexually explicit and risqué material. Please consider yourself forewarned that these films may (and probably will) contain offensive and upsetting content. Do not attend if you are of a sensitive disposition.

Adults only.

TICKET OF NO RETURN

(1979, West Germany, Ulrike Ottinger)

A woman disillusioned with society boards a train with the intention of drinking herself to death in a public place, believing this to be her final act of defiance. As she moves through bars, streets, and encounters with strangers, her journey becomes a stark confrontation with social expectations placed on women, morality, and self-destruction.

Ulrike Ottinger constructs a rigid, episodic descent that feels both theatrical and clinical, using repetition, ritual, and performance to strip away any sense of comfort. The film’s cold structure and stylised behaviour turn it into a confrontation with public judgment and personal collapse, balancing provocation with formal precision.

Introduced and programmed by Juno Valentine

FREAK ORLANDO

(1981, West Germany, Ulrike Ottinger)

A stylised episodic journey follows Orlando, a figure who moves through a series of grotesque and theatrical tableaux, encountering a parade of eccentric characters, social archetypes, and distorted versions of history and identity. Across these shifting episodes, the boundaries between gender, time, and reality dissolve into a carnival-like procession of spectacle and performance.

Structured like a surreal stage play, the film turns its attention to the performative nature of identity, using costume, exaggeration, and absurdist humour to dismantle fixed ideas of gender and normality. Its deliberately artificial style creates a world where transformation is constant and nothing remains stable for long.

Introduced and programmed by Juno Valentine

SWEET BABY CHARLIE aka THE SADIST

(1963, USA, James Landis)

A trio of schoolteachers traveling by car through rural California stop at a junkyard for help, only to encounter a young man and his unstable girlfriend. What begins as a minor inconvenience quickly turns into a hostage situation, as the couple reveal themselves to be violent fugitives with a taste for sadistic control and escalating cruelty.

Shot in stark black and white by Vilmos Zsigmond early in his career, the film traps its characters in a pressure cooker of intimidation and unpredictability. Its stripped-down setting and relentless focus on power imbalance give it a raw, early blueprint feel for later home-invasion and exploitation cinema. Watch out for an incredible and demonic leading performance by Arch Hall, Jr.

MAD LOVE

(1935, USA, Karl Freund)

A brilliant but unstable surgeon becomes obsessed with a beautiful young woman, and when she spurns his advances, he uses his medical skills to manipulate her life in increasingly dangerous and controlling ways. His obsession escalates into a dark and twisted struggle between desire, power, and madness.

Karl Freund directs a tense and atmospheric melodrama, blending expressionist visuals with psychological suspense. The film examines obsession and control with a mixture of style and intensity, making it a compelling early example of Hollywood’s fascination with the darker side of desire.

MULHOLLAND DRIVE

(2001, USA, David Lynch)

A wide-eyed aspiring actress arrives in Los Angeles and befriends a mysterious amnesiac woman found wandering after a car crash on Mulholland Drive. As they try to uncover her identity, their search leads them into a labyrinth of Hollywood dreams, fractured identities, and uncanny coincidences that blur the boundary between fantasy and reality.

A hypnotic, dreamlike puzzle that shifts between noir mystery and psychological nightmare, the film builds an atmosphere of unease through disjointed narratives and haunting imagery. Its exploration of desire, identity, and illusion has made it one of the defining works of 21st-century cinema.

BLIND RAGE

(1976, Philippines, USA, Efren C. Piñon)

A blind Vietnam veteran is mistakenly framed for a bank robbery after a group of criminals use his presence at the scene to cover their escape. As he becomes the target of a police manhunt, he must rely on heightened senses, training, and determination to survive and clear his name while navigating a city that refuses to see the truth.

Blind Rage delivers a tight exploitation-era thriller built around a high-concept hook, using its protagonist’s condition to structure set-pieces of pursuit, confusion, and escalating danger. Its blend of crime narrative and survival tension gives it a brisk, grindhouse-style momentum.

SPRING BREAKERS

(2012, USA, Harmony Korine)

Four college friends head to Florida for spring break, determined to escape their dull routines and experience something more extreme than their everyday lives. When their money runs out, they are pulled into the orbit of a local rapper and small-time criminal, drifting into a world of parties, crime, and escalating recklessness that begins to spiral out of control.

Directed by Harmony Korine, Spring Breakers is a neon-drenched dream of excess, cutting between hypnotic imagery, repetition, and sudden bursts of violence. Its glossy surfaces and disorienting structure turn youth culture, consumerism, and desire into something both seductive and corrosive, constantly shifting between satire and immersion.

MYSTERY MOVIE

Not for the easily offended, and strictly programmed for adult audiences only - our mystery films are eye-popping forays into the bold and bonkers world of psychotronic cinema. Expect the unacceptable.

Please consider yourself forewarned that these films may (and probably will) contain offensive and upsetting content. Do not attend if you are of a sensitive disposition.

TRAPEZE

(1956, USA, Carol Reed)

A talented trapeze artist working in a European circus is drawn into a rivalry between an aging star performer and a younger, ambitious acrobat. As ambition, pride, and romantic tension collide under the big top, dangerous stunts and emotional entanglements push the performers toward both physical and personal risk.

Set against the bright spectacle of the circus, the film balances melodrama with athletic precision, using the trapeze sequences as both literal and emotional high-wire acts. Its focus on rivalry and desire gives the story a steady undercurrent of tension beneath its glossy entertainment surface.

Introduced and programmed by Ally Russell-Shields

THE MANITOU

(1978, USA, Canada, William Girdler)

A woman begins to experience strange physical symptoms linked to a rapidly growing tumor on her neck, leading doctors to suspect something far more unusual than a medical condition. As her partner searches for answers, he uncovers a chilling connection between her affliction and an ancient supernatural force tied to Native American mythology.

The film shifts between medical thriller and occult horror, building a sense of escalating absurdity as science collides with the supernatural. Its mix of practical effects, 70s genre excess, and increasingly unhinged narrative gives it a strange, uneven energy that leans into cult territory.

Introduced and programmed by Ally Russell-Shields

MYSTERY MOVIE

LONDON

(1994, United Kingdom, Patrick Keiller)

In London, an unseen narrator, voiced by Paul Scofield, returns to the British capital after several years abroad to accompany his reclusive friend Robinson on a series of reflective urban explorations. Through a series of three walks around diverse areas of the city, their observations mix personal insight with encounters and images drawn from real life, capturing the city’s architecture, public spaces, and cultural landmarks. The narrative bridges memory, literature, and everyday experience as it recounts events and social change in London over the course of a year.

More than a straightforward travelogue, London unfolds as a cinematic essay on the character and transformation of the city itself, using archival imagery and evocative narration to weave in political and historical context. References to literary figures and philosophical ideas subtly shape the film’s impressionistic portrait, linking the lived environment with broader cultural currents and the lived realities of early 1990s London.

DEEP END

(1970, United Kingdom, Jerzy Skolimowski)

Set in a crowded London public bathhouse, the film follows Mike, a teenage boy working a summer job, who becomes infatuated with Susan, a confident and enigmatic older woman. As he navigates desire, jealousy, and confusion, his obsession grows, leading him into increasingly risky and morally ambiguous situations. The confined, steamy environment heightens tension, reflecting the intensity and awkwardness of youthful obsession.

Deep End blends psychological drama with sensual tension and dark humor, using bold visual composition and a moody soundtrack to amplify the protagonist’s inner turmoil. The film explores themes of sexual awakening, obsession, and the vulnerability of adolescence, offering a sharp, sometimes unsettling look at the collision between desire and experience.

THE FIFTH CORD

(1971, Italy, Luigi Bazzoni)

After a New Year's Eve party, a series of savage murders occurs in Rome, with victims linked to Andrea Bild. The killer, a maniac wearing black gloves, leaves a gruesome signature at each crime scene: a glove with a finger cut off, representing a countdown.

As the police, led by a seasoned inspector, focus their investigation on him, an alcoholic and struggling Andrea tries to identify the killer to clear his own name, while his personal relationships with his ex (Silvia Monti) and current girlfriend (Pamela Tiffin) disintegrate. The film is noted for its high-contrast, atmospheric cinematography by Vittorio Storaro and a musical score by Ennio Morricone.

SHRINE OF ABOMINATIONS

(2025, USA, Ross Kennedy, Skinner)

The Library of the Occult presents...

On the cursed world of Orbus Kaal, the malevolent wizard Gar‑Gnargorath tries to invoke the cosmic horror forms of Demotep as part of his universal plans for revenge and domination. His ambitions set into motion an epic, otherworldly conflict when another terrifying being named Morgogg also looms within the realm, promising chaos and confrontation as these dark forces collide.

This stop‑motion animated short blends fantasy, horror, and cosmic spectacle into a wildly imaginative, handcrafted world. Packed with grotesque creatures, arcane visuals, and a raw, psychedelic energy, Shrine of Abominations delivers a unique horror fantasy experience that pulls from heavy metal aesthetics and old‑school fantasy imagination in a way few films attempt.

Plus a selection of The Library of the Occult music videos, short films + limited vinyls and merch available on the night.

Runtime: 85 mins

Certificate: 18

Monday 8/6

Bar 6pm

Film 6:30pm

Digital

Book here

SHRIME TIME: A NIGHT OF BIZARRO UNDERSEEN ANIME

From radical student animation collectives to sun-bleached techno-dystopias and gore-drenched horror, Shrime Time shines where the sun daren’t: revealing the backside of seldom-seen Japanese visual culture. Expect screenings from the 1960s to the present day, paired with special guests: musicians, artists, researchers and those obsessed with the outermost edges of Japan’s visual imagination.

The Shirime a yokai (Japanese folkloric spirit and the evenings conveniently misspelled namesake) whose sole purpose is to startle unsuspecting samurai by revealing an eyeball in place of an arsehole. In his sick, twisted way, Shirime embodies the very spirit of B-cinema - a flash of grotesque brilliance, whose origin and intent remain a mystery, leaving the path forever altered.

So come. Sit still in the dark. Let the rectacular eye stare deep into your curious soul.

The Shirime is watching.

Certificate: 18

Tuesday 9/6

Bar 6pm

Film 6:30pm

Digital

Book here

DISCREET CINE PRESENTS: TR BASKIN

(1971, USA, Herbert Ross)

Candice Bergen (Carnal Knowledge and Murphy Brown) is T.R. Baskin, a naïve young woman with a droll sense of humor, who ventures from small town Ohio to the bright lights of Chicago in search of an interesting career, intellectual stimulation, true love and happiness… and instead discovers that the urban existence is as unfulfilling and lonely as the one she fled.

A tender encounter with one man (James Caan) ends with an unfortunate misunderstanding. However, it leads to a therapeutic Sunday afternoon with a sincere traveling salesman (Peter Boyle), who provides hope and encouragement, as he confides in her about his own insecurities and disappointments. Herbert Ross (Footloose and Pennies From Heaven) directs this wryly humorous drama from a perceptive script by Peter Hyams.

Introduced and programmed by Agne Qami

Runtime: 90 mins

Certificate: 18

Wednesday 10/6

Bar 6pm

Film 6:30pm

Digital

Book here

WWW.RACHELORMONT.COM

(2024, USA, Peter Vack)

Rachel Ormont lives in a tightly controlled dystopian environment where her existence is shaped by advertising, surveillance, and a parasocial relationship with a pop star known as Mommy 6.0. As her sense of self becomes increasingly unstable, the boundaries between identity, media, and performance begin to dissolve in a surreal feedback loop of consumption and control.

A dense, hyper-stylised experiment in digital-era satire, the film collapses internet culture, identity formation, and performance into a fragmented, overwhelming experience. Its abrasive structure and sensory overload aesthetic turn contemporary media life into something both absurd and unsettlingly intimate.

Runtime: 80 mins

Certificate: 18

Thursday 11/6

Bar 6pm

Film 6:30pm

Digital

Book here