This Saturday is National Cinema Day in the UK, meaning venues up and down the country will be offering cheap cinema tickets for anyone braving the crowds of cinephiles. Here’s our curated list of the best hidden gems to catch on the big day.
Hang up those Gaspar Noé stockings and stick on Citizen Kane, National Cinema Day is fast approaching. For the second year in a row, cinemas across the UK will be slashing their prices and digging 35mm bunting out of the attic to celebrate the act of going to the movies.
With ticket prices as low as £3 across participating venues, Saturday 2 September is the perfect time to catch up on the hottest films of 2023. But, while it’s tempting to make the most of the cheap recliner seats to finally see what this 'Barbenheimer' thing is all about, or to see a bit of punchy, fighty, shooty action in Blue Beetle or The Equalizer 3, there’re plenty of fantastic smaller films out at the moment which it’s easy to skip over if you’re not paying close attention.
So, if you’re looking for some original, non-blockbuster and, crucially, really, really good films to check out this weekend, read on for our list of the best hidden gems to see this National Cinema Day.
Theater Camp
Directors: Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman
Starring: Ben Platt, Molly Gordon, Noah Galvin
This loving send-up of theatre kids the world over is a comedy classic in the making. With a universally brilliant cast of kids and adults alike, the pitch-perfect skewering of people who get way too serious about musical theatre isn’t just for budding or former thespians – its heart of gold and some of the best joke-writing we’ve seen in years mean there’s something for everybody, as long as you don’t mind poking fun at vocal warm-ups (we’re told they work, we just don’t believe them).
READ MORE: Theater Camp review | Musical theatre mockumentary hits all the right notes
The Blackening
Director: Tim Story
Starring: Grace Byers, Jermaine Fowler, Melvin Gregg
A group of black friends arrive in a cabin in the woods for a high school reunion, only to find someone trying to murder them – and, as a particularly racist board game in the house reminds them, they can’t all die first…
It might not be the spookiest slasher movie you’ve ever seen, but The Blackening is a brilliantly original, often hilarious horror parody, and the perfect way to finish off a day at the pictures. Fans of the Scream movies will find plenty to enjoy here.
READ MORE: The Blackening review | A sharp comedy that could have used more horror
ScrapperÂ
Director: Charlotte Regan
Starring: Lola Campbell, Harris Dickinson
If high-energy theatre kids and masked men with crossbows sounds a bit too intense for you, check out the thoroughly lovely Scrapper for a more low-key change of pace. The feature debut from Charlotte Regan (who we spoke to here) the film sees 12-year-old Georgie (a fantastic Lola Campbell) united with her Ibiza-rep dad (Harris Dickinson) after her mum passes away unexpectedly.
If that sounds a bit heavy, don’t be put off – Regan’s first film is a colourful and often fantastical celebration of working class communities that’ll put a happy tear in your eye and a spring in your step. More Rye Lane than Aftersun, this magnificently British film is just the latest in a long line of exceptional debuts from British female directors – and you can read more about them in our lovely feature here.
READ MORE: Sundance Film Festival London | Scrapper review
KlokkenluiderÂ
Director: Neil Maskell
Starring: Jenna Coleman, Tom Burke, Amit Shah
We saw this one way back at the London Film Festival in 2022, and though it’s taken a while, Neil Maskell’s comedy thriller is finally getting a UK cinema release on 1 September. When a government employee blows the whistle on some terrifying state secrets, he and his wife are sent to a safehouse in Belgium with a couple of bumbling security guards for protection. What follows is a wonderfully tense and darkly funny 84-minute drama that is currently flying under a lot of radars. Make sure it doesn’t fly under yours.
READ MORE: Klokkenluider review | Neil Maskell’s assured directorial debut
Cobweb
Director: Samuel Bodin
Starring: Anthony Starr, Lizzy Caplan
A critical darling of this year’s FrightFest horror film festival, the story of an eight-year-old boy who hears knocking inside the walls of his new home is sure to leave you sleeping with the lights on for some time. Dripping in atmosphere and unafraid to throw the odd curveball at the audience, Cobweb is the perfect film to kick off a pre-Halloween autumn.
READ MORE: Cobweb review | A terrifying, twisted fairytale
Passages
Director: Ira Sachs
Starring: Ben Whishaw, Franz Rogowski
Ira Sachs’ steamy examination of love and desire finally makes it to UK screens this weekend after rave reviews on the festival circuit, and it’s more than worth the wait. Unapologetically horny and delivered with Sachs’ signature wistful charm, Passages is just the kind of grown-up, knotty relationship drama you didn’t know you were missing. One for the posh cinema crowd, this, but no less entertaining because of it.
READ MORE: Sundance Film Festival London | Passages review
National Cinema Day takes place on Saturday 2 September in the UK.
