This film is part of Rentals
Prick Up Your Ears
A celebration of outrageous British playwright Joe Orton’s irreverent and charismatic talent, starring Gary Oldman and Alfred Molina.
Biopic 1987 110 mins
Director: Stephen Frears
Overview
A celebration of outrageous British playwright Joe Orton’s irreverent and charismatic talent, starring Gary Oldman as Orton and Alfred Molina as his lover, Kenneth Halliwell. It is the controversial story of one of the young turks of the 1960s - from working class boy to national celebrity, from sexual innocent to grinning satyr, from penniless student to peer of the Beatles and icon of London’s swinging sixties. Orton made his success by mocking the rules of the establishment and lived his life ignoring them.
Contains strong language and sex referencesAccessibility
Related
Biopic
Meeting Gorbachev Meeting Gorbachev
Documentary 2018 91 mins Director: Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog meets the former President of the Soviet Union in this invigorating portrait of a towering 20th-century figure.
Vita & Virginia Vita & Virginia
Romance 2018 110 mins Director: Chanya Button
Gemma Arterton and Elizabeth Debicki relive a literary love affair, fiery and forbidden, with a remarkable legacy.
Varda by Agnès Varda by Agnès
Biopic 2018 115 mins Director: Agnès Varda
In her final film, Agnès Varda offers a personal insight into her oeuvre, using excerpts from her work to illustrate her unique artistic visions and ideas.
The Odyssey The Odyssey
Biopic 2016 123 mins Director: Jérôme Salle
Jérôme Salle's candid biopic of the underwater explorer and photographer Jacques-Yves Cousteau is a bold tribute to the lure of the sea.
Lisztomania Lisztomania
Biopic 1975 103 mins Director: Ken Russell
Ken Russell's characteristically spectacular biopic of Liszt, with Roger Daltrey portraying the composer as a rock god, is a heady brew complete with garish Freudian symbolism, Hitler, spaceships and Ringo Starr as the Pope.
Till the Clouds Roll By Till the Clouds Roll By
Biopic 1946 135 mins Director: Richard Whorf
Busby Berkeley and Vincente Minnelli are among creative team behind this fictionalised biopic of Broadway composer Jerome Kern, which includes several songs from Show Boat.
Kermode introduces
Lodger: A Story of the London Fog Lodger: A Story of the London Fog
Crime 1926 91 mins Silent Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Ivor Novello plays a strange lodger who may be behind a number of Jack the Ripper-style killings in Alfred Hitchcock’s silent thriller.
The Phantom of the Opera (1925) The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
Period drama 1925 91 mins Silent Director: Rupert Julian
'Man of a thousand faces' Lon Chaney stars in the first version of Gaston Leroux's oft-filmed novel.
By Our Selves By Our Selves
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2015 80 mins Director: Andrew Kötting
The latest psycho-geographical excursion from Andrew Kötting and Iain Sinclair
For Those in Peril For Those in Peril
Drama 2013 92 mins Director: Paul Wright
An intense and mysterious drama about the lone survivor of a strange fishing accident who’s outcast and persecuted by his fellow villagers.
Distant Voices, Still Lives Distant Voices, Still Lives
Biopic 1988 84 mins Director: Terence Davies
Terence Davies' debut feature is a remarkable evocation of working-class family life in the 40s and 50s and a visionary exploration of memory.
Within Our Gates Within Our Gates
Drama 1919 74 mins Silent Director: Oscar Micheaux
Oscar Micheaux’s startling silent classic – the earliest surviving feature from an African-American director – presents a fascinating black counterpoint to Griffith’s Birth of a Nation.
Featuring Gary Oldman
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Thriller 2011 127 mins Director: Tomas Alfredson
Gary Oldman leads an all-star cast, including Benedict Cumberbatch and Tom Hardy, in this acclaimed adaptation of John Le Carré's esteemed spy novel.
Sid and Nancy Sid and Nancy
Biopic 1986 113 mins Director: Alex Cox
A raw and unnerving depiction of the short, incendiary life and times of Sex Pistols punk rockstar Sid Vicious and his girlfriend Nancy Spungen.
Meantime Meantime
Drama 1983 107 mins Director: Mike Leigh
Tim Roth, Phil Daniels and Gary Oldman star in Mike Leigh’s TV film about an East End family try to stay afloat during a recession.
Featuring Alfred Molina
Meantime Meantime
Drama 1983 107 mins Director: Mike Leigh
Tim Roth, Phil Daniels and Gary Oldman star in Mike Leigh’s TV film about an East End family try to stay afloat during a recession.
Letter to Brezhnev Letter to Brezhnev
Comedy 1985 94 mins Director: Chris Bernard
A defining Merseyside film, in which two Liverpool lasses hook up with a pair of Russian sailors only to wonder if they might be better off behind the Iron Curtain.
Love Is Strange Love Is Strange
Drama 2014 95 mins Director: Ira Sachs
Ira Sachs’s refined Manhattan-set drama sees Alfred Molina’s Ben and John Lithgow’s George in the latter days of a tender, loving 39-year relationship.
Directed by Stephen Frears
Walter Walter
Drama 1982 73 mins Director: Stephen Frears
Ian McKellen stars in Stephen Frears' TV play as Walter, a man with learning difficulties who's put in an institution after the death of his mother.
Walter and June Walter and June
Drama 1983 65 mins Director: Stephen Frears
Ian McKellen and Stephen Frears reunite for Walter and June, the sequel to their earlier TV play Walter. The titular character (McKellen) meets a young mother (Sarah Miles) who is suicidally depressed; the two begin to support one another to cope with life in a closed institution.
Florence Foster Jenkins Florence Foster Jenkins
Biopic 2016 110 mins Director: Stephen Frears
Meryl Streep plays the wealthy socialite determined to make it as an opera singer despite being tone deaf, in a delightful comedy from Stephen Frears.
The Program The Program
Biopic 2015 103 mins Director: Stephen Frears
Ben Foster is Lance Armstrong in this kinetic account of the cyclist who fell from grace, from acclaimed director Stephen Frears.
Philomena Philomena
Drama 2013 98 mins Director: Stephen Frears
Judi Dench and Steve Coogan star in the deeply moving yet warm-hearted drama about a woman’s search for her forcibly adopted son.
The Queen The Queen
Drama 2006 103 mins Director: Stephen Frears
Helen Mirren won as Oscar for her performance as the enduring monarch who comes under scrutiny following the death of Princess Diana.
New
Gwen Gwen
Drama 2018 84 mins Director: William McGregor
A young girl tries desperately to protect her family from illness and dark outside forces in William McGregor's stark period horror.
The Blonde One The Blonde One
Drama 2019 111 mins Director: Marco Berger
A tentative friendship blossoms into a beautiful bromance in this erotically-charged yet disarmingly sweet-natured offering from Marco Berger (Taekwondo).
Diego Maradona Diego Maradona
Documentary 2019 124 mins Director: Asif Kapadia
The supreme football superstar is the latest subject for acclaimed filmmaker Asif Kapadia (Amy, Senna), as he deftly explores the complicated dynamic between Diego the man and Maradona the icon.
Meeting Gorbachev Meeting Gorbachev
Documentary 2018 91 mins Director: Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog meets the former President of the Soviet Union in this invigorating portrait of a towering 20th-century figure.
Tell It to the Bees Tell It to the Bees
Drama 2017 108 mins Director: Annabel Jankel
Anna Paquin and Holliday Grainger star as two very different women who fall in love in this 1950s-set romantic drama.
A Fantastic Woman A Fantastic Woman
Drama 2017 104 mins Director: Sebastián Lelio
This invigorating and inspiring Chilean drama from Sebastián Lelio (Gloria) follows a trans woman’s quest for a little respect. Winner of the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film 2018.