[title]
The Arzner, which proudly bills itself as London’s first dedicated LGBTQ+ cinema, is now fully up and running in Bermondsey Square, SE1.
Named after Dorothy Arzner, a pioneering queer female filmmaker who became the first woman to direct a talkie with 1928's Manhattan Cocktail, the cinema-cum-cocktail bar is independent and queer-owned.
‘Our programme is a mix of queer films representing everyone on the LGBTQ+ spectrum and queer-adjacent camp classics,’ general manager Benjamin Garrison tells Time Out. ‘And going forward, we also want to unearth some more obscure queer films that might be in need of restoration.’
On the bill this week you’ll find, among other films, Jamie Babbit’s sapphic classic But I’m a Cheerleader, Gus Van Sant’s New Queer Cinema landmark My Own Private Idaho, and Bob Fosse’s Oscar-winning musical Cabaret starring a luminous Liza Minnelli.
Minnelli is one of many gold-plated gay icons adorning the bar’s walls, while the cocktails are named after Hollywood legends like Rock Hudson, Bette Davis and Marlene Dietrich. The sole cinema screen has plush red carpets and gleaming faux-leather seats: in contemporary parlance, it’s giving old Hollywood with a modern sheen.
The Arzner is the brainchild of Simon Burke and Piers Greenlees, who also own The Rising, an LGBTQ+ pub in nearby Elephant & Castle that opened just under a year ago. ‘To our knowledge, this will be the only LGBTQ+ cinema in all of London,’ Burke told attendees at a Southwark Council meeting in September. ‘This licence will allow us to operate a safe space for all in one of the most LGBTQ+ densely-populated areas of the country.’
The Arzner has taken over premises formerly occupied by Kino Bermondsey, an independent cinema that closed in January 2023.
Garrison says that since it opened its doors in November – initially as a café-bar while the 48-seater screening room was being refurbished – The Arzner has seen locals flocking back. During daytime hours, freelancers with laptops sip flat whites under the watchful eyes of queer icons like Candy Darling and Katharine Hepburn. After dark, the cocktail bar offers a cosy alternative to the capital’s noisier, cruisier LGBTQ+ bars and clubs.
However, the new cinema’s double remit as an LGBTQ+ venue hasn’t been welcomed by everyone. ‘In the current climate where there’s so much pointless hate towards our community, especially the trans community, I think having a space like this is powerful in itself,’ he says. ‘We do get the odd person who walks up, spots the Pride flag outside and then turns around. That’s why it’s so important that we’re here.’
Garrison says that The Arzner feels timely because ‘authentic queer stories on film are finally starting to become more mainstream, which makes us the natural home for them’. Showings of several modern LGBTQ+ classics, including Luca Guadagnino’s Call Me by Your Name and Todd Haynes’ Carol, have already proved so popular that The Arzner hurriedly re-added them to the programme.
But above all, London’s newest independent cinema wants to earn its stripes as a community space that fosters inclusivity and sparks conversations.
‘Historically, so many queer stories told on film have been heart-wrenching with very sad endings,’ says Garrison. ‘We’ll definitely be showing those films because they’re important, but we also want to find films that spread queer joy because that’s what the community needs right now.’
The Arzner is at 10 Bermondsey Sq, London SE1 3UN. Head to the official site for programme info.