Naked Lunch

David Cronenberg | 1991 | 115 MINS

Canada/UK/Japan

Cult of Cinema

In association with the Oxmarket Gallery’s ‘Burn Burn Burn: the Beats light up the Ox’ exhibition (2-14 Apr), and as a perfect selection for our second ‘Cult of Cinema’ presentation, we bring you David Cronenberg’s legendary take on William S. Burrough’s “unfilmable” novel.

In Detail

Blank-faced bug killer Bill Lee (Peter Weller) and his dead-eyed wife, Joan (Judy Davis), like to get high on Bill's pest poisons while lounging with Beat poet pals.

After meeting the devilish Dr. Benway (Roy Scheider), Bill gets a drug made from a centipede.

Upon indulging, he accidentally kills Joan, takes orders from his typewriter-turned-cockroach, ends up in a constantly mutating Mediterranean city and learns that his hip friends have published his work - which he doesn't remember writing.

Cronenberg's stylistically ambitious interpretation of William S. Burroughs's twisted genius may even inspire you to pick up the book. Wild cinema from even wilder source material.

The Oxmarket exhibition explores the ways in which the 'core' creatives of the Beat Generation (Burroughs, Kerouac, Ginsberg et al) frequently engaged with other creative forms, such as drawing, art, performance, music, photography and film.
CLICK HERE FOR OXMARKET EXHIBITION INFO

More details on

Part of the Strand:

Featured In

DIE MY LOVE

Lynne Ramsay

In one of film critic Mark Kermode’s favourite films of 2025, a mother struggles to maintain her sanity after having a child. Lynne Ramsay’s latest work is further proof of its director’s immense skill.

Naked Lunch

In Detail

Part of the Strand:

Featured In

Spring 2024

Cult of Cinema

You may also like

DIE MY LOVE

Our story

Support Us