Bristol’s leading repertory genre film festival returns for another banner year of explosive action and terrifying monster movies in 2025, with Forbidden Worlds of the Deep; a near week-long celebration of classic and cult films set on, around (and of course, under) the ocean.
After all, 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the genre movie to end all genre movies – Jaws. And what better way to celebrate the legacy of Spielberg’s industry shifting blockbuster than with big-screen bows for some of the all-time greatest Jawsploitation knock-offs. Including schlocky camp creature-feature Alligator and a Saturday night IMAX screening of the new 4K restoration of Dino de Laurentis’s positively mental Orca (preceded by a presentation from The Bad Movie Bible’s Rob Hill).
Also Jaws-adjacent is a couple of sea monster themed curios in the James Earl Jones-starrer Blood Tide (playing late Friday night), and the first ever UK theatrical screening of Daiei’s The Whale God from 1962 – the studio that would go on to produce Japanese cult classics like Zatoichi and the Gamera franchise.
Fans of Kevin Costner’s much maligned but largely misunderstood box office bomb Waterworld will also be eating well; Arrow Films’ extended ‘Ulysses Cut’ of the film (running nearly 3 hours) gets its UK theatrical premiere, with an introduction from Film Stories editor and Costner super-fan Simon Brew. All-in, it’s an entire morning (and most of an afternoon) of celebrating wacky, water-bound action and practical stunt work that sadly will likely never be made on such a scale ever again.
And last but not least, the festival expands its guest credentials further than ever before by welcoming not only the cast of ’80s classic Young Sherlock Holmes for a Sunday afternoon Q&A, but also legendary producer Gale Anne Hurd. Responsible for everything from The Terminator, to Aliens, to Dante’s Peak, to Armageddon and so many more, Hurd will intro rep screenings of both Tremors and Battle Beyond the Stars as well as sitting down for an extended Q&A on Thursday night.
Topping things off is a pre-fest screening on Wednesday night of Arthur Cauty’s The Big Picture; a 60-minute documentary celebrating the Bristol Megascreen itself, and the grassroots community cinema movement that brought the city’s abandoned IMAX back to life.
From Wednesday to Sunday, it’s the biggest Forbidden Worlds has ever been, and the festival shows no sign of slowing down any time soon.
Forbidden Worlds Film Festival kicks off at the Bristol Megascreen, 28th May – 1st June. More info on the line-up and tickets can be found at forbiddenworldsfilmfestival.co.uk
