A few weeks ago I was walking along Eglinton Avenue East, here in Toronto, when I noticed some construction going on where the
Odeon York cinema used to stand. Being a big movie house, one with two screens, the "York" was often a 70mm venue, and in it I saw fare such as
Jurassic Park, and the re-releases of
Spartacus and
Lawrence of Arabia. When it was due to be closed, I, like many movie-goers, was surprised since I had always considered the York an important movie theatre... like the "Uptown" (
Cocoon,
Poltergeist 2,
Total Recall,
Wayne's World,
Blade Runner, Alive), and the "University" (
The Black Hole,
Aliens,
2010,
The Empire Strikes Back, The Return of the Jedi,
Explorers). Part of 'movie memories' is where you saw a particular film; rare is it that I cannot recall where it was that I first saw such-and-such.
Toronto, like many cities and towns around the globe, is losing its unique movie theatres. Josh O'Kane, in the
Globe and Mail, reports on movie theatres in eastern Canada biting the dust...
From movie palace to parking lot
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/property-report/from-movie-palace-to-parking-lot/article17199644/
Blogger Derek Flack posts some cool pics of Toronto's lost movie theatres...
http://www.blogto.com/city/2011/02/the_lost_movie_theatres_of_toronto/
Wikipedia entry listing cinemas in Toronto...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cinemas_in_Toronto
3 comments:
Not to mention "the Right Stuff"! Magnificent viewed in the ol' University.
Alas, there are several reasons for the decline of the classic cinema house: Avaricious property developers. greedy distribution middlemen, lack of quality product worth going out to see, stupid people, technology, stupid people WITH technology... The time my spouse had to restrain me from assaulting the three youthful abortions in row below me, who would not stop lighting up there 'smart' phones, was pretty much the last public movie theatre excursion for me.
I approve enthusiastically of your use of the somewhat redundant term "Avaricious property developers", and agree with your details causing one to avoid first-run houses in principle.
It's been a while since I've handed over my monthly savings in order to see the latest, and often crappy, mainstream flick. Not for a moment do I consider myself a misanthrope... except in big-box movie theatre complexes, where so many people frequent to act uncivilized.
To iterate: first-run cinemas are so bleedin' expensive!
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