Suspiria at ICA London 23/24 March

[zazzx]

Hey folks,

Just got the new ICA programme. Suspiria is being shown at 8.45 on the 23/24 March. Cool. I've never seen it at the pictures!

:-)

Anthony.

[Michael Brooke]

Personally, I'd only go if the screening is in Screen One (trust me on this, you <U>really</U> don't want to watch 2.35:1 films in the beach towel-sized Screen Two) and if the soundtrack is stereo as an absolute minimum. Unfortunately, though, I suspect it'll be mono, as I don't know of any 35mm versions that are compatible with current cinema sound equipment.

[zazzx]

Hey,

Unfortunately it's in cinema 2. I know the ICA cinemas quite well. You're very right about the towel sized(although towels do vary in size) screen 2. The R1 DVD is probably a better experience although I still like seeing films with more than a handful of people. :-)

Michael, can I ask you a question. I've been living in the London area for 2 years and am getting bored with the Curzon Soho etc. Can you recommend the more interesting cinemas that I should visit whilst living around here(been to the Curzon Mayfair, Brixton Ritzy)? Art deco etc or just interesting as it's very easy to just become a West End/Mutliplex junkie. Hope it's not any bother...

Anthony.

[Narshty]

If I might be very cheeky and recommend two cinemas: The Prince Charles Cinema off Leicester Square - it's an excellent second-time-around cinema, though it depends on the popularity of the film as to when they get their prints (for example, don't expect to see Lord of the Rings there until June/July at the earliest). Cheap and cheerful, and occasionally throw some great events, although it used to be much better in terms of films screened (far more repertory classics) and special events (allnighters and even a 48-hour marathon that I was privy to attend in 1999).

Their website (http://www.princecharlescinema.com/) pretty much sums it all up.

The Riverside Studios cinema is also a great place - daily double bills for a fiver (£4 if you're a student) of mainly arthouse and foreign films, but with some new and old classics mixed in. It's in an arts centre, but don't let that put you off.

Riverside Studios Homepage (http://www.riversidestudios.co.uk/)

[Michael Brooke]

<B>Michael, can I ask you a question. I've been living in the London area for 2 years and am getting bored with the Curzon Soho etc. Can you recommend the more interesting cinemas that I should visit whilst living around here(been to the Curzon Mayfair, Brixton Ritzy)? Art deco etc or just interesting as it's very easy to just become a West End/Mutliplex junkie. Hope it's not any bother...</B>

To be honest, since I no longer live in London and haven’t been to the cinema that much since I bought my DVD player and 43” telly, most of my recommendations will probably be out of date. The Curzon Soho is probably my favourite all-rounder (programming <U>and</U> presentation – who else does state-of-the-art screenings of Uzbek spaghetti westerns?) but I’m also very fond of the Riverside, which is by far the best place in London (if not anywhere!) for 4:3 films and the often underrated Clapham Picture House, which is like a cheaper version of the Curzon.

A real dark horse – the most underrated cinema in London as far as I’m concerned – is the Cine Lumiere. Because it’s part of the French Institute and doesn’t exactly go out on a limb to market itself, many people don’t even know it exists, but it’s a proper cinema with a superb programme that often shows stuff in French-sourced prints that other cinemas can’t get because they don’t have the contacts. The programmes almost always have English subtitles, and are by no means restricted to French films – they did a Paradjanov retrospective not too long ago.

I’m not that fond of the Prince Charles (the glorious <I>Sing-a-long-a-Sound of Music</I> aside - <U>everyone</U> should see this once!), as I grew up with the sadly long-defunct Scala and consider it to be the palest of imitations both in terms of programming and ambience, and I’m also not that keen on the NFT and ICA in terms of presentation and atmosphere, though I often don’t have a choice given that much of what they show can only be seen there.

As for the big West End venues, I’ve gone right off the Empire since they started playing even normal dialogue scenes at 150 decibels (I walked out of <I>Gladiator</I> because I was seriously worried about hearing damage), and the Leicester Square Odeons (including the Odeon West End) are far too expensive for what you get, even though the presentation is superb. I’d say the Curzon Mayfair is probably the best all-rounder for both comfort and technical quality, though the bland mainstream-arthouse programming means I go a lot less than I could (<I>2001</I> in 70mm was unmissable, though!).

Tragically, though, my all-time favourite London cinemas have either closed outright (the Scala, the Lumiere) or have changed so much that they’re unrecognisable (the Odeon Marble Arch, the Everyman) – and nothing has emerged to take their place. Wonderful though it is to get pristine digital transfers of Herschell Gordon Lewis gore films, there’s still no substitute for watching them with a Scala audience cheering and applauding every cheesy second!