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| - We went last night to catch a little known indie film, "Rise of the Planet of the Apes", and had a rather great time. Sure the theatre is small, but it's absolutely charming! Almost as charming as that monkey* up on the screen.
* Spoiler: "He's an ape!" (see below)
I'm not sure how common this is, but there was a trio playing live tunes with the piano in the lounge area. That was our first impression: Live lounge music, at a movie theatre, in 2011, in Toronto. WHAAA??? Yes!
Anyway, the screen was about 1/8 the size of the ginormous Cineplex screens... which, as I now realize, I actually prefer. The volume didn't make my ears bleed (which, surprise surprise, I actually prefer). The seats were maybe a bit cramped for my liking, but I'm rather tall, so I've long since reconciled myself to squeezing into hobbit-spaces.
Two anecdotes stuck with me after the night:
1) A couple comes in shortly after us, and the girl loudly declares, "oh my god, this is soooo tiny, I wouldn't be caught dead here if the tickets weren't free!". I held my tongue. Her beau looked like he wanted to crawl into a hole (alone) and die. I mean, talk about spoiled tool of a girl. I took solace in the fact I'm not a stuck up prissy bitch and this made me feel good about myself.
2) Family sits down next to us. Father (in his 40s) is a talker. I mean, seriously, he talked constantly. He made such luminous observations as "wow, those are tall!" (concerning redwood trees), "so beautiful!" x3 (concerning redwood trees), and "he's gonna climb 'em!" x2 (concerning an ape and, you guessed it, redwood trees). I convinced myself he was a toddler-aged talking-monkey and it actually enhanced my viewing experience. He was filled with such gleeful innocence!
Would I have experienced either of these things at a Cineplex or Famous Players? Nope. #1 would have been pleased at the sheer magnitude of a theatre built juuuuuuust for her; and #2 would have been drowned out by the ear-bleeding awesomeness of the surround sound.
So, to (Magic Lantern) Carlton Cinemas: Thank You!
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