How the Multiplex is killing Cinema

I love the cinema. Don’t we all?

I remember the excitement of going there as a child, sitting in the darkness, watching the swirling cigarette smoke create shafts of dancing light in the projector beam, the red dots of fire as a match was lit, the boiled sweets being thrown from the balcony, the torn and broken seats, the snogging couple, the usherette, the interval!

Oh yeah, and the film.

Going to the cinema was always an event. Something to look forward to. Something special. In some ways the film itself was irrelevant, it was more about the anticipation, the wonder at seeing something new. But of course I saw some amazing films there. Star Wars came to town when I was seven and expanded my tiny world like a celluloid fueled big bang.