When I first arrived at university in Bath over three years ago, I instantly sourced out the nearest cinemas. Coming from a small village in the Midland’s, where the nearest cinema was a half hour drive away and even then it was only an Odeon, moving to a city was most exciting for me as it meant I might finally get to see a larger variety of films where they are meant to be seen – the cinema. I was presented with an Odeon, a Vue and a Cineworld all closer than the Odeon back home had been to me, and a true gem of a cinema called The Little Theatre. This was my introduction to the world of independent cinema’s, and it was truly an eye opener. The Little Theatre was a gorgeous old building built in the 1930’s and barely changed since then, the only remaining cinema in the country which is still owned by it’s original owners (albeit in a roundabout way – the cinema is now owned by arthouse conglomerate Picturehouse Cinemas but a descendant of the original owner still has a large say in the running of the cinema.)
First things first, the price was considerably lower. For a student ticket, it was about £2.50. Compared to prices at the Odeon which were nearing £10, I couldn’t believe my luck. I started going to the Little at any and every opportunity I could find. Whereas before I had struggled to see anything at the cinema bar blockbusters, now I could see pretty much anything. World cinema was now available at my doorstep. Where large cinema chains fill their screens with blockbusters guaranteed to make money and therefore will always have a guaranteed cashflow, independent cinemas and particularly the Little, have to look for other ways to bring in revenue. They sold memberships, you could pay for a plaque to be put on the back of a cinema seat as a dedication, and it is one of only 3 cinemas in the country which holds a wedding license. Surely a wedding in an original, 1930’s art deco cinema is one of the ultimate film geeks dreams? I know for sure it’s one of mine.
The Little also put on event nights, they would have visiting directors and actors. Juliet Stevenson did a talk after a Truly, Madly, Deeply, Terry Jones attended a screening of The Life Of Brian. The Little almost became like a second home to me, and I lapped up every opportunity it presented me with.
Since finishing university and leaving Bath, I’ve kept up to date with what’s going on at the Little. They’ve had screenings of Metropolis and Psycho, had a silent movie screening accompanied by live piano, and had two outdoor screenings, one of Master and Commander, the other of Wes Anderson’s enchanting Fantastic Mr Fox (which, by the way, features a model version of The Little Theatre itself, a money couldn’t buy accolade). While I now live in Sheffield, which has it’s own independent cinema, its still The Little I find myself craving. Independent cinemas have a way of reconnecting audiences with a love of cinema which is rarely seen nowadays, forging relationships between film-lovers and cinemas themselves.
The difference between an independent cinema and a large chain is, quite simply, that one actually appears to know and care about film, whereas the other is simply interested in showing films which are guaranteed to bring in the big bucks. We need more of these independent cinemas, dedicated to the art of cinema, run by people who love movies for people who love movies.
bywayofthegreenlinebus 