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R.I.P. Cinema Du Parc · by Sach O
I’m not going to lie, as a film student, a fan of midnight zombie flicks and a hater of both trashy multiplexes and pretentious intellectual art houses, I’m pretty mad that my favorite local movie theater is closing down for good (shoutout to my good friend and mentor Peter Rist, Montreal’s premier film scholar who is quoted in that last article). Sure the writing was on the wall a few months ago when they fired the manager and forced the main programmer to quit, but I had hope that the place could bounce back and keep running on the strength of the strong indie market. No dice since AMC has apparently made moves to grab that piece of the pie leaving the small and admittedly ghetto Du Parc to suffer the same fate as so many other theaters where one used to be able to catch a 12:05 screening of The 5 Deadly Venoms. About 10 years ago they shut down the 2$ second run spot downtown to make room for…actually that land never became anything worthwhile. 5 years before that they shut down the Chinatown Theater that used to run Shaw Brothers flicks. This kind of slow but steady elimination of quality movie theaters is disturbing on several levels. First, it eliminates convenient local entertainment forcing cats to go downtown (a pain in the ass during -30 winters) and second it limits consumer choice to what the city’s few major theaters have to offer. Kimani said it, Hollywood’s output generally sucks balls and when they aren’t pumping out retarded crap, they’re trying to convince us that their artificially important Oscar flicks are artistically valid. Meanwhile all I wanted was to see was something entertaining that didn’t forcibly lower my IQ.
Hopefully someone buys it and fixes it up because otherwise the viewing options in this city are going to seriously suffer. AMC is alright but 10$ tickets are too much and it’s in the dead side of town. The Paramount plays blockbusters but I only bother with a few of those a year. The Ex-Centris is just as pretentious as its annoying flash website, doesn’t sell popcorn out of snobbishness and hasn’t even heard of the concept of a fun movie. Beyond the inconvenience and stifling of creativity however, the real reason I’m so mad at this movie theater closing is the sheer amount of memories I have invested there. Years ago, I’d get myself kicked out of the house over some BS and I knew that no matter how bad winter was, I could always roll up to the Du Parc half drunk and blunted and catch an old Jodorowsky classic or the umpteenth showing of A Clockwork Orange that day. Sure the place was a dump but like a friend’s basement it was reliable, homey and there was always something cool to watch. It will be missed.
In other movie news, I’ll be attending 20 films at the Fantasia Film Festival beginning tonight. Fantasia is America’s foremost genre film festival specializing in fantasy, horror, kung fu and other alternative film genres. I’ll report anything “must see” around here since these things usually end up somewhere on Bittorent (though not necessarily released). Check out my man Siufung’s blog for a rundown of some of the more interesting films on tap along with eventual reviews.
Comments for "R.I.P. Cinema Du Parc"
Shit man, this sucks. I definitely wasn’t a huge film fan but du Parc still had some good selections. Sad…
— mike Jul 8, 01:01 PM
You’re absolutely right. What a lost. For us, Du Parc had become a canvas where we could showcase the best of Hip Hop Cinema, an underrated and still not-known-enough genre. The Du Parc staff welcomed our Festival and were generous, helpful and efficient. The venue gave credibility to our Event who is still a baby (2 years old). We had ideas and plans for the upcoming years. Geographically & socially, the Cinema du Parc represents a gem. However, I don’t see the news of its closing as an end but rather as an opportunity for a rebirth or rather a chance for an extreme makeover. Better programming, better marketing, better equipment, better seats, same essence, same soul.
Here’s our chance to shine …
Martine,
Co-Founder & Director of PR
L’International du Cinema Hip Hop de Montreal (www.hiphopcine.com)
— Martine Jul 9, 12:22 AM
I feel you. This closing down of small, cosy and independent movie theaters is an alarming trend that’s happening in my country as well – probably all over the world as well. Cineplexes and Hollywood taking over, dammit.
— Perttu Jul 12, 05:52 AM
I’m so sad too.
I don’t have any reason to live in Montreal anymore…
sob. :(
— Ed Jul 14, 10:51 PM
God this sucks so many bald goats, I’ve lost count. I wish to Buddha that someone rich and bored would buy du parc and reopen it, and it would be just the same, except with new caramel popcorn. But it does warn us, all of us, to be patrons of places we like and want to see prosper. Another potential du parc is the Cinematheque Quebecoise- I know they’ve suffered a serious lack of bums on seats… and if they close, then all those poor bald goats that have been sucked might take revenge upon us all, but there will be no cult filmmaker to document it and we will have no place to watch it at midnight.
— n Jul 17, 02:00 PM