Where going to the movies is as it should be.
WAS A TIME, MOVIEGOING WAS AN EVENT. GOING TO THE CINEMA WAS AN EXPERIENCE, ONE YOU MIGHT DRESS UP FOR, SAVE FOR, BOOK IN ADVANCE. THOSE WERE THE DAYS. WHICH SOUNDS CURMUDGEONLY, BUT ALSO, MULTIPLEXES ARE TRASH.
Fortunately, despite industry turbulence caused first by the invention of the VCR, and then by the proliferation of streaming services and “entertainment precincts”, a few hardy theatres have been resistant to change. Places with comfortable seats infused with the scent of buttery popcorn, where creamy nitro-pour ales and wine in tumblers are served from low-lit bars and intermission is still a thing, with walls adorned with posters from the film world’s golden age. Places that exist to transport us, utterly, somewhere else for a while.
There is something about the small communities of Te Waipounamu that love a boutique cinema; there seems to be one in every little town. Here’s our take on five of the best.
CINEMA PARADISO, METHVEN
The luxury of being able to see the latest movies without having to go far from the farm was one I took for granted growing up near Methven, and I have fond memories of taking a quick trip into town with Mum to see what was on at Cinema Paradiso. As well as providing a port of call for locals who want to catch the flicks without driving all the way to Ashburton, Paradiso is part of what makes Methven so great to visit. The place is more than just ski rentals and agricultural supplies. There’s Primo E Secundo café, where you can enjoy a coffee in a vintage wonderland packed with tea cosies, old vinyl records and antique furniture; Ōpuke Thermal Pools and Spa, the first solar-powered hot pools in the Southern Hemisphere (which is awesome, but not quite as awesome as the swim up bar); and the compact but very fascinating Methven Historical Society and Museum.
With just 35 seats, Methven’s Paradiso is one of the smallest movie theatres in Aotearoa, yet last time I was home, they had us covered for everything from Whina to Minions: The Rise of Gru. Make sure you book in advance though – they need at least four adults in this tiny but mighty cinema for screenings to go ahead! – RH
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“it was namechecked in Meghan Markle’s pre-royal lifestyle blog”
DOROTHY BROWNS, ARROWTOWN
Up two rounds of old stairs back from Buckingham Street in Arrowtown, Dorothy Browns is a treat. It’s a destination cinema in a destination location – the kind of place you’d dress up and go to with a bunch of girlfriends, even if it means burning diesel to get there, when they’re showing the National Theatre version of Fleabag and you want to stare at Phoebe Waller Bridge and her incongruous boat shoes in an atmosphere of boutique chic.
The internet says that Dorothy Brown was a well-known turn- of-the-century photographer who lived in the area and maybe ran an opium den. It also says her namesake, Dorothy Browns, is a bit pricey when it comes to snacks and drinks. And I’m not saying the internet is wrong (about the prices, not the opium, which I know nothing about), but also I would ask the internet to consider the surrounds of said snacks and drinks. A curated bookshop selection. Red possum fur rugs (I have questions about the redness) scattered casually on chairs. It’s posh.
“a bygone world of tufted walls, art deco lighting and the kind of cocktails that were meant to be consumed by people dressed in silk”
You can watch movies on the main screen or in the snug, and since both of these rooms are rather snug, it pays, while you’re paying, to book ahead. What’s not snug (but still snuggly) are the movie-watching chairs, which are ample. And you can top up your cheese boards and popcorn cups and local wine and book purchases during the intermission. Yum. As a cinema experience, recommend. Especially if you’re posh, or acting posh for the night. – LB
MAYFAIR ARTS & CULTURE CENTRE, KAIKŌURA
With its unmissable electro-pink art deco frontage, the Mayfair Theatre is not only a cinema and arts hub, it’s a landmark, one that speaks to not only its own resilience, but that of a community that has gone through so much. Purpose- built as a theatre in 1934, the Mayfair served as community- run venue for theatre and movies until November 14, 2016, when a 7.8-magniture earthquake hit Kaikōura. Much of the building was munted, as they say, but the iconic façade was intact enough to offer a whisper that all was not lost. A fundraising campaign ensued, a “Mobile Mayfair” was set up in the meantime so locals could still go to the movies, and in November 2020, Te Whare Toi ō Kaikōura / the Mayfair Arts and Culture Centre officially opened, right in the middle of a pandemic. But she’s still there, and today her pink is brighter than ever. – LW
PHOTO: Laura Williamson
(THE OTHER) CINEMA PARADISO, WĀNAKA
This is the OG of small-town movie-going. The possibly- apocryphal story is that Cinema Paradiso started in the nineties as a movie night in Wānaka’s original town hall, with screenings projected onto an old bedsheet. We’d fact check that, but it’s a cool story and we don’t want to debunk it. Since then, at both its current location in a former Catholic Church, and its previous one, which is now a Bottle-O liquor store, the Paradiso has enthralled locals and visitors alike with its distinctive seating (a mix of op shop couches, repurposed aeroplane seats and a Morris Minor) and home-baked half-time cookies. It’s been in the Lonely Planet New Zealand guide, bagged a Certificate of Excellence from TripAdvisor, and was namechecked in Meghan Markle’s pre-royal lifestyle blog, in which she wrote about her 2014 campervan jaunt through New Zealand. She called the Paradiso “precious and quirky”. – LW
“but also, multiplexes are trash”
RUBY’S CINEMA & BAR, WĀNAKA
One of Wānaka’s two movie theatres (is this the small town with the most cinema seats per capita in the Southern Hemisphere?), Ruby’s has the feel of an old-time cabaret, or, with its discreet location tucked in the bowels of the Base Camp / Cardrona X Treble Cone building, a speakeasy. Audrey Hepburn, Paul Newman and Sophia Loren greet you in black and white as you enter a bygone world of tufted walls, art deco lighting and the kind of cocktails that were meant to be consumed by people dressed in silk. Expect all the latest film releases, plus a roster of arthouse and foreign films, as well as a full schedule of the Metropolitan Opera’s “live in HD” performances. It’s the closest thing you can get to a night out in 1930s New York without the help of a Tardis. – LW
