Film
Toronto Underground Cinema to close
Sadly Toronto Underground Cinema, the place where I attended many of my favourite indie film fests, saw a hilarious and naughty Batman burlesque and met some of my childhood heroes like Adam West and Lance Henriksen, is closing it's doors.
Apparently the theatre, which has been closed for renovations since July, never actually began any construction. The management of the cinema encountered problems of a legal and bureaucratic nature that they could not foresee, and the mounting costs of these problems have ultimately led to the Toronto Underground Cinema having to close its doors on Sunday Sept 16th.
Toronto Underground Cinema will be closing out their run with the very first film festival they partnered with, the T.O. Indie Film Fest, which will run from Sept 6th - Sept 15th. More information about films and showtimes can be found at film-fest.ca .
Finally, the closing night double bill will be a very special 35mm appreciation screening. Cult classic Night of the Comet (1984) and the purposefully appropriate The Last Waltz (1978). Both films will be projected in the superior 35mm format. No blu-rays here, just pure cinema.
In a touching email to fans like myself, Nigel Agnew, Charlie Lawton and Alex Woodside, the management of the Toronto Underground Cinema, signed off by saying:
"Although this is goodbye for now, we will not stop working on a way to bring the Underground back. Whether that is a year or two down the road when all issues have been solved, or in a different incarnation in a different space, we are dedicated to the love of cinematic exhibition, and the fans who support it. Until then, see you above ground."
Toronto Underground Cinema is located at 186 Spadina Ave, and has been open since May, 2010. Come out and show them some love for the first, or the last time.
See you in line.
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Well put. It's a shame a good house like this is going under. It's also a shame that this indie festival happens during TIFF, and I will be able to attend exactly none of it.
Thanks for all the hard work and heart you put into running Toronto Underground, and for the great memories guys!
Whether it was meeting Adam West, crying during An American Tail, laughing from disbelief at Showgirls or cheering for Kurt Russell in Big Trouble in Little China, the Underground absolutely made me fall in love with the magic of going to the movies again. For me, at least, Toronto just got a little less special.
Best of luck to the guys in everything they do next. Thanks so much for everything
At least at the Underground and other rep theatres, I get a good variety of films that I can't catch normally, good snacks, comfy seats and only trailers leading up to the film at low prices (you'll never pay more than $10/ticket on any day of the week) and without super loud annoying ads that run forever. At rep theatres, when they say a movie starts at 7pm, they actually start at 7pm.
Also, you forget about the TIFF Bell Lightbox and the independent/foreign films it shows, only with the same features as the same places that show said 'garbage'.