2 bog-standard multiscreens and the fab Duke of York's Picturehouse (Cinemas in Brighton)

Member Name: Neenawneenaw

Product:	Cinemas in Brighton
Date:	20/03/09 (51 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great choice for a small city

Disadvantages: Parking at the Marina for UGC; Odeon is a bit scabby; Duke of Yorks can be a bit shambolic;

We do pretty well for cinemas in Brighton, considering it's only a lickle city. We have 2 mainstream cinemas and the Duke of York's Picturehouse which tends to do more independent/arthouse screenings.

I'm just going to quickly mention the Odeon and UGC as they're big chains, you should know what you're getting, before giving lots more space to the good old Duke of Yorks.

The Odeon is in the centre of town, on the seafront corner of West Street (where the chavs go to drink, fight and be sick on a Saturday night) and does what an Odeon does over several screens. The UGC is in the Marina complex a mile or so east of Brighton city centre. It sometimes has a better choice of films but you have to drive/bus it from town, and my personal bugbear is the evil multistorey carpark. I might not be the best parker but surely those spaces are too small, and in the past we've actually missed films because it's been so full and crowded we've not been able to find a space in time (e.g. on a Thursday night - prime cinema-going time!)

So on to the Duke of Yorks: It's located next to the fire station at Preston Circus; it's a member of the small City Screen chain, so not fully independent, but it certainly feels it! It focuses on more independent movies, and usually has a really interesting programme. It manages to get a good balance, ranging from the odd blockbuster, breakout/cross over hit (e.g. Slumdog), quality oscar-bait (e.g. The Wrestler) to the more obscure/challengin pic (e.g. The Class, Wendy and Lucy this month), with a good smattering of international and foreign language pics. There are seasonal trends, e.g. at the beginning of the year you can usually get most of the oscar-nommed films here, so the output is more stuff I've heard of!

There are generally 2 screenings during the week plus a late showing on Friday (often horror-based/cult classics/crowd-pleasers e.g. Twilight, Raging Bull) plus occasional specials e.g. linking up with live opera, a Lord of the Rings trilogy all-nighter, the odd gig (saw a fantastic performance by Aqualung a couple of years ago). There are mums and tots screenings ('The Big Scream') and a kids club at weekends too.

The cinema has been recently refurbished in the balcony with super-luxury comfort, including a couple of sofas up there now! There is a nice little bar upstairs, with a balcony - perfect for drinks when the weather's good. You can get good snacks at the kiosk (not just your Odeon giant popcorn and bags of sweets!) - and it's all in a great, friendly atmosphere.

The Duke of Yorks also has a good membership scheme. We have joint membership currently costing £52 p.a. for which you get 6 free tickets, money off ticket purchases, the odd free screening and a few other fringe benefits - well worth it to support the best cinema in town!

Summary: Everybody join the Duke of Yorks!