For most Ugandans Cinema experience means only one thing: Cineplex cinema. A business that has continued to monopolise this sector for the last n+ years[ after all I am not so sure when they came to be - late nineties perhaps]. Unfortunately the many years experience for Cineplex have meant nothing in terms of progress. Their only success has been in diversion. these seem like sweeping statements but if you've gone to Cineplex as long as I have or longer, you would have noticed the glitches in the movies, the quality of the service or the service or the lack thereof.
The beginnings
My first cinema experience was at Cineplex [hint hint I was not born in the 60's - contrary to popular belief]. Those days, Cineplex was at Wilson road, 2 halls. easy access for all those who -like me - depended on taxis for transportation. With hindsight, I think Wilson road was very inconvenient for the folk with cars. parking was not always available to the movie goers. And if you know Wilson road well enough, you would agree with me that leaving your car on that street and going for a 9.30pm movie would probably not be the best idea.
But thing got worse at Wilson road. First came the vermin. stories of rats running in the isles as people enjoyed their cinema became common. Poor you if you had taken a girl to the cinema to watch a thriller and at the moment of intense suspense, a rat runs on her feet... bad, bad, bad.
next came the load shedding. There were times you could watch a 2 hour movie in 3 hours. Wilson road seemed to lack back up power. So while in darkness as you waited for the return of UMEME or when they finally started Using a generator which never seemed to come on automatically, the rats would come out to entertain you - or your feet.
Take 2: Garden city
When a new mall opened on Yusuf Lule, Cineplex decided to move some of its clientele to a more spacious location with more parking, bigger lounges and VIP seating. We all fell for it even if it meant more costly movies. We the young folk started to save up our pocket money just so we can impress the damsel by taking them to the garden city cinema instead of the cheap Wilson road option. Besides, new movies would always be at garden city and those of you will lean purses had to endure months old movies at Wilson road.
But that started to change as well...
Wilson road finally closed. Garden city expanded to 4 halls from the initial 2. AC started to malfunction. Cine 1 and 4 seemed to be always too cold. the others seemed relatively warmer. the adverts increased. The trailers reduced. The prices went up. Months-old movies started showing with pockets of fresh block busters every once in a while. A few premiers happened courtesy of corporate sponsorships. Then sound started deteriorating. Nice movies got over subscribed and management simply continued selling tickets such that on a few occasions, people ended up sitting on stairs to watch movies.
And a new mall opened again...
Oasis mall lured management to take up new digs there. And hence they forgot, i think, about Garden city. They promised movies in HD with imax. Prices went up if you wanted to go to Oasis mall cinema halls. they branded the establishment there the hub.they included a bookshop, coffee shop bar area and lounges. But the service changeth not. sound changeth not and i-max cometh not. So for 4 thousand extra, you get.... nothing.
Friends recently complained of a movies they were watching when on screen appeared a shadow walking across... as if showing a pirated movie. Thing is they did not show this once but their copy run it's course week in and out for every show.
There have now been two incidents [that I know of] where the movie promised did not show or simply arrived late.
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol was supposed to show from 7.00PM but the only show for the first day was at 10.00PM. And those unlucky chaps who were patient enough to wait until 10.00PM watched it until 1.00AM with breaks in between as they waited for the next reel or something.
My own experience was even more recent when I bought tickets for Avengers on Friday at 3pm with insistence from the clerk that indeed it was showing that evening. come 9.30PM when I arrived with my hot date [wife] to be informed how the movie would not show [booooooooooooooooooo] the evening was hence spoiled.
There is yet another evil about our dear vendor. Management knows the number of seats per hall yet they somehow cannot control their gluttony when it comes to how many ticket they sell per show.
1. The seats have numbers which are never followed.
2. The tickets have serial numbers... and could also have seat numbers if management cared.
Come entry time and everyone scrambles to be the first in to take those nice seats in the centre. So in our case it does not matter when you paid, you'll have to fight it out to get to that seat.
There was a time I entered the cinema and for 30 minutes I tried to catch the attention of the people in the booth to tell them that the picture was not in focus. I finally walked out and found the operators in the lounge sippin' drinks and chatting!!
And when the movie ends...
Management does not let the credits roll. they turn on all lights so fast and many a time there is a punchline we miss that comes somewhere between credits. We paid for the whole movie, leave us to watch it to the very end.
Going back to the beginning...
The slogan is
"Cineplex cinema... beyond movies"! But I honestly don't see anything offered beyond the movies. Perhaps the beyond movies refers to
- some history [read old movies],
- Fright [read cinema vermin],
- Less [read cutting movies before the last credit. Higher cost of movies with no change in quality]
- Muscles [as we fight to enter the halls]
- Lies [as we are promised movies that don't show]
- Flat bums[ as we are forced to sit on steps in over crowded cinema halls]
- I dare say the movies themselves tend to come late and at times not the best quality.
With the trend in operations,
- A new mall will open.
- Cineplex will rush in to set up new halls
- We shall be promised heaven
- Garden city cinemas may be closed
- Oasis mall cinema halls will continue on a downward trend
- And another mall will open, again....
PS:
Avengers was awesome, when I finally managed to shove my into the cinema.
