The cinema experience for me has always been strongly rooted in that of a date (no pun intended). Me, my date, a bunch of random people all sitting in the dark watching a movie and afterwards a verbal dissection of the plot over something to drink.

Recently on holiday, I broke with tradition and couldn’t resist seeing a feature at the Yackandandah Cinema. Working out when the movie started however was easier said then done.

I settled on the reasoning that a 9pm finish meant the movie would start at around 7pm (this was later confirmed by a promotional poster sighting), the feature premiering was Coraline.

Run by Grahame Hutchings, Yackandandah Cinema runs out of the Memorial Hall, on High Street in Yackandandah. Walking in I honestly had no idea what to expect.

From the outside Yackandandah Memorial Hall gives you the impression that you’re probably walking into a dinghy scout hall. Inside a bedsheet is tacked to a wall and there’s a guy with a megaphone who stands at the front voicing over the entire movie.

Thankfully, Yackandandah cinema surpassed all my expectations and then some.

As you walk into Memorial Hall the first thing you’re greeted with is a ticket desk. On the left you pay for your tickets and on the right of the desk is a munchie display. On offer were chocolate bars, drinks and even choc tops – and the best part was they were very reasonable price wise.

I don’t go to the cinemas much these days due to the exorbitant prices you have to pay. Tickets alone push nearly $35 and then there’s the snacks. Yackandandah cinema brings back memories of a time when Village and Hoyts weren’t simply relying on ripping customers a new one over snack bar prices to survive.

Prices aside though it was somewhat disappointing to be limited to either boysenberry or vanilla in the choc tops. I have a sneaking suspicion however that the good flavours sold out beforehand – at $2 a piece it’s easy to understand why.

There was an older gentleman manning the ticket desk (presumably Grahame himself?) and the tickets are also reasonably priced at $8 for an adult. It’s been a good fifteen years or so that I can remember walking into a cinema with an icecream for ten dollars.

I was running slightly late and as such missed the start of the film. Having said that I was only 6 or 7 minutes late so it’s probably safe to say there aren’t any advertisements shown, and if so they only run for the shortest of time which is also another welcome change.

The last movie I saw at the Jam Factory had an ad so long it was broken into a three part series. I had to go back to the cinema separately three times before we even got to the movie!

As you walk into the theatre out of the darkness a teenager whispers ‘oi got a ticket?’ At this point you hold up your stub and proceed to find a seat. The seats are rowed nicely and were quite comfortable to sit on.

Luxuries like arm rests and cup holders are absent but considering where we were I was just glad not to be sitting on a wooden bench.

The screen is quite professional looking and is more then adequately sized for the hall. Draped to each side and along all the windows are red velvety curtains and to my pleasant surprise the sound system was quite good too.

I don’t recall seeing any booming subs but the speaker numbers were nothing to sneeze at. I vaguely remember counting four or five each side with two upfront, I can’t remember if there were any to the rear. Regardless the sound still beat out what most people would have in their home theatre’s or lounge rooms – myself included.

Aside from the decor, one of the things you notice when you walk in is the abundance of kids. Everywhere.

There’s kids sitting at the back, kids in the rows and a ton of kids sprawled out on the wooden floor boards directly in front of the screen. It seems when your a kid, neck strain is non-existent or in some way enhances the movie going experience.

Despite being a ‘kids’ movie, their presence was definitely a down side for me. I’m not a big fan of kids in cinemas and due to mostly catching evening sessions rarely have my cinema experience interrupted by them.

Doors will open for toilet breaks. Random kids will run around doing who knows what, others will talk loudly to their parents, and some will “talk” to the movie and take it upon themselves to explain certain parts to every other kid within hearing distance.

Then there’s the slightly older teenagers who sit up the back and openly talk throughout the entire movie. Being out of my comfort zone and consciously aware of the children everywhere I buttoned up and decided it was best not to cause a scene.

…although part of me desperately wanted to.

One other niggling thing was the intermission. Coraline isn’t really a long movie so it’s not like it needed an intermission however I suspect due to the high patronage of child bladders the rest of us had to endure one.

Deciding when to place the intermission seemed completely random. One second you’re watching the movie and the next a big yellow freeze frame comes up with red lettering ‘INTERMISSION’. The house lights come up and the loudest thump is heard as all the kids in the entire cinema stand up at exactly the same time and rush for the exit.

The next ten minutes or so were then spent watching the kids run up and down the wooden floor boards sliding on their socks which was amusing.

At the conclusion of the movie it wasn’t surprising to find a lot of parents over at the Star Hotel down the road. Movies for the kids and drinks for the parents seemed to be a popular way to spend a Friday night in Yackandandah

I’m glad I experienced Yackandandah cinema, with its quirks and charms it definitely stood out from the typical experience you get at a ‘regular’ cinema. Kids and teenagers aside, I imagine the service is welcomed simply due to the remoteness of Yackandandah itself.

Sure dvds and Foxtel are always an option but there’s something just special about driving 60km’s to the cinema to share a movie with a theatre full of people.

Yackandandah Cinema is located in (wait for it) Yackandandah and session times are listed on their website.

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