Scope screens with side masking in all 5 auditoria. As can be seen in own of the photos the screens rather strangely have lights all around them. They do go out during the film so not a problem.
As also shown there is a rather inconspicuous entrance at ground level leading to the stairs which take you the main foyer on the first floor.
All 9 screens are wall-to-wall Scope with no side masking. Very dark during the film with black matte walls and no ceiling lights on. Stadium seating, aisles on the side and plenty of leg room.
This is a well designed multiplex; I cannot fault it. All 9 auditoria are to the same design, it is just a matter of size. It is a joy watching a movie on any of the screens.
Refurbished and re-opened as ‘Odeon Luxe’ in November 2017.
Seating reduced to 1062. The largest auditoria are Screens 6 and 7 with 144 seats in each and the smallest is Screen 1 with 49 seats. These seating figures are taken from the Odeon website.
Refurbished and re-opened under the ‘Odeon Luxe’ brand in November 2017.
The seating capacity is now 941 with Screen 1 the largest with 139 and Screens 3 and 9 the joint smallest with 35 each.
These capacities are taken from the Odeon web-site. The photos there seem to be generic ‘Odeon Luxe’ ones rather than at Glasgow Quay specifically.
This is now the fourth Odeon to be rebranded as ‘Odeon Luxe’ in 2017 after East Kilbride, Edinburgh West and Leeds-Bradford.
Two more are in the pipeline at Putney and Panton Street, London with probably more to follow in 2018.
The two largest auditoria (Nos 1 and 9) have Scope screens with side masking. The other 7 auditoria have just 1.85 ‘Flat’ screens necessitating that Scope films are shown letterboxed with the inevitable slight truncation to 2.32. There is no top/bottom masking.
Given that most films nowadays are in Scope it does seem strange that anyone would build a new cinema without proper Scope screens. I did write to Cineworld about this but received no understandable answer. In the past (and as recently as 2012) Cineworld were building multiplexes with all Scope screens but many of their more recent builds seem to go for this mixed approach.
Also the lights are not turned off during the film, just dimmed. Together with the fact that the walls are red covered which reflects light (as can be seen in the photo section), the auditorium is not really very dark during the film.
Praise is given on User websites to the good seating and legroom. That may be true, but all in all, the lack of Scope screens, the general brightness during the film and the closeness of the screen to the front half of the seats in some of the smaller auditoria does not make this a good place to watch movies in. It is, simply, just badly designed.
Wall-to-wall Scope screens with no masking in all auditoria. Screen 6 has the largest screen branded ‘XPlus’ but the screen size in each is impressive relative to the auditorium size.
All have stadium seating with large reclining seats in spacious rows.
Very dark during the film enhanced by having black matte walls.
If this is the standard design for Showcase ‘Cinema De Lux’, it is a very good formula. This is an excellent new cinema and great place to watch movies in.
The screens are a mixture of 2.39 Scope and 1.85 with the majority being Scope. I don’t know the Nos of which auditoria are which, though one of the largest ones has surprisingly just a 1.85 screen.
When I was there a few years back the 1.85 screens had top down masking for Scope films, though I presume this has probably gone now as is usual practice with digital projection.
This cinema often appears in any list of “Ten Best Cinemas in England”. Indeed, as the photo shows, architecturally it is an impressive building with its glass façade and location overlooking the marina. It has a nice café inside and as the photo also shows you can also sit outside on the veranda and appreciate the surroundings.
However I think that a good cinema should primarily be judged on how it operates as a cinema rather than its architecture and surroundings.
On this score the verdict is more mixed.
Screen 1 is good; it is wide with a full Scope screen and movable side masking. It was refurbished a few back to a high standard with comfortable seats and plenty of leg room. The layout was changed removing the centre aisle and having sides instead; this was all good.
However on the down side, the auditorium is very light during the film as the lights are just dimmed and not turned off. It is far too light in my experience and detracts from one’s enjoyment. The management are aware of this and say that changing it is on their radar; however that is not that easy as the electrics are not wired to allow them turn the lights off over the seats but leave them on over the aisles. Additionally the fire exit cuts a corner out of the auditorium and makes the fire door with its lights very visible. Small points perhaps, but ones that stop Screen 1 from being an excellent place to watch movies in.
Screen 2 is not so good; it has bigger problems. The screen does not take up all the end wall as there is a passage down one side (fully lit) leading to the fire door. There is nothing subtle about its presence; it probably takes up about a quarter of the end wall and I found it very distracting. Consequentially the screen is only 1.85 which in 35mm days had top masking and in my opinion made the screen far too small for the size of the auditorium. I have stopped going to this screen so I don’t know if the top masking has been retained for digital projection; I presume not as is common practice nowadays.
Overall while the architects designed a building that looks great externally, I don’t think that they had much clue as to design cinema interiors that are great for the moviegoing experience. The current management do a fine job in successfully running a cinema that caters for all tastes but sadly they are rather hampered by the design of the building.
Refurbished and rebranded as ‘Odeon Luxe’ in October 2017 with all screens having spacious recliner seats. Total seating capacity across all 9 screens is reduced to 652. Screen 1 is an ‘ISense’ screen.
This was the first site to to upgraded to the ‘Odeon Luxe’ brand by Odeon’s new owners AMC. The next two are at Wester Hailes in Edinburgh (rebranded as Odeon Luxe Edinburgh West) in Nov 2017 and Odeon Panton Street, London (rebranded as Odeon Luxe Haymarket) in Dec 2017.
Refurbished and rebranded as ‘Odeon Luxe Edinburgh West’ in November 2017 with all screens having spacious recliner seats.
This is the second site to to upgraded to the ‘Odeon Luxe’ brand by Odeon’s new owners AMC. The first was the Odeon East Kilbride in Oct 2017 and the next will be the Odeon Panton Street, London (rebranded as Odeon Luxe Haymarket) in Dec 2017.
Just the two larger screens (Nos 5 and 6) have full 2.39 Scope screens. The other 8 in the original cinema plus all 6 of the more recent ‘Studio’ cinemas just have 1.85 screens necessitating that Scope films be shown “letterboxed” centre screen and, as is normal practice nowadays, there is no top/bottom masking. This was confirmed to me in an E-Mail by Empire cinemas a while back.
An unusual feature of the cinema in its early UCI days was that many of the medium seize auditoria were L-shaped with a section taken out of the back for the projection booth which it shared with the auditorium next door.
When Empire took over and refurbished the cinema, the L-shape was removed. Whether just the upper part of the ‘L’ was taken out of use or whether the size of the projection area was reduced, I don’t know. It could be the latter as digital projection can take less space than 35mm.
The overview of this cinema (above) refers to one of the screens being IMAX. I can see no reference to IMAX on the Cineworld web-site, so that comment may not be true.
Either way cinema goers in Poole have a poor choice when wanting to watch Scope films as this cinema, in my opinion, is basically just a very large TV set.
The foyer is at ground level in the Westgate development. Escalators then take you downstairs to the cinemas.
All 7 auditoria have Scope screens. I can’t remember if they had movable side masking or whether the masking was fixed at Scope irrespective of the film being shown, as is often the case nowadays. I think it may be the latter.
A fairly standard Warner Village multiplex of the 1990s. The larger auditoria are good, fairly wide and with Scope screens while the smaller ones are fairly narrow, box like and with just 1.85 screens. All have stadium seating.
The Scope screens are 1, 6, 7, 8 and 13 which have, or had, movable side masking. I am not sure if the masking is still in use as the last time I went to Screen 13, the largest one, the it was out set to Scope all during the show even though the main movie was 1.85.
The 8 smaller screens, 2 to 5 and 9 to 12 would all have had top down masking for Scope movies when shown on film but now the image is just “letterboxed” mid screen with no top/bottom masking, which sadly seems to be common nowadays.
A fairly standard Warner Village multiplex of its time. Of the original 11 screens, the larger auditoria are good, fairly wide and with Scope screens while the smaller ones are fairly narrow, box like and with just 1.85 screens. All have stadium seating.
It opened in 2001 with 3 empty shells which later became screens 6, 7 and 8. Although relatively small, the auditoria are quite wide so have impressively large Scope screens.
Of the current 14 auditoria, there are now 7 Scope screens (Nos 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8 and 12) which have, or had, movable side masking. I am not sure if the masking is still in use; I rather think not and that it is permanently set out to Scope irrespective of the film showing.
Screens 2 and 4 were slightly unusual in their 35mm days as to go to Scope the top masking lowered a bit and the side masking went out a bit, a combination of the two. Now in digital, the 1.85 image is slightly smaller with the top masking permanently lowered, so going out to Scope just becomes the standard side expansion.
The 7 auditoria with 1.85 screens are 1, 5, 9, 10, 11, 13 and 14. All had top down masking for 35mm Scope movies but now the image is just “letterboxed” mid screen with no top/bottom masking, which sadly seems to be common nowadays.
Scope screens with side masking in all 5 auditoria. As can be seen in own of the photos the screens rather strangely have lights all around them. They do go out during the film so not a problem.
As also shown there is a rather inconspicuous entrance at ground level leading to the stairs which take you the main foyer on the first floor.
All 9 screens are wall-to-wall Scope with no side masking. Very dark during the film with black matte walls and no ceiling lights on. Stadium seating, aisles on the side and plenty of leg room.
This is a well designed multiplex; I cannot fault it. All 9 auditoria are to the same design, it is just a matter of size. It is a joy watching a movie on any of the screens.
Odeon web-site confirms that it will be re-opened as an Odeon Luxe in Decemeber 2017.
Refurbished and re-opened as ‘Odeon Luxe’ in November 2017.
Seating reduced to 1062. The largest auditoria are Screens 6 and 7 with 144 seats in each and the smallest is Screen 1 with 49 seats. These seating figures are taken from the Odeon website.
Refurbished and re-opened under the ‘Odeon Luxe’ brand in November 2017.
The seating capacity is now 941 with Screen 1 the largest with 139 and Screens 3 and 9 the joint smallest with 35 each. These capacities are taken from the Odeon web-site. The photos there seem to be generic ‘Odeon Luxe’ ones rather than at Glasgow Quay specifically.
This is now the fourth Odeon to be rebranded as ‘Odeon Luxe’ in 2017 after East Kilbride, Edinburgh West and Leeds-Bradford.
Two more are in the pipeline at Putney and Panton Street, London with probably more to follow in 2018.
The two largest auditoria (Nos 1 and 9) have Scope screens with side masking. The other 7 auditoria have just 1.85 ‘Flat’ screens necessitating that Scope films are shown letterboxed with the inevitable slight truncation to 2.32. There is no top/bottom masking.
Given that most films nowadays are in Scope it does seem strange that anyone would build a new cinema without proper Scope screens. I did write to Cineworld about this but received no understandable answer. In the past (and as recently as 2012) Cineworld were building multiplexes with all Scope screens but many of their more recent builds seem to go for this mixed approach.
Also the lights are not turned off during the film, just dimmed. Together with the fact that the walls are red covered which reflects light (as can be seen in the photo section), the auditorium is not really very dark during the film.
Praise is given on User websites to the good seating and legroom. That may be true, but all in all, the lack of Scope screens, the general brightness during the film and the closeness of the screen to the front half of the seats in some of the smaller auditoria does not make this a good place to watch movies in. It is, simply, just badly designed.
Wall-to-wall Scope screens with no masking in all auditoria. Screen 6 has the largest screen branded ‘XPlus’ but the screen size in each is impressive relative to the auditorium size. All have stadium seating with large reclining seats in spacious rows. Very dark during the film enhanced by having black matte walls.
If this is the standard design for Showcase ‘Cinema De Lux’, it is a very good formula. This is an excellent new cinema and great place to watch movies in.
The screens are a mixture of 2.39 Scope and 1.85 with the majority being Scope. I don’t know the Nos of which auditoria are which, though one of the largest ones has surprisingly just a 1.85 screen.
When I was there a few years back the 1.85 screens had top down masking for Scope films, though I presume this has probably gone now as is usual practice with digital projection.
Is the reason for closing known ? I’m not aware of any new multiplex opening up nearby recently.
Are all screens full 2.39 Scope ?
This cinema often appears in any list of “Ten Best Cinemas in England”. Indeed, as the photo shows, architecturally it is an impressive building with its glass façade and location overlooking the marina. It has a nice café inside and as the photo also shows you can also sit outside on the veranda and appreciate the surroundings.
However I think that a good cinema should primarily be judged on how it operates as a cinema rather than its architecture and surroundings.
On this score the verdict is more mixed.
Screen 1 is good; it is wide with a full Scope screen and movable side masking. It was refurbished a few back to a high standard with comfortable seats and plenty of leg room. The layout was changed removing the centre aisle and having sides instead; this was all good.
However on the down side, the auditorium is very light during the film as the lights are just dimmed and not turned off. It is far too light in my experience and detracts from one’s enjoyment. The management are aware of this and say that changing it is on their radar; however that is not that easy as the electrics are not wired to allow them turn the lights off over the seats but leave them on over the aisles. Additionally the fire exit cuts a corner out of the auditorium and makes the fire door with its lights very visible. Small points perhaps, but ones that stop Screen 1 from being an excellent place to watch movies in.
Screen 2 is not so good; it has bigger problems. The screen does not take up all the end wall as there is a passage down one side (fully lit) leading to the fire door. There is nothing subtle about its presence; it probably takes up about a quarter of the end wall and I found it very distracting. Consequentially the screen is only 1.85 which in 35mm days had top masking and in my opinion made the screen far too small for the size of the auditorium. I have stopped going to this screen so I don’t know if the top masking has been retained for digital projection; I presume not as is common practice nowadays.
Overall while the architects designed a building that looks great externally, I don’t think that they had much clue as to design cinema interiors that are great for the moviegoing experience. The current management do a fine job in successfully running a cinema that caters for all tastes but sadly they are rather hampered by the design of the building.
As of October 2017, it has 16 screens comprising of the 12 original ones plus 4 Studios.
Refurbished and rebranded as ‘Odeon Luxe’ in October 2017 with all screens having spacious recliner seats. Total seating capacity across all 9 screens is reduced to 652. Screen 1 is an ‘ISense’ screen.
This was the first site to to upgraded to the ‘Odeon Luxe’ brand by Odeon’s new owners AMC. The next two are at Wester Hailes in Edinburgh (rebranded as Odeon Luxe Edinburgh West) in Nov 2017 and Odeon Panton Street, London (rebranded as Odeon Luxe Haymarket) in Dec 2017.
Refurbished and rebranded as ‘Odeon Luxe Edinburgh West’ in November 2017 with all screens having spacious recliner seats.
This is the second site to to upgraded to the ‘Odeon Luxe’ brand by Odeon’s new owners AMC. The first was the Odeon East Kilbride in Oct 2017 and the next will be the Odeon Panton Street, London (rebranded as Odeon Luxe Haymarket) in Dec 2017.
I’m impressed if they actually installed a Scope screen as in the picture rather than show Scope films “letterboxed” on a 1.85 screen.
Thanks Zappomatic. So, is this talk of new plans just a red herring? Do Empire, to our knowledge, plan to do anything to the cinema?
It is always a pity when a rather grand building is demolished and replaced by a rather mundane one.
The 1984 building is still there with MacDonald’s still occupying one side of it and a coffee shop on the other.
Just the two larger screens (Nos 5 and 6) have full 2.39 Scope screens. The other 8 in the original cinema plus all 6 of the more recent ‘Studio’ cinemas just have 1.85 screens necessitating that Scope films be shown “letterboxed” centre screen and, as is normal practice nowadays, there is no top/bottom masking. This was confirmed to me in an E-Mail by Empire cinemas a while back.
An unusual feature of the cinema in its early UCI days was that many of the medium seize auditoria were L-shaped with a section taken out of the back for the projection booth which it shared with the auditorium next door.
When Empire took over and refurbished the cinema, the L-shape was removed. Whether just the upper part of the ‘L’ was taken out of use or whether the size of the projection area was reduced, I don’t know. It could be the latter as digital projection can take less space than 35mm.
The overview of this cinema (above) refers to one of the screens being IMAX. I can see no reference to IMAX on the Cineworld web-site, so that comment may not be true.
Either way cinema goers in Poole have a poor choice when wanting to watch Scope films as this cinema, in my opinion, is basically just a very large TV set.
Zappomatic, No, I have only the web link posted below by CF100 on 9 August.
One of the larger screens (Screen 5) has been converted to IMAX. I have not been in there, so cannot comment.
All the others 9 screens are Scope with movable side masking.
All 10 auditoria have stepped seating.
The site is now a Poundland store. They took over when Woolworths closed.
New Comment
The foyer is at ground level in the Westgate development. Escalators then take you downstairs to the cinemas.
All 7 auditoria have Scope screens. I can’t remember if they had movable side masking or whether the masking was fixed at Scope irrespective of the film being shown, as is often the case nowadays. I think it may be the latter.
A fairly standard Warner Village multiplex of the 1990s. The larger auditoria are good, fairly wide and with Scope screens while the smaller ones are fairly narrow, box like and with just 1.85 screens. All have stadium seating.
The Scope screens are 1, 6, 7, 8 and 13 which have, or had, movable side masking. I am not sure if the masking is still in use as the last time I went to Screen 13, the largest one, the it was out set to Scope all during the show even though the main movie was 1.85.
The 8 smaller screens, 2 to 5 and 9 to 12 would all have had top down masking for Scope movies when shown on film but now the image is just “letterboxed” mid screen with no top/bottom masking, which sadly seems to be common nowadays.
A fairly standard Warner Village multiplex of its time. Of the original 11 screens, the larger auditoria are good, fairly wide and with Scope screens while the smaller ones are fairly narrow, box like and with just 1.85 screens. All have stadium seating.
It opened in 2001 with 3 empty shells which later became screens 6, 7 and 8. Although relatively small, the auditoria are quite wide so have impressively large Scope screens.
Of the current 14 auditoria, there are now 7 Scope screens (Nos 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8 and 12) which have, or had, movable side masking. I am not sure if the masking is still in use; I rather think not and that it is permanently set out to Scope irrespective of the film showing.
Screens 2 and 4 were slightly unusual in their 35mm days as to go to Scope the top masking lowered a bit and the side masking went out a bit, a combination of the two. Now in digital, the 1.85 image is slightly smaller with the top masking permanently lowered, so going out to Scope just becomes the standard side expansion.
The 7 auditoria with 1.85 screens are 1, 5, 9, 10, 11, 13 and 14. All had top down masking for 35mm Scope movies but now the image is just “letterboxed” mid screen with no top/bottom masking, which sadly seems to be common nowadays.
Is someone able to summarize the plans that Empire have for the cinema? The planning documents are not particularly clear to me.