Cine-files: Rio, Dalston, London
The Rio Cinema, Kingsland Road, Dalston
This article titled “Cine-files: Rio, Dalston, London” was written by Peter Beech, for guardian.co.uk on Tuesday 21st June 2011 09.22 UTC
On location: Deep in Dalston’s hipster hinterland, near that Superstore bar people are always saying they used to visit.
Crowd scene: A load of moustachioed lumberjacks and their flapper girlfriends, all firmly under 40. Bring horn-rimmed specs or your most sarcastic sneer.
Back story: A single-screened picturehouse was built on the site in 1909, and tarted up in art deco style by cult architect FE Bromige in 1937. It was a Tatler porn cinema in the early 70s, became a not-for-profit charity organisation in 1979 and is now run by a board of elected locals. The building is Grade II listed.
Show business: One main film is programmed a week, and it’s usually the right one (this time it’s Potiche). Titles – hand-picked by general manager Charles Rubinstein and his head projectionist, Peter Howden – range from arthouse docs to middlebrow blockbusters such as Inception and A Single Man. Hosts lots of foreign films and, unsurprisingly, a few commercial concessions – Harry Potter 8‘s showing for the last two weeks of July. There’s a late show on a Saturday. July’s schedule was rejigged late-doors to squeeze in The Tree of Life. Cigarette Burns Cinema is run by a local enthusiast and puts on a late-night screening once a month.
Parental guidance: Tuesday playcentre matinees charge £2 for kiddywinks and £3 for slaves. The thrice fortnightly parents and babies screenings have an age-limit of one. Saturday morning is a cut-priced kids’ club.
Senior service: “Classic matinees”, run monthly on the first or second Wednesday, are free for over-60s and their carers – and so popular that last time staff had to turn people away. They were tapping their walking sticks on the windows. It was horrible.
Tickets: £9 adult, £7 concessions. Mondays and matinees are £7 and £5.50.
Camera fodder: Popcorn, crisps, sweets, choccy, soft drinks and, er, samosas and cake, all available from a counter in the foyer.
Medium popcorn and soft drink: £4.20.
Hot drinks: Real Monmouth coffee. Double-shot Americanos £1.70. Teas both normal and fancy.
Alcohol: Bottled beers range from Peroni and Asahi (£2.50) to Guinness, Old Speckled and Fuller’s (£3.50) and Organic Honey Dew (£4.50). Bulmers cider and perry is £3.50. None on tap. Red, white and rose wine is £2.50-£3.20 for a small glass and £5-£6.30 for a large; £12-£16 for a bottle. Plastics provided to take drinks in.
Auditorium: Seats 188. A top deck houses up to 214 on busy days and Saturdays. The blue and pink art deco interior is faithful to Bromige’s original design; so, presumably, are the unspectacular red-cushioned seats without drinks holders. No premium option. Sightlines are clear all over and front-row viewing is comfortable. The curtains close and incidental music plays while the film reel is put in place.
Disabled access: Three permanent wheelchair bays and five more subject to pre-booking. Infra-red assisted sound for the hard of hearing. Those with disabilities are charged the concession rate, and can bring a carer for free if they show a Cinema Exhibitors’ Assocation Card.
Events: Sporadic but intriguing. Hosted the inaugural London Sex Worker Film festival earlier this month. Senna director and local resident Asif Kapadia stopped by for a Q&A on 5 June. Annual Turkish and Kurdish film festivals.
Toilets: Located inside the auditorium on either side of the screen, so taking a whiz entails a long and self-conscious stump down to the front. Small enough to make after-film visits a game of Tetris.
Facilities: Minimal. The snacks counter and a few bar stools constitute a bare-bones waiting area.
Staff: The part-time workers are a predictable medley of writers, artists and the odd actor. Endearingly normal, they give things a village fete feel as they fumble with the tills. Enthusiasts, not buffs: front-of-house manager Max was a graphic designer before joining seven years ago.
Pros: A morally good cinema among thousands of bad and ugly. More indie than most indies in that does all programming in-house. Offers 3D at no extra charge. Has the personal touch only a small venue can offer. But the major selling point is undoubtedly its period charm, if that’s what you go for.
Cons: That’s what they go for. En masse. There’s one screen, so an inevitable lack of variety in what’s on. While pretty, the auditorium lacks the sound and vision wow-factor of a chain. Seats aren’t ranked very steeply so pray Mumford & Sons don’t start wearing top hats.
Top tips: Nip 10 metres to Best Supermarket to supplement the sweet selection. And come early on Orange Wednesdays.
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