Cinemas close in St. Petersburg

Recently, several cinemas have closed in St. Petersburg at once, including the oldest cinemas of the city.

The Cinema of the St. Petersburg newspaper “My District” calls the cinemas “Parisiana” (Nevsky Ave. 80; opened in 1914), “Barricade” (Nevsky pr., 15; opened in 1923), “Leningrad” (Potemkinskaya St., 4; opened in 1959), Coliseum (Nevsky pr., 100; opened in 1913), “Crimean Palace ”(Nevsky pr., 72; opened in 1910).

My district also draws attention to the fate of Soviet cinemas in the sleeping areas of St. Petersburg, many of which are demolished or have been used for other purposes for a long time.

Experts surveyed by the newspaper, in particular, indicate that the lack of serious competition allows cartoons to raise ticket prices, and the disappearance of cinemas of walking distance leads to the fact that the audience is forced to go to watch a movie to the center. In addition, films often do not reach the large screen.

The film director Alexander Sokurov believes that the city authorities are to blame for the situation with cinemas in St. Petersburg.

“There must be funds for financing culture. And they are in the city. But there is no desire from the people who are engaged in culture, to seriously look at these issues. - says Sokurov. - In all European cities there are municipal cinemas with a capacity of 60-100 people. They are on the budget of districts or cities. We have a five millionth city and there is not a single cinema for serious cinema. And, I'm afraid there will be no changes for a long time. ”