I’d heard good things about Secret Cinema over the last few years and regretted not attending their semi-interactive screenings of films such as Brazil and Back to the Future, where cult classics were projected in vast auditoriums that were reimagined as expanded sets of the films being shown. Having been kindly given a pair of tickets to their latest experience, which expands a nightly showing of Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back beyond the dimensions of the cinematic frame, I can now understand the deserved hype of their previous screenings.
Cantina bar at Secret Cinema, photo by Secret Cinema
Multiplexes in general have become a bland, repetitive experience, with over-priced and dull food in the lobby, badly balanced sound in the cinemas, and ceiling lights on throughout the films to make the whole experience less preferable to waiting four months and watching the movie at home. Conversely, while art house cinemas have made the big screen experience more enjoyable with food, comfort, and film programming more worthy of a night out, venues that show more populist fare have yet to catch up. With this in mind, and the popularity of genre conventions and cosplay ever on the rise, the Secret Cinema screening of Empire feels like the best cosplay convention you’ve ever been to, mixing interactive theatre with a club night, merchandise stalls and a terrific food market.
From the moment you arrive at the transport stop nearest the venue, Secret Cinema is a slick and professional experience, with ushers directing you from there to the venue itself a few streets away. It would be no great spoiler to reveal the event takes place in an abandoned industrial facility in South East London, as the sets require a lot of dressing as well as a few labyrinthine passages to make the travel within the venue feel more immersive. Once you arrive at the place with signs in both English and Intergalactic font, all the staff are in character, with a lady at the entrance gently heckling a friend I went with - who failed twice to follow her instruction of ‘use the door to the left’ - by saying: “That’s just the kind of mind we’re looking for in the Rebel Alliance”!
Once inside you’re invited to also stay in character as a visitor to the Star Wars Universe and the immersive experience is terrific as you move from one fictional location to another. Visitors of all ages ranged from determined cosplayers in full X-Wing Pilot jumpsuits to people wearing more casual attire, but once inside the first large open area, where a memorable location from the Star Wars films is recreated, it’s a mesmerising experience that allows ticket buyers to interact with the environment as much or as little as they want. This interior, including an alien sky projected onto the walls, is made even more convincing by the excellent (if a little pricy, even by London standards) food and drink on offer. Indeed, if ‘Ewok Sausages’ were really as tasty as the one I tried, I’m surprised the creatures weren’t extinct by the beginning of the third film!
Walking around the venue, little vignettes playout amongst the paying public, with stunt fights, arrests and music performances giving the environment the feel of a real, bustling location. It would be quite easy just to sit in a corner with a drink and enjoy the ambience for an hour – but you are encouraged to at least take part in a bit of bartering with the actors in order to bribe your way onto a ship, taking you to the next location within the complex. The second main venue that you’re taken to is even more impressive than the first, as it required less set dressing than where you’ve been before, due to its history as part of another evil empire, and provides a great location for the screening itself of the film you’ve ultimately come to see.
Ironically, because the experience has been so good up to this point, The Empire Strikes Back (showing unfortunately, but inevitably, as the 2004 version) is a bit of an anti-climax, but the sound system in the venue is great (particularly the bass) and even during the film there are still a few scenes that escape the frame and take place around the auditorium, simultaneously with the action on screen. Afterwards, while many people left, it looked like the venue would stay open for another hour for a DJ set, and this is probably well worth sticking around for, especially if there are still some ‘Wampa kebabs’ on offer!
Secret Cinema isn’t a cheap experience (including the profits they must make from the merchandise and food stalls, tickets would be a better prospect if they were a third less, especially for children) but it’s probably the coolest and most enjoyable night out in London this Summer, and if you’re a fan of the Star Wars films I can’t think of a better way of experiencing one of the best in the series.
Secret Cinema: The Empire Strikes Back opens its doors every night at 5.30pm, Tuesday to Sunday at a Secret Location in London until 27th September
Buy tickets here: http://secretcinema.seetickets.com
Alex Fitch.