As a movie fan, my travels have taken me to a huge number of movie theaters. Paying money to be…read moreentertained is usually an experience that is meant to last for at least a couple hours. Same goes for movies. Most of the times, we go for movies on dates, or to escape the drudgery of daily life, or to change the way we think or feel about something.
Going to a movie is so much more than just sitting in a chair.
Unfortunately, Pathé Arena completely misses the reason for its existence. From being herded to the ticket machines to the sentry to the line at the concessions, everything here screams of an anti-experience. It's not something you come back from and talk about.
Cleanliness is an issue, too, at least if you're not sitting at the nicer rows at the back. Movies seldom sell out these days at the secondary screens, and so if you happen to be unfortunate and get a ticket for the front row, be prepared to wrestle with cob webs and dirt on the seats. When your seats smell of dust, the popcorn doesn't make it any better of a movie experience.
They have tried in the past to streamline the lines and the operations, but just seem incapable of handling the crowds. If I were a management consultant, I'd advise them with some innovative solutions, but until then Pathé Arena remains the only option for me to go watch Bollywood movies on the big screen.
PS: Their IMAX screen is new and slightly better, but seriously, are movies even so good anymore that you would hike all the way to Arena to watch a movie there?
