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Aside from the excellent Cherry Lane Movies (which shows Chinese films with English subtitles), many foreigners in Beijing tend to steer clear of the cinema, perhaps afraid of being caught in a subtitle-free hell or paying over the odds for something their friendly DVD seller can supply them.
That would be a mistake when it comes to an epic like Hero.
A first-time visit to the UME Hua Xing International Film City (Xing Guoji Yingcheng) in Haidian will be a reminder of multiplexes back home for many (including the price - tickets for Hero were being snapped up at 60 yuan (US$7.22) this week.
The scramble for tickets can be a little off-putting. And in the same way that politely standing in line gets you nowhere at post offices, the only way is to pitch in there with the rest and take your chances.
The air of expectation helps whet your appetite for the main attraction in a way no DVD ever can - and if that fails, banks of TV monitors play looped clips from the film before you go in.
Crucially, unless your putonghua is flawless or you want to sample the real experience unhindered, you'll want to make sure if the film has English subtitles.
Hero was being shown on several screens this week, only one of which had subtitles. Try asking: "Zhege dianying you yingyu zimu ma? (Does this film have English subtitles?)" and you should be okay.
There's a bit of jostling to get in but your seat is reserved so don't worry too much. A good deal of seat shuffling begins immediately the lights dim as punters jockey for a better view. This inevitably leads to some grief (and minor irritations) when latecomers find their seats occupied and an argument ensues...
You'll also detect a distinct reluctance amongst viewers to switch off mobile phone. Indeed they tend to get answered with no evidence of any cinema staff intervening.
Those considerable gripes aside (well, you've paid 60 kuai after all), the seats are super-comfortable with enough leg room for the average basketball player.
And if it's a good film, the noise soon dies down as the audience is transfixed by the magic of the movies.
Location: 44 Kexueyuan Nanlu, Shuangyushu, Haidian
Tel: 6255-5566; 6261-2851
(Beijing Weekend January 7, 2003)
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