The Barbican Centre,
Silk Street,
London,
EC2Y 8DS
0872 148 3087
The ViewLondon Review
The Barbican Centre shows an impressive variety of mainstream, arthouse and repertory films with regular seasons and special events, giving it a dedication to all-things-film matched only by the NFT. Where it falls down, however, is in its incredibly confusing location and layout.
You might expect that a cinema that was close to no less than seven different stations would be easy to find. However, you’d be wrong. If you’re visiting the Barbican Centre for the first time, it’s best to allow at least an extra twenty minutes to be sure of actually being able to find the place.
It’s supposed to be "clearly signposted", and some kind soul has even painted a yellow line from the station exit all the way to the cinema. Unfortunately, that yellow line splits in half about halfway there, leaving you lost and confused – at that point it’s best to resort to the time-honoured method of Asking Someone The Way.
The madness doesn’t stop there, either. Once inside the building, you’ll find that screens one and two (the third is reserved for special events) are located some distance apart from each other.
Screen One is on the aptly-named "Pit floor" on "Level minus 2" (confused yet?), whereas Screen Two is on the "Conference floor" on level 4 and involves some tricky negotiation with the elevator or a walk up six flights of stairs.
Again, it’s best to check which screen the film you want to see is in – fortunately each screen has its own separate box office.
Once in Screen One, the experience is far more pleasant. It is attractively arranged, with comfortable seats, plenty of leg-room, good sight-lines (the seating is on a slope) and a decent-sized screen. The sound system is good, too.
Screen two, however, is much less comfortable and appears to have been tagged on as an afterthought. The seating is less comfortable and the screen is much smaller, in marked contrast to Screen One.
The Barbican has the usual concession stand, as well as various bars located in the centre itself. If you arrive with plenty of time, you can have a drink by the ‘lakeside’ area, which is nice if you happen to coincide with the ten minutes of annual British summertime. The Balcony Café also does food, with discounts for cinema-ticket holders.
In short, Screen One of the Barbican Centre is a lovely place to see a film, and, if it’s your first visit, you can even allow yourself a glimmer of pride for having found it at all.
Three stars, then, for the quality of Screen One, but it loses a coveted fourth star for the dreariness of Screen Two and its impenetrable location. Or maybe that’s part of its charm?
Standard ticket price and discounts: £6.50 (Adults), £5 (concessions), £4.50 (with Barbicancard). £4 (all day Mondays), also various discounts for groups, families etc.
Capacity: Screen One: 286, Screen Two: 251, Screen Three: 154
Facilities: concession stand, bar.
Type of film shown: Mainstream / Arthouse / Repertory
Special Features: All-day Monday discount, Special Events, Family Film Club
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