…and gazuky

I went to see the movie ‘Jumper’ today at my local Showcase Cinema. The movie was OK - a good idea, but the story could have been better - and some clunky CGI, although only once or twice. Six out of ten overall.

I go to the Showcase Cinema because it’s the closest one to me (within walking distance) and a bit cheaper than the 30-screen monster at Star City. It was Showcase Cinemas that kick-started the multiplex trend in the UK; I remember visiting one of the earliest ones in Peterborough and thinking how modern and exciting it was.

But people now expect a lot more from their cinema-going experience, and while multiplex chains like Vue are offering comfortable tiered seating, bags of leg-room and extras such as cup-holders and high-backed seats, Showcase have not changed a thing since they launched their product in the late 80s.

Even their on-screen branding is shameful. If you’ve been to a Showcase, you’ll know the familiar dated neon-styled sequences on the start-up reel that ask you not to talk and remind you how to get to the car-parks easily. They don’t seem to have changed since 1987. And even worse, they’re obviously identical to the ones used in their US cinemas - with requests to ‘Please Deposit Trash’.

What’s more, the seats are squeaky and uncomfortable, the floor is sticky, and the food is massively over-priced. The whole experience screams ‘rip-off’ at every turn.

Clearly, Showcase aren’t that bothered about investing in their UK operation. I suspect it’s seen as a cash-cow to be milked for investment in the US, but any graduate of business studies will tell you that that’s not the way to attract and keep customers. Sooner or later, people are going to catch on to the fact that other companies are doing it so much better.