| |
70mm in
Mexico City
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in70mm.com
The 70mm Newsletter
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Written
by: Miguel Carrara, Mexico.
Translated and
Edited by Michael
Coate |
Date:
12 June 2005 |
The
author of the
article
Mexican citizens
have often been
disappointed with
the actions of their
government, which
they believe have
been too involved
with all aspects of
the lives of its
people...including
their motion picture
entertainment. The
Mexican movie going
public was not able
to experience deluxe
70-millimeter and
Cinerama
presentations until
many years after
those innovations
had been introduced
in other countries
around the world.
However, once 70mm
came to Mexico, a
LOT of movies were
shown in the large
format, including
several American and
British productions
seen in their
country of origin
only in 35mm
versions.
Many decades ago,
several grand movie
palaces were built
throughout Mexico
City, much to the
delight of
moviegoers. These
palaces were
constructed and
designed with a
variety of styles
from around the
globe. It was not
uncommon to find the
auditoriums
decorated with
elaborate statues,
paintings or
candelabras. Perhaps
the greatest cinema
was the Flowery,
which featured an
art deco style and
could seat nearly
7,000.
During the 1950s and
the widescreen
revolution, many of
the Mexican cinemas
capitalized on the
trend and installed
some of the new
innovations being
introduced. First to
arrive in Mexico was
3-D and with it
"Bwana
Devil". The
3-D format, however,
was not successful
in Mexico and
disappeared not long
after its
introduction.
CinemaScope, on the
other hand, was a
resounding success.
'Scope arrived in
Mexico in December
1953, only three
short months after
the process
premiered in the
United States. As in
the U.S.,
"The Robe"
was the first scope
film exhibited. By
the middle of 1954,
nearly every Mexican
cinema had been
outfitted with a
new, larger and
wider screen and a
set of anamorphic
CinemaScope
projection lenses.
Magnetic
four-channel sound
systems were,
surprisingly,
installed in quite a
number of the scope
cinemas, including
many neighbourhood
cinemas.
Unfortunately, the
government
intervened during
this period and, in
an attempt to be
popular with the
majority of the
citizens, established
a ceiling for ticket
prices. While this
restriction allowed
the average citizen
to afford attending
movies on a regular
basis, it delayed
the installation of
expensive
innovations such as
Todd-AO and Cinerama
since a necessary
and desirable hike
in admissions could
not be enforced.
Cinerama was late to
arrive in Mexico. It
had premiered in
America in 1952, but
by the time it was
installed in Mexico
in 1967, no more
films were being
produced in the
three-strip
format. The 70mm
format had much
greater success in
Mexico, but too was
late in its
arrival. It had
been announced that
Todd-AO 70mm would
arrive in 1960, and
the debut attraction
was to be
"Solomon and Sheba".
But due to the
government's
restriction on an
increase in ticket
prices for deluxe
attractions (higher
admission prices
being common in
other countries,
particularly in
Europe and parts of
Latin America),
"Solomon and
Sheba" was
shown in 35mm. Other
productions from the
early 1960s with
70mm print
availability ("The
Alamo",
"Black
Tights",
"The Man
with the Green
Carnation",
"The Savage
Innocents", etc.)
also were shown in
Mexico in 35mm
versions.
The 70mm
presentation format
would finally be
seen in Mexico City
in 1962, seven years
following its debut
in New York, with
the grand opening of
the Cine Diana, in
which the necessary
projection and sound
equipment was
installed. Along
with 70mm's arrival
to the Mexican
capital, the
government allowed
an 8 peso ceiling on
admission to the
Cine Diana (and
subsequent 70mm
venues) when
screening 70mm
prints. This was
compared with a 4
peso ceiling for
regular movie
houses. Based upon
the international
exchange rate during
the 1960s, one peso
was equal to about
eight to ten cents
($U.S.) at the time.
70mm in Mexico
City... What follows
is a
cinema-by-cinema
list of films
exhibited in Mexico
City in the
70-millimeter
six-track
stereophonic sound
format. The
information is based
upon me attending
the films,
cataloguing my
movie going
experiences, and
researching the
engagement history
in the local
newspapers archived
on microfilm. The
titles have been
listed in English,
and although the
premiere dates have
not been included
(they may be added
in a revision), the
titles are listed in
their original
exhibition order.
I moved to Europe in
1976. However, I
returned to Mexico
for holiday visits
and continued to
attend many films
shown in 70mm, and
such films are
included here.
|
Further
in 70mm reading:
70mm Films shown in
Mexico
Seeing 70mm in Mexico
70mm Premiere of "Jesus Christ
Superstar" in Madrid
Curiosities from Mexico
Internet link:
|
Cine Diana
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This beautiful movie
palace opened in May
1962 and featured
elegant, magnificent
decor by famed
Mexican artist
Manuel Felguerez.
The Cine Diana had a
large Todd-AO
screen, around 2,000
seats, and superb
six-track stereo
sound. In fact, the
audio presentation
quality was among
the very best I
experienced anywhere
in the world. The
first 70mm
presentation at this
cinema (and the
first in Mexico
City) was
"Spartacus"
in 1962; the final
70mm show was
"A Chorus
Line" in
1985. Today, this is
just another typical
eight-screen
multiplex.
Films shown at the
Cine Diana in 70mm:
Spartacus
(USA /
Super Technirama 70)
Exodus
(USA / Super
Panavision 70)
Can-Can
(USA / Todd-AO)
Barabbas
(Italy-USA / Super
Technirama 70)
West Side
Story (USA
/ Super Panavision
70)
El Cid
(Italy-USA / Super
Technirama 70)
Lawrence of
Arabia (UK
/ Super Panavision
70)
Taras Bulba
(USA-Yugoslavia /
Blow-Up)
The Fall Of
The Roman Empire
(USA / Ultra
Panavision 70)
Porgy and
Bess (USA /
Todd-AO)
Becket
(UK-USA / Blow-Up)
The Cardinal
(USA / Blow-Up)
Circus World
(USA / Super
Technirama 70)
My Fair Lady
(USA / Super
Panavision 70)
It's A Mad
Mad Mad Mad World
(USA / Ultra
Panavision 70)
Scheherazade
(France-Italy-Spain
/ MCS Superpanorama
70)
The Great
Race (USA /
Blow-Up)
Doctor
Zhivago
(USA / Blow-Up)
The Bible
(Italy-USA /
Dimension-150)
Doctor
Dolittle
(USA / Todd-AO)
Battle of
the Bulge
(USA / Ultra
Panavision 70)
Guns for San
Sebastian
(France-Italy-Mexico
/ Blow-Up)
The Greatest
Story Ever Told
(USA / Ultra
Panavision 70)
Camelot
(USA / Blow-Up)
Valley of
the Dolls
(USA / Blow-Up)
Far from the
Madding Crowd
(UK / Blow-Up)
Star!
(USA / Todd-AO)
The Great
Wall (Japan
/ Super Technirama
70)
Anna
Karenina
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
Cheyenne
Autumn (USA
/ Super Panavision
70)
Hell in the
Pacific
(USA / Blow-Up)
Krakatoa
East of Java
(USA / Super
Panavision 70)
Emiliano
Zapata
(Mexico / Blow-Up)
Paint Your
Wagon (USA
/ Blow-Up)
Too Late the
Hero (USA /
Blow-Up )
The Battle
of Britain
(UK / Blow-Up)
The
Andromeda Strain
(USA / Blow-Up)
On A Clear
Day You Can See
Forever
(USA / Blow-Up)
Murphy's War
(UK-USA / Blow-Up)
Hannie
Caulder (UK
/ Blow-Up)
Rollerball
(USA / Blow-Up)
A Chorus
Line (USA /
Blow-Up)
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Cine Manacar
|
|
The Cine Manacar,
which opened
in April 1965, was
elegant and very
modern. Attributes
included a great
Todd-AO screen
situated behind
beautiful curtains
of four sliding
panels painted by
Carlos Merida, about
2,000 seats, and
good six-channel
sound (though not as
impressive as the
sound system at the
Diana). The first
70mm show was
"How the
West was Won"
in 1965 which, since
Cinerama had not yet
come to Mexico, was
converted from
three-panel Cinerama
to a composite 70mm
version. The final
70mm engagement was
"Sgt.
Pepper's Lonely
Hearts Club Band"
in 1979. And worth
noting, the Cine
Manacar has the
honorable
distinction of
having hosted the
longest-running
season in Mexican
cinema history: 65
weeks of...(are you
surprised?)..."The
Sound of Music".
Today: an awful
multiplex of 11
screens.
|
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How the West
was Won
(USA /
Cinerama-to-composite
70mm)
Lord Jim
(UK-USA / Super
Panavision 70)
Cleopatra
(USA / Todd-AO)
The Long
Ships
(USA-Yugoslavia /
Super Technirama 70)
The Flying
Clipper
(West Germany / MCS
Superpanorama 70)
The Sound of
Music (USA
/ Todd-AO)
Those
Magnificent Men in
their Flying
Machines
(UK / Todd-AO)
The Agony
and the Ecstasy
(USA / Todd-AO)
Is Paris
Burning?
(France-USA /
Blow-Up)
Khartoum
(UK / Ultra
Panavision 70)
The Black
Tulip
(France-Italy-Spain
/ MCS Superpanorama
70)
The Sand
Pebbles
(USA / Blow-Up)
The
Comedians
(France-USA /
Blow-Up)
Half A
Sixpence
(UK / Blow-Up)
Uncle Tom's
Cabin
(France-Italy-West
Germany-Yugoslavia /
MCS Superpanorama
70)
|
|
Whom the
Gods Wish to Destroy
(West
Germany-Yugoslavia /
MCS Superpanorama
70) *)
Finian's
Rainbow
(USA / Blow-Up)
Custer of
the West
(France-UK-USA /
Super Technirama 70)
Sweet
Charity
(USA / Blow-Up)
The Monte
Carlo Rally
(France-Italy-UK /
Blow-Up)
Gone with
the Wind
(USA / Blow-Up /
"Now in Wide Screen
and the Wonder of
70mm")
The Young
Girls of Rochefort
(France / Blow-Up)
The Great
Caruso (USA
/ Blow-Up / "Now in
Wide Screen and the
Wonder of 70mm")
Around the
World in Eighty Days
(USA / Todd-AO /
First time in 70mm
in Mexico)
Russian
Adventure
(USSR /
Cinerama-to-composite
70mm)
Darling Lili
(USA / Blow-Up)
Tchaikovsky
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
Sleeping
Beauty (USA
/ Super Technirama
70 / First time in
70mm in Mexico)
Hellfighters
(USA / Blow-Up)
The Brothers
Karamazov
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
Four Flies
on Grey Velvet
(France-Italy /
Blow-Up)
Mary, Queen
of Scots
(UK / Blow-Up)
Ben-Hur
(USA / MGM Camera 65
/ First time in 70mm
in Mexico)
The
Boyfriend
(UK / Blow-Up)
The Great
Circus Parade
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
The Ten
Commandments
(USA / VistaVision /
"Now in Wide Screen
and the Wonder of
70mm")
Swan Lake
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
Click
image to see enlargement
|
*)
I think, that is not a MCS Superpanorama 70 film as is written there. It is
an UltraScope film (Cinematographic process), film negativ 35mm in this case
a 70mm blow up.
Gerhard Witte, Berlin
|
Sunflowers
(Italy-USSR /
Sovscope 70)
The
Hawaiians
(USA / Blow-Up)
Jesus Christ
Superstar
(USA / Blow-Up)
Romeo and
Juliet
(Italy-UK / 1968 /
Blow-Up / "Now in
70mm")
The Poem
of Dance
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
Julius
Caesar (UK
/ 1970 / Blow-Up)
The Blood
Spattered Bride
(Spain / "70mm. Wide
Screen")
Antony and
Cleopatra
(Spain-Switzerland-UK
/ Blow-Up)
Mame
(USA / Blow-Up)
Goya
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
Sgt.
Pepper's Lonely
Hearts Club Band
(USA / Blow-Up) |
|
Cine
Carrusel
|
|
The third
70mm-equipped venue
in the capital city,
this cinema opened
in April 1965
shortly following
the Cine Manacar.
The cinema had an
enormous gray
auditorium but with
limited decor. The
screen was larger
than most. The
cinema could seat
close to 3,000 and
is noted for its
many bookings of
Soviet and other
international films.
Today, a highway and
subway terminal sit
in the demolished
cinema's place.
Imperial
Venus
(France-Italy /
Super Tecnirama 70)
Antinea,
Siren of Atlantis
(France-Italy /
Super Technirama 70)
The Savage
Pampas
(Argentina-Spain-USA
/ MCS Superpanorama
70)
The
Hallelujah Trail
(USA / Ultra
Panavision 70)
Buddha
(Japan /
Super Technirama 70)
War and
Peace (Part
I / USSR / Sovscope
70)
The Sleeping
Beauty
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
The Third
Youth (USSR
/ Sovscope 70)
The Two of
Us (USSR /
Sovscope 70)
An
Optimistic Tragedy
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
The Law of
the Antarctic
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
The Tale of
Tsar Saltan
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
The Three
Fat Ones
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
War and
Peace (Part
II / USSR / Sovscope
70)
The Flaming
Years (USSR
/ Sovscope 70)
A Hero of
our Times
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
Around the
World Under the Sea
(USA / Blow-Up)
Seven Brides
for Seven Brothers
(USA / "Now in the
Splendor of 70mm")
Julius
Caesar (USA
/ 1953 / "Now in
70mm Wide Screen")
From 1976 onward,
many 70mm revivals
of popular films
were screened,
including
"Can-Can",
"El Cid",
and "The
Sand Pebbles".
|
|
Hollywood
Cinerama
|
|
Opened April 1967.
Bravo! At last!
After a fifteen-year
delay, Cinerama
arrived in Mexico
with a wonderful
Cinerama Dome
surrounded by a
golden curtain and
over 1,000 seats.
This cinema featured
one of the largest
screens I ever saw
(and I've been to
numerous Cinerama
venues across the
world).
But despite the big
news and appeal of
Cinerama's arrival
in Mexico, only one
three-panel film was
ever shown:
"This is Cinerama".
Following the
"This is
Cinerama"
season, 70mm
presentations began
to be shown, and
they were often
promoted, in
enjoyable hype of
the era, as "70mm
with Cinerama lenses
on the biggest and
best screen in the
world".
Genghis Khan
(UK-USA-West
Germany-Yugoslavia /
Blow-Up)
Casino
Royale
(UK-USA / Blow-Up)
The Taming
of the Shrew
(Italy-UK / Blow-Up)
Who Cares
What They Say?
(Spain / "70/mm.
Widescreen")
Guess Who's
Coming To Dinner
(USA / Blow-Up)
In Cold
Blood (USA
/ Blow-Up)
Oliver!
(UK / Blow-Up)
Funny Girl
(USA / Blow-Up)
Marooned
(USA / Blow-Up)
MacKenna's
Gold (USA /
Super Panavision 70)
The End of
the Barbarians
(West
Germany-Yugoslavia /
Blow-Up)
The Last
Valley (UK
/ Todd-AO)
Murphy's War
(UK-USA / Blow-Up)
Cromwell
(UK / Blow-Up)
Tora! Tora!
Tora!
(Japan-USA /
Blow-Up)
Nicholas and
Alexandra
(UK / Blow-Up)
The
Hindenburg
(USA / Blow-Up)
Blind Terror
(USA / "70mm Wide
Screen")
Funny Lady
(USA / Blow-Up)
Star Wars
(USA / Blow-Up)
Close
Encounters of the
Third Kind
(USA / Blow-Up)
Alien
(UK-USA / Blow-Up)
The Empire
Strikes Back
(USA / Blow-Up)
Close
Encounters of the
Third Kind
("The Special
Edition" re-issue)
|
|
Latino D-150
|
|
This cinema was
refurbished into a
deluxe Dimension-150
venue and re-opened
in January 1968. The
D-150 set-up looked
essentially the same
as any Cinerama
set-up. The 70mm
presentations were
good with adequate
projection quality
and okay sound. The
films were often
billed as a
"Dimension-150 70mm
Presentation".
Today, the cinema is
closed though still
standing. Can anyone
come to the rescue
of the cinema?
Grand Prix
(USA / Super
Panavision 70)
2001: A
Space Odyssey
(UK-USA / Super
Panavision 70)
Mayerling
(UK / Blow-Up)
Ice Station
Zebra (USA
/ Super Panavision
70)
Chitty
Chitty Bang Bang
(UK / Super
Panavision 70)
The Olympics
in Mexico
(Mexico / Blow-Up)
The Lion in
Winter (UK
/ Blow-Up)
Where Eagles
Dare (USA /
Blow-Up)
Goodbye, Mr.
Chips
(UK-USA / Blow-Up)
Airport
(USA / Todd-AO)
Waterloo
(Italy-USSR /
Blow-Up)
Ryan's
Daughter
(UK / Super Panavion
70)
Anne of the
Thousand Days
(UK / Blow-Up)
Fiddler on
the Roof
(USA / Blow-Up)
Earthquake
((USA / Blow-Up /
Sensurround)
The Wiz
(USA / Blow-Up)
Hair
(USA / Blow-Up)
Apocalypse
Now (USA /
Blow-Up)
|
|
Cine Olimpia
|
|
Dating back to the
1920s, this is the
oldest cinema in
Mexico City.
Refurbished and
re-opened in January
1968, this was given
a whole new look. In
its refurbished
form, this featured
a great Todd-AO
screen, about 1,500
seats, and decent
projection and sound
quality. Today the
building is closed
though still
standing.
The Dirty
Dozen (USA
/ Blow-Up)
The Shoes of
the Fisherman
(USA / Blow-Up)
Winning
(USA / Blow-Up)
Alfred the
Great (UK /
Blow-Up)
Once Upon A
Time in the West
(Italy-USA /
Blow-Up)
Cervantes,
The Young Rebel
(France-Italy-Spain
/ Blow-Up)
Good Time
Girls
(Spain / "70mm Wide
Screen")
The Story
of Simon Bolivar
(Italy-Spain-Venezuela
/ MCS Superpanorama
70)
The Virgin
and the Gypsy
(UK / Blow-Up)
The Novice
Dreamer
(Spain / "70mm Wide
Screen")
Vaudeville
Show (Spain
/ "70mm Wide
Screen")
Petroleum
Girls
(France-Italy-Spain-UK
/ Blow-Up)
The Christ
of the Ocean
(Spain / "70mm Wide
Screen")
Goodbye,
Birth Stork, Goodbye
(Spain / "70mm Wide
Screen")
The Music
Lovers (UK
/ Blow-Up)
|
|
Cine
Futurama
|
|
Opening for business
in 1968, the Cine
Futurama was a big,
elegant, and modern
moviegoing palace
with beautiful
glass, carved decor
and lighting.
Unfortunately, it
was located in a
very distant
suburban area which
made it difficult to
reach from the
central parts of the
city. As a
consequence, the
theatre had a
limited number of
first-run bookings
and when showing
70mm they typically
had already been
screened elsewhere
in the city. As for
the presentation,
projection and sound
quality were
excellent, and fans
of the 70mm format
usually made the
extra effort to
attend. The cinema
was demolished, with
a "cultural mall"
(library, coffee
shops, new theatres,
etc.) currently
residing in its
place.
The Battle
of Neretva
(Italy-USA-West
Germany-Yugoslavia /
Blow-Up)
Zulu
(UK / Super
Technirama 70)
Raid on
Rommel (USA
/ Blow-Up)
Oh! What A
Lovely War
(UK / Blow-Up)
The Wild
Bunch (USA
/ Blow-Up)
Elvis:
That's The Way It Is
(USA / Blow-Up)
I Come, I
Watch, I Shoot
( Italy-Spain /
Blow-Up)
Liberation
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
Wild Rovers
(USA / Blow-Up)
Wrath of the
Wind
(Italy-Spain / MCS
Superpanorama 70)
The Ten
Commandments
(USA / VistaVision /
"Now in Wide Screen
and the Wonder of
70mm")
|
|
Cinema Insurgentes
70
|
|
Another old
movie house which
originally opened in
1943. It was
completely
refurbished and
re-opened in
September 1969. The
cinema featured a
curved Cinerama-type
screen and decent
stereo sound.
Unfortunately, they
ran very few 70mm
prints.
The Battle
for Anzio
(France-Italy-Spain-USA
/ Blow-Up)
The Horsemen
(USA / Super
Panavision 70 &
Blow-Up)
El Golfo
(Mexico-Spain /
Blow-Up)
MacKenna's
Gold
(re-issue)
The Long
Ships
(re-issue)
|
|
Las Torres Super-Heraclorama
|
|
Click
image to see enlargement
Very big! Very cold!
Very odd! And always
empty! This cinema
opened in January
1970 in another
far-off suburban
area.
Presentation-wise,
this had the largest
screen I ever saw.
The Heraclorama
process (never heard
of it before or
after) was a very
large semicircular
screen with foggy
images and a notable
lack of clarity.
Sound quality was
okay. The cinema
survived by showing
many re-releases and
revivals. After
being in business as
a first-run house,
the theatre showed
plays and musicals.
For a while it was a
multiplex and is now
closed.
Shalako
(UK-West Germany /
Blow-Up)
Catherine
(France-Italy-West
Germany / Blow-Up)
A Man Called
Horse (USA
/ Blow-Up)
The Robe
(USA / Blow-Up /
"Now in the Splendor
of 70mm")
The Longest
Day (USA /
Blow-Up / "Now in
the Splendor of
70mm")
The Great
Silence
(Italy-Spain /
Blow-Up)
Duel in the
Sun (USA /
Blow-Up / "Now in
the Wonder of 70mm")
The Royal
Hunt of the Sun
(UK-USA / Blow-Up)
Scrooge
(UK / Blow-Up)
El Cid
(re-issue)
My Fair Lady
(re-issue)
The Sound of
Music
(re-issue)
Lawrence of
Arabia
(re-issue)
Barabbas
(re-issue)
|
|
Cine Las Americas
|
|
An enormous palace
that originally
opened in 1954, it
was refurbished into
a 70mm venue in
1970. The interior
was an elegant green
and gold. The cinema
showed only a
handful of 70mm
presentations,
though it lasted as
a cinema for many
years. In recent
time, it was used as
a casino and a
wrestlers arena.
Kelly's
Heroes (USA
/ Blow-Up)
The Red Tent
(Italy-USSR /
Sovscope 70)
The Devils
(UK / Blow-Up)
The Great
Waltz (USA
/ Blow-Up)
The
Residence
(Spain / "70mm. Wide
Screen")
Michael
Strogoff
(France-Italy / MCS
Superpanorama 70)
The Red Sun
(France-Italy-Spain
/ "70mm. Wide
Screen")
The Hill of
the Dead
(Italy-Spain /
"70mm. Wide Screen")
The Black
Hole (USA /
Blow-Up)
Tron
(USA / Super
Panavision 70)
|
|
Cinema El Dorado 70
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Opening in April
1970, this was the
first cinema in
Mexico City to be
built within a
commercial plaza
(shopping mall).
This was a large,
Cinerama Dome-style
cinema featuring
excellent
presentations. As
with most of the
other cinemas to
open in the early
1970s, they screened
few 70mm prints
since the format was
in a decline during
that period of time.
Today, this is an
eight-screen multiplex,
including two large
auditoriums (by
today's standards)
and Digital Cinema
projection
capability.
Hello,
Dolly! (USA
/ Todd-AO)
The Southern
Star
(France-UK /
Blow-Up)
Song of
Norway (USA
/ Super Panavision
70)
Patton
(USA /
Dimension-150)
The Light at
the Edge of the
World
(Liechtenstein-Spain-Switzerland-USA
/ Blow-Up)
Tora! Tora!
Tora!
(re-issue)
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Cinema Ciudadela 70
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This opened in
April 1971 and was similar in design as the El Dorado 70.
The Poseidon
Adventure
(USA / Blow-Up)
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Cinema Plaza
Statelite 70
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Also similar in
design to the El
Dorado 70, this
opened in October
1971. At the time,
this was located in
a far-off suburban
area. But today,
since the city has
expanded so much,
the area of its
locale is not so
much considered
far-off. Today, this
is a multiplex.
Le Mans
(USA / Blow-Up)
The Sound of
Music
(re-issue)
The Rose
(USA / Blow-Up)
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Cinema Pedregal 70
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Opened September
1972.
Quo Vadis
(USA / "Now in the
Splendor of 70mm.
and Wide Screen")
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Cinema La Raza 70
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The only known 70mm
engagements were
revival showings of
"A Man
Called Horse"
and "The
Robe".
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Cinema Imperial 70 &
Cinema Tlaloc 70
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These cinemas were
promoted as having
70mm projection
capability, but I am
unaware of any 70mm
screenings.
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Cineteca Nacional
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Opening in January
1974, this was the
venue used by the
Mexican
Cinematheque. A
modern design with
nice but minimal
decor, this featured
excellent
presentation
quality.
Unfortunately, this
cinema was destroyed
by a fire. It was
rebuilt, though the
modern version does
not include 70mm
projection
capability.
That's
Entertainment!
(USA / Blow-Up)
Casino
Royale
(Shown during a
Woody Allen
retrospective)
The Leopard
(France-Italy /
Super Technirama 70
/ Shown during a
Luchino Visconti
retrospective)
Solaris
(USSR / Sovscope 70)
Dersu Uzala
(Japan-USSR /
Sovscope 70)
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Auditorio plaza
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A fine example of
Mexican chaos! Just
when the multiplex
concept was
spreading, someone,
amazingly, decided
to bring back to
life the classic
single-screen idea.
This cinema had lay
dormant for decades
after a previous
project, the Cine
Astoria, failed to
be completed. It was
completed and opened
as the Auditorio
Plaza in January
1977. Very large,
very tall, very
cold, and most of
the time, empty.
They even boasted an
elevator for the
upper level and
balcony. Excellent
presentation
quality! A shame
that only a few 70mm
prints were ever
screened. Today, the
theatre is closed.
Logan's Run
(USA / Blow-Up)
That's
Entertainment, Part
II (USA /
Blow-Up)
Return of
the Jedi
(USA / Blow-Up)
Blue
Thunder
(USA / Blow-Up)
The Star
Chamber
(USA / Blow-Up)
Portrait of
a Bourgeois in Black
(Italy / Blow-Up)
2001: A
Space Odyssey
(re-issue)
West Side
Story
(re-issue)
Gone with
the Wind
(re-issue)
The Wiz
(re-issue)
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Epilogue
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Mexico City was not
the only place in
the country to
experience the joy
of 70mm. Other
Mexican cities, such
as Monterrey and
Acapulco ran plenty
of large-format
presentations.
However, there is
some controversy
over which city in
Mexico was the first
to show movies in
70mm. I
believe Mexico City
was the first to
showcase 70mm
presentations.
However, film buffs
I have spoken to
suggest that
Mendoza, Veracruz
may have had a
cinema equipped for
70mm at an earlier
date than
the capital city. In
Minatitlan, Veracruz,
similar sentiment
has been given, with
claims of early-'60s
70mm presentations
of "King of
Kings" and
"South
Pacific".
In Acapulco,
Guererro, some have
claimed seeing "South
Pacific" in
70mm as early as
1960.
In 1971, I spent
some time in
Monterrey, Nuevo
Leon. I saw
"Airport"
there in 70mm at the
Cuauhtimoc 70. That
theatre's premiere
presentation was
"Paint Your
Wagon" the
year prior. In the
Cinerama Tame Rmo
70, I saw
"MacKenna's Gold",
and in the
Lmrico-Monterrey,
the 70mm re-issue
versions of
"Seven Brides for
Seven Brothers"
and "Julius
Caesar".
As readers may
realize, cataloging
the history of 70mm
exhibition can be a
never-ending
research project.
There is always more
information to
unearth and the
stories are never
complete. But for
now, I hope you have
enjoyed my look back
at a memorable time
in my life seeing
movies in Mexico
City. Considering I
have also resided in
Barcelona, Madrid
and London, I have
plenty of
information to
share. But that, my
large-format
friends, is a story
for another time.
Miguel Carrara
Mexico City,
September 2003
SPECIAL THANKS
William Kallay
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Updated
28-07-24 |
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