Movie Towne cinemas reopen for Mortal Kombat movie

File photo of patrons at MovieTowne, Port of Spain, box office. -
File photo of patrons at MovieTowne, Port of Spain, box office. -

MovieTowne owner Derek Chin has decided to reopen its cinemas after they were closed on Wednesday, minutes after the Ministry of Health announced the return of some covid19 restrictions.

The rollback saw a ban on public gatherings of groups over five, access to beaches, and in-house dining in bars, casinos, restaurants and cinemas for three weeks. These changes were a response to the steady increase in covid19 cases over the last seven days.

In a post on its Facebook page announcing the reopening of its cinemas, Movie Towne said the sale of food is prohibited until the restrictions are lifted.

Chin first said on Wednesday, “The removal of food concessions would be uneconomical for the cinema to remain open,” but with the release of martial arts fantasy film Mortal Kombat, there may be an increase in sales in the coming days.

“Mortal Kombat has some popularity and we decided to give it a shot and reopen. But the reopening isn’t concrete. We are doing this to see what happens, to see if we do get the support or if people won’t come because they can’t get the full experience of having popcorn and drink with the movie.”

Depending on the response over the next few days Movie Towne will announce whether or not it will remain open during the 21-day lockdown.

Chin told Newsday on Friday that during the first lockdown, fewer people came to the cinema because of restrictions on the consumption and sale of food in the theatre. He said, “It takes away from the experience and that isn’t good.”

He also pleaded with the public to ignore the urge to sneak in food and drinks.

He has plans to write to Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh for clarification.

“I can’t see how eating popcorn and having your drink in a controlled environment is going to add any detriment to the covid19 spread. Cinemas have been opened with restaurants for five months and it shows the daily covid19 numbers have been the lowest, averaging four to five per day something. That’s facts.”

He said the only purpose restrictions on in-house dining will serve is increasing the unemployment rate and driving a stake further in the heart of the economy.

Chin argued that cinemas do not qualify as institutions that provide 'in-house dining" and the government must be clear on the specifics of the changes to the Public Health Ordinance.

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