Patricia has sparkling eyes. “I just stopped crying,” she admits, popcorn in hand. “I have a lot of memories here since I was a kid.” She did not want to miss the last screening at the Odeon cinema with her husband and children: “Let’s watch Indiana Jones, the saga we grew up with.” Luisella and Giancarlo came to say hello.
“What a pity,” they comment, “that for business Milan is losing a pearl, one of the most beautiful historic cinemas in Europe. Second only to the Tuschinsky Theater in Amsterdam, which is a cultural and tourist attraction where excursions are also organized“.
However, here a shopping center will grow on the site of The Space Odeoneven if the manager said in a statement that he “does not rule out” the possibility of moving some of the smaller rooms “to the same location”. Built in 1929for almost a century of life, a historic Art Deco cinema saw world stars defile along the red carpetsuch as Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, most recently Lady Gaga and Timothée Chalamet. And it has welcomed several generations of Milanese, also thanks to its ten halls, which, with 2,250 seats, have made it the largest multiplex in the city. Young people and adults, many came yesterday for the last performance before closing..
“Here we saw our first film together twenty years ago: Interview with the Vampire,” Barbara and Maurizio say, “the last we chose was Mission Impossible, again with Tom Cruise. Today is a sad day“. Brian and Noemi choose Barbie: “But only because she is on stage in a large hall,” they explain, “and we wanted to see her again: we have been coming as soon as we can, for a month now. For us, the best thing to do in Milan in our spare time has always been to come to the city center and watch a movie at the Odeon.
Alessandra is also here for Barbie. “I’m watching it for the second time: it’s a film that made me think and talks about feminism,” she says. film student “I will miss this place“. As for Alberto, “Give my regards to an old friend,” he says, “the first time was with Grease, then I also saw other big films, such as Blade Runner and all Indiana Jones, including the one what’s in theaters now. Some come just to take photos and videos, post them on social networks. and keep as a keepsake. From now on, they are the only ones left. Memories.