The Lighthouse Cinema

When I was a student at Trinity College, Dublin, in the early ’90s I ofted skipped out for an afternoon to the Lighthouse cinema on Abbey Street, which at the time was the only cinema in Dublin which specialised in arthouse/independent/foreign films. Sadly the Lighthouse closed about a decade ago but it has recently reopened in new premises in Smithfield Plaza, Dublin, and I visited yesterday afternoon to see the new film by director Tom Kalin, SAVAGE GRACE.

I’m a total cinema buff and go the movies far more often than is healthy for me and I know most of the Dublin screens quite well and know where to see and where not to see movies. (There’s one cinema, for example, which has beautiful screens but the sound from the movies playing around it seeps into the auditorium which is really annoying.) But I have to say I don’t think I’ve ever been in a cinema anywhere in the world more extraordinary than the new Lighthouse. Resembling an art gallery or late night jazz venue more than a traditional cinema it’s an absolutely stunning venue with bright open spaces to mill around before the movie, and multi-coloured seats in the theatres themselves. The sound and screens themselves are excellent.

It’s great to have this 4 screen cinema back in Dublin but congrats to all involved for this most innovative design in Dublin cinema. If you’re in Dublin, you should visit it. Their website is here.