Edwards opened the Hutton Centre 8 on June 10,
1988. This complex
featured two large auditoriums with approximately 500 seats each,
70mm projection and THX Sound. The opening day attraction
included a
70mm presentation of “The Presidio.”
The theatre was elegant, in a late-1980s sort of way. The lobby was
large, with the two main screens on the left and right side as you
entered the complex. The marquee was stylized in an old-fashioned
curved shape and the lobby was well-lit. Upstairs, patrons could
take a peek at the main projection rooms, which carried Christie
projectors.
The main auditoriums were built as wide-bodies, much in the
tradition of late-1980s cinemas, placing the audience closer
to the screen. The front walls were covered with “waterfall”
curtains, making it seem like the screen was ultra-wide. The
theatres were plush and comfortable.
Edwards, at the time of the opening, proudly announced that each
auditorium had wall-to-wall screens, with the exit doors located
under the screens. This proved to be a major disappointment to
those few who wanted to see scope movies there, because those films
were cropped on the sides!
One of the pluses of the Hutton Centre was its sound system.
Although THX-certification has received some flack over the years,
this theatre sounded great in screen #1. In fact, the theatre
rarely showed 70mm prints, but did excel with some 35mm Dolby Stereo
prints. One of the best sounding presentations I’ve ever heard was
on the 1988 film, “U2: Rattle And Hum.” The sound was so clean, it
felt like you were at a live U2 concert.
By the mid-1990s, the theatre fell into serious disrepair. Lights
were burnt out, curtains torn and/or stained, ceiling tiles were
broken and the projection was subpar. This was once a first-rate
presentation theatre, and it was once certified for THX standards,
but it no longer carried them. The theatre also started attracting
“gang banger” types.
The theatre closed in the early-2000s and has been demolished.
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