Settling into a comfortable chair with a bucket of popcorn and a choc-top (and, at some cinemas, a glass of wine) as the lights go down and a giant screen lights up with a story from somewhere else in the world is one of the great pleasures of life. If you're stuck at home, though, the closest thing you'll get is pulling down the blinds and streaming films into your living room.
Thankfully, several independent Sydney cinemas have set up home-streaming services, giving us access to everything from new releases to golden-age Hollywood blockbusters and film festival classics. BYO choc-top and microwave popcorn.
Golden Age Cinema & Bar
The ambience of this subterranean theatrette is unbeatable – but the selection of films available on its streaming platform, Movie Night by Golden Age Cinema, is worth tackling at home anyways. Watch new releases, such as the Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci-starring Supernova; Academy Award-winning charmer Minari; and critically acclaimed dark comedy Another Round. There’s also a great selection of fashion docos, food-focused features, Australian classics and cult international films such as Breathless and Tampopo. And recreate the mood of Golden Age by getting one (or a trio) of its cocktails – including a Yuzu Margarita and a Popcorn Old Fashioned – delivered; each double-serve bottle comes with a free movie rental.
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SIGN UPThe Ritz
This gorgeous Randwick theatre is one of the only surviving art deco cinemas left in Sydney. But it doesn’t rest on its laurels – its regular program is heaving with new blockbusters, Aussie flicks and indie hits. And it’s continuing that legacy with streaming platform Ritz at Home. Tune in for recent films such as In the Heights, Space Jam: A New Legacy and The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard; fresh flicks are added every Thursday, just like a regular theatre. If you’re stuck for what to watch, the cinema’s knowledgeable staff have compiled their favourites, which include everything from new Aussie films to cult horror movies and quirky comedies. There’s also a big selection of Jewish and Israeli films from the Jewish International Film Festival, and a lockdown movie sale, with films such as Animal Kingdom, Nightcrawler and Parasite available to stream for just $4.99.
Palace Cinemas – Central, Norton Street, Verona and The Chauvel
From award winners (Blue Valentine, Leviathan and Gasland) to modern French favourites (Elles, The Midwife) and Italian belters (The Great Beauty, Perfect Strangers), there’s a great selection of films on Palace’s streaming service that’ll scratch your independent-cinema itch. You can both buy ($14.99) and rent ($5.99) from this platform.
Dendy Cinemas – Newtown
Dendy's home-streaming platform is just the ticket if you can't get to the Newtown cinema for house-made choc-tops and some sneaky pre-movie Thai. There’s a range of top flicks available, including Gunpowder Milkshake, The Forever Purge and In the Heights. There are also recent hits – Promising Young Woman, A Quiet Place Part II and Girls Can’t Surf – older and newer festival favourites such as Parasite, For Sama and Heartbeats, and a host of Asian and Asian-diaspora films including Crazy Rich Asians, Minari and The Farewell.
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