The Movies

The Movies is a cinema in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and the oldest still-operating movie theatre in the city. It is located at Haarlemmerdijk 161-163, on the edge of the Jordaan district. The cinema was founded in 1912 under the name Bioscoop Tavenu, and two years later it was renamed Cinema Hollandia. For decades it functioned as a neighbourhood cinema, showing films after their first run in the city's larger theatres. After World War II it concentrated on action films, and it survived the 1960s when many small neighbourhood cinemas closed. In 1971 the cinema was sold to Pieter Goedings, who initially wanted to rename it "Piccadilly" but ultimately chose the name The Movies. He shifted the programming from action films to higher-quality cinema while preserving the art-deco interior, which earned the venue the nickname "Klein Tuschinski." The business prospered, and over the following years Goedings acquired the adjacent buildings, creating three additional screens and adding a bar in the foyer. In 1989 Goedings sold the cinema to a group of investors including Roeland Kerbosch, who bought out the others a few months later and brought in Matthijs van Heijningen as co-owner. The Movies was expanded with a fourth screen and a restaurant. Van Heijningen left in 1997, and in October 2007 Kerbosch sold The Movies to Kadir Selçuk, who came from LantarenVenster and also owns the Filmhallen cinema. For many years the cinema ran late-night films on Friday and Saturday; for roughly eight years one screen showed A Clockwork Orange as a regular night film, a tradition that ended after the film could be legally screened in England. From 2021 the buildings housing The Movies were re-founded and the interior renovated. A crowdfunding campaign in the summer of 2021 raised 50,000 euros toward a renovation that cost about half a million euros. The reopening was initially planned for mid-2022 but took place on 13 March 2023; the restaurant was discontinued. The cinema is modest in size, with four screens, and programmes both blockbusters and arthouse films and everything in between. In September 2013 The Movies opened a second cinema in the historic centre of Dordrecht, where it serves as both film house and popular-film cinema, the only cinema in that city. The Movies participates in the Cineville cooperative and is a member of Europa Cinemas. A book, "Meer dan 110 jaar The Movies," tells the history of Amsterdam's oldest cinema, and the film "Samen naar The Movies" by directors Jan Willem Looze and Alex Rutten recounts the story of the cinema's 100-year history.

The Movies is a cinema in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and the oldest still-operating movie theatre in the city. It is located at Haarlemmerdijk 161-163, on the edge of the Jordaan district. The cinema was founded in 1912 under the name Bioscoop Tavenu, and two years later it was renamed Cinema Hollandia. Until World War II it functioned as a neighbourhood cinema: major films premiered in the city's large theatres and then continued to run in the small auditoriums of the many neighbourhood cinemas. After the war Cinema Hollandia concentrated mainly on action films. In the 1960s, when many neighbourhood cinemas went under, this cinema managed to survive. In 1971 the cinema was sold to Pieter Goedings. He initially wanted to rename it "Piccadilly" but ultimately chose the name The Movies. He changed the programme from action films to higher-quality films. The art-deco interior was preserved, earning the venue the nickname "Klein Tuschinski." Business went well, and after a few years the new owner was able to buy the adjacent buildings, creating three additional screens. A bar was also added in the foyer. In 1989 Goedings sold the cinema to a group of investors including Roeland Kerbosch. A few months later Kerbosch bought out the others and brought in Matthijs van Heijningen as co-owner. The Movies was expanded with a fourth screen and a restaurant. Matthijs van Heijningen left The Movies in 1997. Roeland Kerbosch sold The Movies in October 2007 to Kadir Selçuk, who came from LantarenVenster and also owns the Filmhallen cinema. For many years the cinema ran late-night films on Friday and Saturday nights; in one of the screens A Clockwork Orange ran as a regular night film for about eight years. The tradition ended after that film could be legally screened in England. The film "Samen naar The Movies" by directors Jan Willem Looze and Alex Rutten tells the story of the 100-year history of cinema The Movies. From 2021 the buildings housing The Movies were re-founded and the interior renovated. A crowdfunding campaign started in the summer of 2021 raised 50,000 euros. The entire renovation cost about half a million euros. Initially the reopening was to take place "mid-summer 2022." From 13 March 2023 The Movies was open again. The restaurant was discontinued. The cinema is modest in size, with four screens. It programmes both blockbusters and arthouse films and everything in between. In September 2013 The Movies opened a second cinema in the historic centre of Dordrecht. As the only cinema in Dordrecht, The Movies there fulfils the function of both film house and cinema for more popular films. The Movies participates in the Cineville cooperative and is a member of Europa Cinemas. A book, "Meer dan 110 jaar The Movies," is available and explores the history of Amsterdam's oldest cinema.

• Founded as Bioscoop Tavenu in Amsterdam.

• Renamed Cinema Hollandia.

• Sold to Pieter Goedings; renamed The Movies and programming shifted to quality films.

• Sold to investors including Roeland Kerbosch; expanded with a fourth screen and restaurant.

• Matthijs van Heijningen leaves The Movies.

• Roeland Kerbosch sells The Movies to Kadir Selçuk.

• Second cinema opens in Dordrecht.

• Crowdfunding campaign raises €50,000 for renovation.

• The Movies reopens after renovation; restaurant discontinued.

Amsterdam's oldest operating cinema, combining arthouse and mainstream programming in a historic art-deco venue; a member of Cineville and Europa Cinemas.

• Film screenings

  Programmes both blockbusters and arthouse films and everything in between.

• Cineville membership

  Unlimited cinema access through the Cineville cooperative.

• Staff Picks

  Handpicked and introduced by staff.

• Curated Classics / Monumental

  Classic films in the monumental main screening room, pairing two films by the same filmmaker each month.

• Gift vouchers

  Gift vouchers for a night out.

• Food and drinks

  Drinks and snacks during films.

1. 1The Movies official websitethemovies.nl
2. 2Histoires Parallèles – The Moviesthemovies.nl
3. 3The Movies – Wikidatawikidata.org
4. 4The Movies (Amsterdam) – Wikipedia (NL)nl.wikipedia.org