19 April 2004

Outdoor cinema

Last night we went to a showing of American Beauty at an outdoor cinema

The venue was great, on the roof of the Wafi shopping centre (requires Flash) surrounded by rooftop gardens, pools and bars. Wafi is a strangely fake and tacky place, all entrances are lined with Egyptian sculptures and pillars with hieroglyphic writings (all genuine fake, naturally). This gives an impression of very expensive kitsch, done with conviction.

The weather was balmy (of course), and the atmosphere relaxed. There was a stall selling popcorn and hot dogs, and the floor was strewn with huge beanbags for seating. All very civilised. There was even a waiter service.

Unfortunately movies are censored in dubai (as they are in the rest of the Gulf). Strangely the only editing we could see was for nudity, not for violence or bad language. This meant that the beautiful scenes with the rose petals were cut, but all the swearing was left in. This is going to take some getting used to.

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