…your pants!
*contains no major spoilers*
Dear mummy, it’s not everyday you get chased by zombies (I’m not sure what they are, but I think they are scary!) You and daddy went to Secret Cinema’s performance of the classic horror film 28 Days Later by Danny Boyle. You are a MASSIVE horror film fan, so when this event popped up on your news feed you couldn’t resist. You had to go.
So what is Secret Cinema? Well the clue is in the name, it’s a live cinema experience which is usually in a secret location and participants keep it under wraps! It’s run by a British events company combining film screenings with interactive performances in purpose-built sets.
It cost a pretty penny though £40 per person for a fully immersive cinema trip which included a theatre type performance of this zombie film acted out right in front of your eyes and a full cinema showing afterwards. All photos included in this post were taken before and after the event because you weren’t allowed phones inside. Secret Cinema is a secret remember. Shhhhhhh.
All you can tell me is that you did a lot of running away from Zombies, it wasn’t for the faint hearted, the attention to detail in the lead up to the event was great. With a fake NSH hospital being set up to contain the virus in London, a fake RBC news channel streaming updates from the Rage Vaccination centre at a fake hospital called St Thomas, somewhere in London. You can’t quite remember the exact details 😉 A secret website portal and public propaganda videos being posted on social media all led up to the excitement of the day.
A couple of weeks beforehand my folks purchased a biohazard/medi kit, which was a yellow bag that contained items of clothing they had to wear (medical scrubs) for the event and props to help them through the day. There were two performances scheduled, one in the afternoon and one in the evening. You opted for the afternoon as Daddy was a wuss and was too scared to go in the dark! 😉
As soon as you arrived Secret Cinema staff were in character and it was intense with military and medics on site. It was a perfect location to create a zombie apocalyptic atmosphere and set the scene for the next 4 hours. The set design was immense and the attention to detail (if you looked hard enough, when you weren’t being chased by zombies) was fantastic!
Once inside you can’t remember much having been dosed up with a drowsy vaccination 😉 Strobe and smoke was the order of the day, blood rained down on you and daddy….and there were lots of screams.
Was it true to the film? Yes and no.. But then you are a massive Danny Boyle fan. Some parts were done extremely well from 28 days later (Hannah was very good) and got the adrenaline racing and some parts left you feeling deflated. They could have done more…more zombies, more frights and more blood – but that’s just my folks high expectations of Secret Cinema.
My Daddy went to the Star Wars Secret Cinema event last year and said it wasn’t a patch on that event – but then Star Wars is a cult film with a loyal fan base that are willing to dress up and fully immerse themselves into the characters and roles.
Some of the people who turned up to 28 Days Later weren’t in costumes (recommend hospital scrubs) A lot of the fun my folks had was travelling to and from the venue in their costumes! Some weren’t immersing themselves in the experience sadly, taking their phones out and chatting loudly during the movie screening is a major NO-NO!! The military personal/staff could have been a bit more stern with these guys. The secret cinema experience should finish once you have walked off the site.
Would we recommend a Secret Cinema performance and screening? Hell yes! Just as long as it’s a film you love, you’ll have a great time. My folks did and it was a cool experience.
Please do another sci-fi or horror soon!!!
Secret Cinema’s 28 Days Later is on until May 29, 2016 and tickets are still available. Guess what? They are also putting on a Dirty Dancing adaptation this year too!
But Shhhhhhh keep it a secret 😉
Love Bella and her folks!
