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The anti-blockbuster brigade: Altrincham Film Club returns with a night at the movies unlike any other

The Cinnamon Club is best known for its jazz, blues and dance – but every other month it’s also home to the Altrincham Film Club.

The Cinnamon Club is best known for its jazz, blues and dance – but every other month it’s also home to the Altrincham Film Club.

This not-for-profit club has the simple aim to provide a haven for quality movies that “aren’t teenager-aimed blockbusters and don’t require 3-D specs”.

After showing the much-garlanded Boyhood in January, it returns on Thursday night with Two Days, One Night, a superb small-town drama from acclaimed Belgian film-makers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne.

One of the Guardian’s top 10 films of 2014, it centres on a masterful performance from Marion Cotillard, one that earned her a best actress Oscar nomination last month.

Below: The Cinnamon Club in Bowdon, home to Altrincham Film Club

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The original intention of the film club – which has been running for three years – was to “reclaim the seats”.

“The idea was that you could go to the cinema, watch an adult film that wasn’t a big blockbuster and didn’t have teenagers throwing popcorn at the back, and but still have comfy seats,” explains organiser Jonathan Swinton (on the right in the top picture).

For £20 a time, a projectionist at the old Apollo cinema would give the club access to a screen to watch whatever teenager-free film they desired.

That arrangement came to an abrupt end when Vue took over the running of the cinema and promptly outsourced all projecting to London.

It was a blessing in disguise. “We went up to the Cinnamon Club and quickly realised it’s what we should have done all along,” says Swinton. “It wasn’t really about how comfy the seats were – the thing that people liked about it was that it was social.

“The Cinnamon Club is fantastic – it has a bar at the back so you can get drinks during the film, and you can meet people. It’s been a really good fit ever since.”

Below: The trailer for Thursday’s main film

Programming is in the qualified hands of Mark Elliott (also pictured), a Bafta-nominated film editor who has recently worked on That Day We Sang and Channel 4’s Cucumber.

His choice for Thursday revolves around an intriguing question, especially in the days of austerity: would you take a pay cut to save a colleague’s job?

“The reason I think it’s a fit for the film club is that it doesn’t need a great deal of translation to think about what you would do in that situation,” says Elliott. “Everybody would say they would do the right thing, but actually going to somebody and saying ‘can you give up 1,000 euros so I can stay in my job’, is actually quite a hard conversation to have.”

As ever, those who fill the room – and there are typically around 40-50 each viewing – can expect an old-fashioned movie experience, starting with a short film.

Thursday’s short, preceding the main feature, is the Oscar-nominated and Bafta-winning The Bigger Picture. It’s directed by Daisy Jacobs, who has agreed to the showing in return for a contribution to the crowdfunding campaign for her next piece of work.

It’ll all add up to a night at the movies that’s almost impossible to find anywhere else. “People who come like the fact that it’s venue where they can get themselves a drink, sit down at a table with a friend, watch a short film, go and get a refill, and then watch the main feature,” explains Elliott.

“And when that’s finished, the bar stays open long after the credits have rolled. That just doesn’t happen at the movies.”

For more details about Altrincham Film Club, visit here.

Below: The trailer for Thursday’s short film, The Bigger Picture

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