Back in the day, Erich Honecker and other high-rank GDR politicians enjoyed film premieres at Kino International. Even today, more than 25 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the spirit of 1960s East Germany is still present. Until today, a big hand-painted billboard advertises the main film attraction at the front of the big block construction. Its glass façade gives the Brutalist building an elegant appearance. You might also want to walk around the building to look at the relief, depicting scenes right out of a Socialist utopia.

Kino International shows many kinds of movies, but there is a tendency towards arthouse productions. International movies are often shown in their original language with subtitles (look for ‘OmU’ in the program). On Mondays, or Mongays, as they call them, 22:00, Kino International offers a special screening of queer movies.

After buying your ticket, you cross the big entrance hall with its honeycombed ceiling, adorned with over a hundred lights. The stairs lead up to the panorama bar; you might want to get a drink or a snack beneath the shine of its pearl chandeliers. Kino international doesn’t sell popcorn, but I really like the mixed boxes from the local licorice shop Kadó (see Sharon’s article on Kadó). Now enter the auditorium, sit down, take a last look at the sequined white curtains until they open up, and get carried away by your movie of choice.