I love movies.  I love watching them.  I love their quotable lines, their soundtracks… I love pretty much everything about a good movie.  Living in Germany, I don’t get to see them as much as I used to.  My command of the language isn’t that great, so watching an entire movie in German is an exercise in frustration.

The answer to this problem, for any native English speaker, is the OV movie.  OV is short for Original Version.  Sometimes it’s listed as OF, or Originalfassung.  OV movies are presented in their original language, and more often than not, that original language is English.    The Cinemaxx theater closest to my apartment plays one OV movie every Monday night- just one.  Lately, they’ve also been adding an occasional very late Thursday night OV movie as well.  This gives me a good chance at seeing most of the megablockbusters – The Hobbit, The Avengers, and so forth. This isn’t enough showings for every movie that comes out, so there are some movies that never play here in English.  I’m still bummed that I haven’t seen the last Muppet movie in English.  I did watch it German- I could follow the storyline without any problems, but I missed a lot of good verbal jokes.

Nuremberg has a better theater, though.  I first heard of the Cinecittà when simulcast showings were being announced for The Day Of The Doctor and I was looking for a theater to see the film.  I was able to see that in Regensburg after all, so my first visit to the Cinecittà in person was in mid-December, when I went to see Frozen.  I’m a convert, and I’m sure I’ll be back there again.

The entryway looks like a normal theater with just a few screens.  However, most of the complex is built underground.  It’s impossible to see from the surface just how large the theater is-  there are about 22 screens.  Some are small, but the complex includes 3D projection, IMAX-sized screens, and so-called 4D theaters where the seats move for an immersive movie experience.  Best of all, they play many OV movies, and not just on one day of the week.

Walking through the complex underneath the main lobby area, there are snack bars, restaurants, and small art displays.

This being Nuremberg, there’s a display of Albrecht Dürer art, including his famous Hare.

I didn’t realize just how enormous this theater complex truly is until I noticed this view.  By the time I took this picture, I had already gone down a sloped ramp to a lower level, and this is a view looking downward at the levels still beneath me.

What’s the largest theater you’ve ever been to?