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The Bloor Cinema, at the corner of Bathurst and Bloor, was opened in 1941. Admission was 35 cents, with an extra dime purchasing admission to a smoking “loge”. The advertisements in the newspaper trumpeted the theatre’s “fireproof” status and noted all seats allowed full view of the screen.

Returning to the Bloor last night, after a 20 year absence, was a moving and exciting experience. It was once my favourite haunt, where I first watched Bunuel, Fellini, Kurosawa, Godard and Bergman.

I left after an unpleasant experience while watching Hitchcock’s “The Birds”. The crowd, all decked out in black, as conformist and intellectually dull as any suburban high school lunch crowd, took it upon themselves to laugh and ridicule the film. Of course aspects of the 1963 film appear dated, and possibly sexist, but to be unable to look past that and appreciate the work, generally considered an important part of the Hitchcock pantheon, struck me as appalling. I walked out and kept on walking…

The film “Labyrinth”, and my two decade long commitment to see the film, pulled me through the front door last night.

During my years of attending the Bloor, I never marvelled at its beauty. But after twenty years on a diet of square box theatres, where sticky neon signs represent creativity, the Bloor last night looked glorious. A large sprawling balcony, elegant architecture designed to both captivate and soothe the soul, plush curtains hiding the screen until show time, all spoke of a different time, and a pre-corporate ideology where money would be spent to captivate and amaze visitors. The geniuses of our time would certainly have constructed a cheaper and more utilitarian venue for the masses. The Bloor is now a place to be savoured and cherished, a potent slap at the “serviceability” and “functionality” features that mark the modern landscape.

The crowd was different. The young people of today seem different. I don’t sense the “bite” or desperate need to conform that, ironically enough, marked the Bloor crowd of the eighties ( the film studies ‘tards of the day would march around in “Conformity Sucks” t-shirts - everyone in the group wearing the same shirt, yeah…). Young people today appear more open minded and inclusive. When one person tried to pull that elitist, smarty-pants nonsense by hooting at David Bowies get-up, he was promptly told to shut up.

I loved Labyrinth. It was charming, funny, smart and, ultimately, exhilarating. You’ve probably seen it, so I don’t need to run through the plot; suffice to say it is a remarkably agile and clever allegory for the challenges a young person can expect to encounter on the road to adulthood.

It was worth the damn wait! A couple of lines were memorable, namely Jennifer Connelly’s characters admonition to David Bowie, as Jareth the Goblin King, “You have no power over me”, and the brilliant concluding lines, spoken to her well earned friends, ” I need you…every once in a while, for no reason at all, I need you”. Sob, sob, sob! The movie was soaked in brilliantly conceived sets and characters. It does not look dated, though one could definitely quibble with the synth rich eighties soundtrack pulsating through the film. Never mind, Bowie’s voice is deep and resonant as he warbles through songs written for the film.

A very special night.

And a medium popcorn (butter, as much as you want, is free) and a medium pop (what? 32 ounces?) are six bucks. Seven bucks admission. A steal and a chance to step into a more refined and human past.

I’ll let you know the next time the magic old building hosts The Birds and, together, we can reclaim the past…

GRID IRON…you can smell the pigskin in the air; the Sporting News team-by-team daily updates resumed this morning after a five month vacation…

…”I’ve got nothing new or original” - St Louis Rams head Coach Steve Spagnuolo inspiring the troops…

ICE…the Pittsburgh Penguins are considering making an offer to free agent Paul Kariya…