Jakarta - City's Oldest Movie Theaters

Old movie theaters "Grand Keramat"

Jakarta : Going to the movies is one of our favorite pastimes here in Jakarta, just like in any other metropolis around the world. So much so that the words “21” and “Blitz,” the familiar names of Jakarta’s two biggest movie theater chains, have become synonymous with the word “cinema.” Which makes me wonder: How surprised would Jakarta’s hip teens and young adults be if they found out that there were still other movie theaters existing in the capital outside of those two chains?

I’m talking about the only two remaining and fully operational old movie theaters in Jakarta: the Mulia Agung and the Grand Keramat. Both located in the the Senen intersection right across from the Senen Atrium. Passing by, you will see big movie posters displayed there with unfamiliar titles such as “Dukun A.S. Misteri Kebun Tebu” (“American Shaman Mystery in the Sugarcane Plantation”).

“But don’t be fooled by the posters — they won’t change anytime soon, since they’re just a teaser to raise people’s interest to come here,” said Darmin, a staff member at Grand Keramat. “We show different films each week, depending on the manager’s choice.”

Until the 1990s, Jakarta had a thriving movie theater industry with hundreds of youths filling up local theaters eager to watch the new movies from legendary comedy troupe Warkop DKI, or the latest romantic drama. Back then there were theaters such as Rivoli, the Djaja theater in Jatinegara and the Orion theater that met its end during the large riots in Jakarta 1998 when Glodok was burned to the ground. There was also the Cempaka Theater, which was closed along with Cempaka Putih Market in 2009, and lastly the Benhil Theater, which closed in April 2010.

Today, only Mulia Agung and Grand Keramat remain. Both theaters are run by the same family business, housed in a single building.

The Mulia Agung and the Grand Keramat

Grand Keramat hosts two theaters on the ground floor, while Mulia Agung has three more one floor up. Built in the 1920s, the building is certainly looking worse for wear. Most of the cement walls are cracked and the floors are caked with dust, since the lobby is exposed to the traffic outside.

But the ticket prices here may very well be the cheapest in town, at only Rp 5,000 (50 cents) in Grand Keramat every day of the week, while Mulia Agung charges Rp 6,000 Monday to Wednesday and Rp 8,000 from Thursday to Sunday. The price differs because Mulia Agung is comparatively cleaner and more convenient, Darmin explained.

There are also two remaining coin-activated arcade games, or what the previous generation liked to call “ding-dong.” These machines are so old I doubt today’s teenagers would even remember them.

Touring through the dusty corridors, it began to feel like a museum until Darmin started shouting “One!” and “Three!” letting visitors know the movies were about to start in those theaters.

Moving into the theater with the rest, I noticed there were no lights on the floor to guide me down the dark aisles. Viewers here can choose to sit wherever they like, so long as they have a ticket. And from looking at the other patrons, it seemed all other kinds of things were permitted there that you couldn’t do elsewhere, like putting your feet up on the seats, or lighting a cigarette.

As for the movies, they are generally for mature audiences only, and are often old titles. Most of the film reels flicker and have dark spots and breaking audio quality.

“The movies are loaned to us by various production houses and Dinas Perfilman [the Indonesian Movie Agency],” Darmin said.

But the biggest problem these two old cinemas face is the negative image that many people in Jakarta associate them with. Through rumors, many people label these two theaters as little more than a front for prostitution. The fact is that yes, there are people taking advantage of this situation to offer their “services.” But these cinemas are far from the dark and dangerous places filled with criminals that some people assume them to be.

In the end, they are just like any other family business. You may even see the children of the owners running around and sometimes even helping out in the ticketing booth.

Like getting into a time machine, Mulia Agung and Grand Keramat hold a lot of good memories for those who grew up in their dark theaters.

“Sure, it brings back old memories,” said Beni, who has been a customer at Grand Keramat for 20 years. “It reminds me of my first date with my wife.”

Jakarta Globe