“Somebody get these beggars out of here!”
Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is proving to be a particularly strong draw at the Cinema City Flora multiplex in Prague, where the film is being presented in the rare IMAX 70mm format. With screenings continuing to attract substantial audiences more than a month after its July release, the cinema has responded by increasing the price of tickets for the premium-format presentation.
The price for an adult ticket booked online has risen from CZK 449 to CZK 599, representing a 33 percent increase. Cinema City says the increase applies specifically to the limited IMAX 70mm engagement and does not represent a broader ticket-price increase across its IMAX screenings.
The Prague presentation has also become a destination for international filmgoers. Cinema City previously confirmed that The Odyssey has attracted visitors from abroad, with IMAX 70mm screenings selling out weeks in advance. The format is available at only a small number of cinemas in Europe, making Prague one of the few locations where audiences can see Nolan’s latest film in its original large-format film presentation.
Higher prices reflect specialized projection costs
Cinema City spokeswoman Denisa Šandová told Seznam Zprávy that the higher price reflects the costs associated with operating the specialized projection equipment, including cooling and maintenance. The chain also extended the Prague IMAX 70mm engagement beyond its originally scheduled run because of the unusually strong demand.
Cinema City emphasized that the CZK 599 price applies only to the limited The Odyssey presentation in IMAX 70mm. Other screenings of the film, including standard 2D presentations, remain available at the standard prices, and the chain said there has been no general increase in admission prices as a result.
The premium also reflects the technical difference between IMAX 70mm and digital IMAX. Cinema City describes the format as using a physical 70mm film print and specialized projectors, producing a high-resolution image with the characteristic texture of film. The Flora auditorium is currently the only cinema in the Czech Republic, and one of only three in the EU, capable of presenting IMAX 70mm.
The scale of the presentation is significant. Cinema City says its analog IMAX screen measures 25 by 20 meters, making it the largest screen of its kind in the Czech Republic. The theater originally opened in 2003 and remains the country’s only cinema with an IMAX auditorium capable of this film-based presentation.
Prague becomes a destination for Nolan’s 70mm epic
The scarcity of suitable theaters has helped turn the Flora screening into a regional attraction. The European Union has only three cinemas capable of projecting the film in IMAX 70mm: Cinema City Flora, Pathé Odysseum in Montpellier, France, and Kinepolis Brussels in Belgium.
Ticket prices elsewhere demonstrate how the format has become a premium cinema experience. IMAX 70mm admission in Montpellier was EUR 29.20 (roughly CZK 705), while Brussels prices were EUR 31 (CZK 750). The Prague price, even after the increase, remains the cheapest in the EU.
The demand for the film extends beyond the premium-format audience. The Odyssey has now grossed CZK 120 million at the Czech box office, with nearly 500,000 admissions, and remains a top draw with only the record-setting Spider-Man: Brand New Day topping it over the last two weekends. Its IMAX 70mm run in Prague could extend through December.
The response to The Odyssey illustrates the continuing appeal of physical film presentation at a time when most theatrical exhibition has shifted to digital projection. Nolan’s decision to make extensive use of large-format film has created demand that extends beyond the movie itself, with audiences willing to travel, and pay a premium, for access to one of Europe’s few venues capable of presenting it in IMAX 70mm.
