Cabbies asked to take on the Edinburgh job
What a waste.....
Edinburgh Evening News
Mon 18 Aug 2003
The new Odeon Cinema on Morrison Street are giving taxi drivers free tickets so they can spread the word.
IT was the British crime caper famous for its spectacular Mini Cooper car chase around the streets of Turin.
Film fans are currently waiting to see what Hollywood has produced with a remake of The Italian Job.
Now bosses at Edinburgh’s newest cinema have asked 300 city taxi drivers to a sneak preview of the action film in a bid to spread the word about the complex.
The cabbies will be given a chance to tour the new Odeon, on Lothian Road, two days before the red carpet is rolled out for the city’s VIPs. Calendar Girls, the film about the Women’s Institute branch which put together a members’ pin-up calendar, will mark the official unveiling of the cinema on September 4.
But Odeon bosses announced today that 300 tickets are to be given away to the city’s taxi firms for two screenings of The Italian Job, starring Mark Wahlberg, Charlize Theron, Edward Norton and Donald Sutherland.
Odeon chiefs are replacing their famous South Clerk Street cinema, which is due to close on August 30, with the four-screen "arthouse" complex on Lothian Road, which will show a mixture of new releases and classics.
Around £2.6 million has been spent by Odeon on the site, which housed the ABC Cinema until it closed some years ago.
A spokeswoman for the company said: "The Italian Job has obviously got a lot of focus on driving and car chases and we thought it would be an ideal film for cabbies to come and see at a private screening.
"We also thought they’d be the perfect people to spread the word, as we’re sure they’ll let their passengers know if they’ve enjoyed the experience and spread the word about the new cinema.
"We’re putting on two screenings, one in the afternoon and one in the evening, to ensure drivers working shifts don’t miss out and we’re sending tickets to all the major cab companies in Edinburgh. It’s the first time we’ve done anything like this."
Cinema manager Kim Thorne added: "We want the cab drivers to be talking about the new cinema when it opens and we think this is a great way of doing that. We’ve already written to the cab companies to let them know about it and have had a great response."
Taxi drivers today said they thought the move was a good was to publicise the movie.
Jim Taylor, secretary of the CabForce lobby group for the taxi trade, said: "It’s the first I’ve heard of anything like this and I’m quite surprised nothing similar has been done before with a new venture like this."
Jim McDonald, vice-chairman of Central Taxis, said: "I’m not sure how many drivers will remember the original version of the film. It’ll depend on their age. But it’s a very good idea, as if they enjoy themselves they’re likely to encourage other people to go to there as well."
Steve Cardownie, the city’s festivals and events chief, added: "It makes perfect sense to do something like this as I’ve yet to meet a taxi driver who doesn’t have an opinion on everything. Hopefully this company will be doing the same thing on a regular basis, as the cabbies are effectively ambassadors for the city and it makes sense to get them involved."
In the original film Michael Caine plays a crook who inherits from a dead pal the plan for a heist to land a haul of $4 million in gold ingots from a security van in Turin.
For the robbery and getaway to succeed he must turn the Turin traffic into a colossal, chaotic tangle.
Earlier this month it emerged that the Odeon had created a full-time "film fanatic" job at the new cinema. Neill Sage, 21, will greet customers and offer his expertise on the latest releases.
The new cinema will open to the public on September 5.
