The London Film Museum

With my goal of working in the film industry, I had been very keen on visiting the London Film Museum during my stay in London.  The museum is located right across from the London Eye on the south bank of the Thames River.  Items in the museum ranged from movie memorabilia to interactive activities focusing on recent hit films to some from a while back. 

One of the main exhibits that I spent a good amount of time in was the Harry Potter exhibit.  The movie had an entire large circular room dedicated to the film series.  Along the walls were different activities for visitors to participate in from Harry Potter card games to Harry Potter video games.  One activity that I took part in was the photo booth, which came free with the ticket to the museum.  In front of a green screen, I chose a wizards cloak and then stood upon a wooden broomstick.  After the photographer took a few shots, I got off and chose my favorite shot.  The one I chose had myself reaching out for a snitch as I was flying through the Hogwarts Quidditch field.  In the center of the exhibit, there were cloaks from each of the three main characters and also two broomsticks and a few textbooks from the third movie.

Another exhibit that I really enjoyed was the Charlie Chaplain exhibit.  There were many scripts and memorabilia from his films and even a small theater where visitors could view some excerpts from his films.  I haven’t seen very many of his films, but I was intrigued to see things from the film industry’s early beginnings. 

Other notable items in the museum included costumes and memorabilia from the Batman Begins, Superman II and the Bourne Identity movies.  There also was a room that had some of the costumes from the new Conan movie, which was exciting.  The trailer was playing on the wall with the extravagant costumes surrounding the screen.  This movie has not even gone to theaters yet, so seeing the costumes and such made me want to see the film even more.

Overall, the museum was a very great experience.  With my passion for film, it is always nice to find great exhibits such as the London Film Museum.

--John Barr