Inside church influence that saw death of movie theatres in Nakuru

In the 90's churches in Nakuru were a force to reckon with. So powerful was their influence that they led to the closure of cinema theatres.

These include the Odeon Cinema Hall, Eros Cinema Hall- now JCC church, and Empress Cinema Hall- now Happy Church in Shabab.

While Mtaa Wangu had previously covered the story of this shift, we wanted to explore the deeper reasons behind the closures and why the cinemas never made a comeback.

We spoke to long-time residents who shared their accounts of the cinemas, their preferences, and how, despite their love for them, one of them joined the campaign to have them shut down.

“The first movie I watched was The Ten Commandments in the late 60s when I was 15, at Odeon Cinema hall,” recalls Musa Githinji, a businessman in Nakuru.

Then, he says it only cost them Sh. 3.50 for the regular seats, which were front row seats, and the upstairs section was the VIP sect that charged Sh. 7.

Although he watched an English movie, the Odeon cinema hall was popularly known for Indian movies. It was his most preferred of the three cinema halls, which he maintains as being the most organized.

“In 1987, when I got married, this same cinema was our honeymoon getaway,” he says with a smile, having opened his business just right outside it, near the former payment window.

Moses Desia, another businessman in Nakuru, also fondly remembers the cinemas. He credits his mother for introducing him to the world of movies.

“In the 1980s, when I’d done well in school, as a form of reward, my mum would bring me here,” he gestures at the Eros Cinema hall where we met him. “Although I preferred Odeon as that’s where I was initially introduced.”

At Eros Cinema Hall, the first few seats cost Sh. 5, and the mid-section Sh. 10, and the VIP section upstairs cost Sh. 20.

“The cinemas would show movies at three different times, starting at 2 p.m. and running until midnight," Desia says. "Each cinema had its specialty: Odeon was known for Indian movies, Empress was famous for Karate films, and Eros offered a mix of everything.”

However, by the late 1980s and early 1990s, churches in Nakuru began to rally against the cinemas.

“The youth were going astray, as some adult films were being shown at the theatres,” says Desia. “There were many vices the church condemned, and they felt it was time to shut down the cinemas and bring people back to the church.”

According to him, youth had also started stealing money just to watch movies. Some indulged in excessive alcohol drinking, having watched this behaviour in cinemas.

The churches organized prayer walks and crusades with three main goals: to ban the cinemas, eliminate masonic groups, and shut down the discos, which Desia himself enjoyed at the time.

“Despite my love for dancing, I was part of the movement that sought change,” he admits.

“We’d march from the town centre to the estates, preaching the gospel. Back then, Kanu Street had the most drinking joints, and we believe the revival changed a lot of things. One by one, the cinemas started shutting down, even though their popularity had already been waning,” recalls Desia.

Now, decades later, Eros Cinema Hall has retained about 80 percent of its original structure, including the seats and architectural design. Odeon Cinema, on the other hand, has had its seats removed, and it’s been years since a service was held there.

Desia and Githinji maintain that it cannot be demolished as it is a major landmark in the city.

While the cinemas may have faded into history, sisi kama Gen Z wa Nakuru are petitioning for their return.

We want them back, and we promise this time, we shall behave.