A Dutch Cinema Chain Will Use Hypnosis To Let Fans Watch Their Favorite Movie for the First Time Again
Every movie fan knows the feeling of wishing they could experience a favorite film for the very first time again. The suspense of not knowing what happens next, the jokes landing fresh and the twists hitting with full force can never quite be repeated once the story is familiar.
Theaters have been trying new ways to bring audiences back to the big screen. Dutch chain Pathé has its own Pathé Classics program, which returns beloved films to cinemas, with recent months featuring titles like ‘Catch Me If You Can’, ‘Titanic’, ‘A Star Is Born’, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘Birdman’.
Now the chain is going a step further. Pathé announced an experiment called Pathé REWIND, in which it will try to hypnotize 30 film lovers into forgetting their favorite movie so they can watch it again as if for the first time.
Participants were able to choose from 4 films: ‘Interstellar’, ‘The Matrix’, ‘La La Land’ and ‘Se7en’. The final pick will be decided by the group’s preferences. “Who wouldn’t want to see their favorite film again for the very first time?” asked Imke van Schaaijk, Pathé’s manager of brand, PR and communications, in the company’s press announcement. She added that with REWIND, the chain wants to take things even further than its classic re-releases.
The event takes place on Monday, November 9, at Pathé Buitenhof in The Hague. It’s free for the selected participants, though sign-ups closed on October 29. The 30 chosen film fans will each have a personal online session with hypnotist Victor Kraemer, a hypnotherapist with more than 30 years of experience. On the day of the screening, they’ll be hypnotized again just before the movie begins.
A Dutch theater chain is going to hypnotize 30 people to make them forget their favorite films & experience them again for the first time. After being hypnotized, they’ll watch 1 of 4 films: ‘Interstellar’, ‘The Matrix’, ‘La La Land’ or ‘Se7en’ (Source: https://t.co/Z4g8OtLStF) https://t.co/cpDGTF6FT4
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) November 1, 2026
After that, the selected film will play on the big screen. The goal is to see whether the excitement of a first viewing can truly be recreated. Not everyone is convinced that hypnosis can wipe away memories of a film someone knows well. Dutch Brief described the stunt as a playful marketing experiment rather than a scientific method, noting that nobody is claiming hypnosis can erase memories.
I still remember when they released this trailer for ‘The Matrix’ in 1999 it blew my mind https://t.co/CBcLvE7STK
— 🖤 Buy Physical Media 🖤 (@VHSDVDBLURAY4K) May 30, 2025
Even so, the idea has captured attention online. DiscussingFilm’s post about the event drew close to 1 million views, with fans debating which movie they’d most like to forget. And even if the hypnosis doesn’t work, participants will still get to watch a classic on the big screen. For many fans, that might be reward enough.
The shortlist offers something for every taste. ‘Interstellar’ and ‘The Matrix’ are mind-bending sci-fi, ‘La La Land’ brings romance and music, and ‘Se7en’ is a dark crime thriller famous for its shocking ending.
Each of these films depends heavily on the surprise of a first viewing, which makes them strong candidates for this kind of experiment. Pathé has been testing creative ideas to make moviegoing feel more special. Dutch Brief noted that REWIND follows a recent test of intermissions during very long movies.
The experiment also fits the chain’s broader effort to give audiences more than a regular screening. Whether or not the hypnosis works, it has already succeeded in getting people talking about going to the movies.
Which movie would you most like to forget so you could experience it for the first time again?
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