Agetsuchi Cinema Museum is a Hands-on Museum of Japanese Retro that has been renovated from Agetsuchi Cinema, a movie theater that closed in 2008.

Agetsuchi Cinema opened as Matsumoto Denkikan around 1917 (Taisho 6) and was a beloved movie theater in the local area for about 90 years, undergoing several name changes.

However, due to changes in the surrounding environment and the aging of the building, it closed in 2008. In 2016, it was registered as a Matsumoto City Modern Heritage Site as a structure that conveys the history of the modern town and contributes to improving the town’s appeal.

Through a business partnership between the Agetsuchi Shopping District Promotion
Association, the Taisho Roman Town Development Council, and Large Hill Inc. , Agetsuchi Cinema has been renovated while leaving the building intact, and has now been reborn as the Agetsuchi Cinema Museum.

The museum offer 4 new projects and services. There will be permanent events that will allow foreign tourists visiting Matsumoto Castle and the castle town to experience Japanese retro style and deepen their understanding of Japanese culture and customs.

From the about 7,000 movie posters in the collection of Agetsuchi Cinema, we have carefully selected those that will evoke nostalgia for the past and will display them with introductory comments. In addition, retro Japanese documentary photos of Matsumoto Castle and the castle town will be displayed as posters that compare the present with the past. Photography is permitted freely inside the museum. You can enjoy taking selfie photo in rare places that you don’t usually have a chance to visit, such as the ticket booth and projection room of the old movie theater, with old townscape photos and old movie posters as a background.

We provide cosplay costumes from the Taisho period of Japan that can be put on and taken off in just 2 minutes. Feel free to take retro Japanese selfies with the quaint streets and Matsumoto Castle in the background. We will also introduce a map of photo spots in the castle town inside the building.

Retro postcards introduce Japan’s ancient culture and customs with historical photographs and explanations. The 2D barcode on each card will take you to a website that provides more detailed information about Japanese Retro culture, and you can share the information with your friends on social media. In addition, we will be selling a variety of original goods, including original Agetsuchi Retro badges.

Solve puzzles and riddles to get original goods! In addition to the Agetsuchi Cinema Museum, the “Sudoku Puzzle Rally in Agetsuchi Shopping Street” will be opening on Monday, July 20, 2024. You can enjoy pencil puzzle Sudoku practice puzzles for free on your smartphone. All Sudoku puzzles are original puzzles created by Nikoli, specialized puzzle publisher. Both beginners and puzzle lovers can enjoy it.

*Sudoku and Pencil Puzzle are registered trademarks of Nikoli Co., Ltd.