Museo Nazionale Del Cinema

This has got to be one of the coolest museums I've ever been to! The National Museum of Cinema in Turin is really a must-see (especially if you are traveling with kids!). The museum itself is located inside of one of Torino's landmarks, the Mole Antonelliana, and film buffs will love the huge, interactive collection.

The museum isn't only film memorabilia and movie posters. The visit begins with the very basics of cinema: optical illusions, the physics of sight, and shadow puppets. (Yes, we are going way back here!) From there, the very first incarnations of "movies" are shown. 3-D pictures, zoetropes, and Thomas Edison's Kinetograph interactively show the visitors the height of technology around the turn of the 20th century. Slowly but surely, we get to the more modern days of film. The museum has a great collection of vintage movie posters and some very interesting memorabilia, including Superman's cape and Federico Fellini's trademark hat and scarf.

My favorite part of the museum, though, came at the very end. After exploring some 4-floors of cinematic history, we finished up the visit in the Aula del Tempio, or Temple Hall. This hall is surrounded by reproductions of famous movie sets, quite inviting for cheesy photo-ops. In the middle, there is a glass elevator for visitors wishing to see the panoramic terrace of the Mole. However, the great thing about the Temple Hall are the chaise lounges. Here, after a tiring walk through the history of cinema, you can finally relax and watch some movies or the light show projected on the ceiling.

The Museo Nazionale del Cinema is located inside of the Mole Antonelliana, on via Montebello, 20. Open every day except Monday, it even stays open until 11 p.m. on Saturdays! Tickets to the museum cost 7,00 euro, though if it is a nice day, pay the extra 2 euros to see the Mole's panoramic terrace.