Cinéma Yves Saint Laurent for women

A part of my heart will always belong to 2000s perfumes - that was the time when I first fell in love with fragrance and the joy it can bring to one's soul. So yes, depending on your age, this might smell like your auntie (hopefully a cool young-ish one) but to me it smells like the beautiful women I admired and hoped I'd be like when I grew up. Cinema, among other classics of the era, makes me think of happiness, freedom and carefree days. It's a slightly soapy floral vanilla, sparkling and luscious. Like my beloved Theorema, I feel like it radiates warm and golden on my skin. Cinema reminds me a lot of Serpentine, which I wore in college, and slightly of Illicit, which sadly is more muted and generic-sweet. This and L'Instant de Guerlain are my favorite florals and every time I wear them I feel like I am transported back in time 💛

Instant love! To my nose this is very similar to Illicit - I know Cinema is older but I have Illicit and only just got a sample of this - but more fluffy and very elevated. Like the Illicit profile but with the texture of Lalique Le Parfum! It’s such a beautiful and easy-going Vanilla. This doesn’t smell at all vintage or auntie-like to me. I got my husband to smell it (he’s 34 fyi) and he said “that’s good… I could really get into that one”. I have over 200 perfumes and a lot of vanilla scents just get a “it smells vanilla-ish” but this one seemed to be right up his street! For reference, my kind of vanilla (which now includes Cinema and I need a bottle!), is Lalique Le Parfum, Eau Duelle (both edp & edt), Casmir, Tocade and Burberry Goddess :)

I had this perfume on my wishlist for the longest time; and I was, too many times, close to blind buying it; thankfully enough, I waited until I got a sample......First impressions...."Auntie" this is something my lovely aunt, who keeps her house super clean but full of decorative porcelain figures would wear. My aunt likes to work in the garden with her floppy hat and floral dress, knee cushion, garden gloves, and she spends hours under the baking sun; after she finishes, my aunt is sweaty, but her sweat is Cinema...At £90.00 for 90ml, I don't want to smell like my auntie 😩.

This is lovely.
I am not sure I get clementine, but I get flower, vanilla and amber. And I don’t get any soapy note thankfully since aldehydes can be too sharp for me.

I think I get a teeny bit of pink pepper on top, but the background with pretty vanilla and flowers is there.

The first sniffs give the impression of a rather sharp vintage scent. But after a while the scent softens into a wonderfully elegant vanilla scent that lingers well. Cinema is a masterpiece, too bad they don't make it anymore. Fortunately you can try a dupe from Divain. This is the mature vanilla taste of a grown-up woman, without being old-fashioned at all.

My mother used to have it, i think she has the last drops of his 90's version kept it's bottle at the end of the cosmetics box from her wardrobe, it smells a bit soapy or kind of... powdery as Timeless-Avon which she has a full bottle, i remember her smelling like a pleasant musky floral and a bit strong scent but in enough measure, something different because she use so "yucky" yellow florals like Escada, Tresor, Chanel 5, not said in a negative way, but this scent is different from her floral granma style

Impressions over time: After the first blast, the immediate sense is of soapiness and florals. As it dries, it goes very clean and very jasmine, with a nice complex sense of flowers in the background like a chorus. At this stage I get no vanilla, just florals and clean laundry. After that, as it slowly dries down, it stays soapy and floral, with minimal evolution. After a couple of hours the vanilla appears, along other sweet notes, and the soap smell dies down into the background. Performance-wise, the projection is pretty light and it dies down to skin level after a couple of hours.

Subjectively, I would describe this as pleasant but not exciting. I didn't expect the soap throughout the evolution of this one, and it's not one of my favorite notes. This was recommended as an alternative to Sun Moon Stars, but I don't see the connection. Personally I won't be tracking down a bottle.

When I first bought OGX Biotin Collagen Shampoo and Conditioner I thought it would be nice to have a perfume that smelled that good! Ironically, a few weeks later, I received my travel spray of Cinema. There ya go! If you like the OGX smell, this will compliment it perfectly. I love it and don't know why I never tried it before!

Try it and you won't regret it. Gorgeous, clean scent that stays with you. :)

This smells color yellow to me. It is clean, flowery with a slight of vanilla and citrus. It is comforting and fresh. Safe blind buy, office wear.

I wore this in my twenties and it has lovely memories. Just rebought it at 38 and I still love it. I love the bottle. Everything about it is a warm golden happy vibe. I am not a gourmand person but I do like vanilla when it is done well. I love Eau Duelle, Hypnotic Poison and Addict. I don't love the sweetie gourmand Mon Guerlain, Black Opium etc.
The fresh clementine opening dries down to a beautiful cosy ambery golden vanilla. I find Cinema to be timeless and can be worn at any age. Very happy to have this back in my collection. Now to come to terms with the fact the favourite perfumes of my youth are arriving at vintage status. The 90s and early 2000s was a golden era of designer perfumery.

Wha?? This is black opiums Mother. Very similar DNA. You might as well buy which ever one is on clearance. I love them both , btw.. I'm very intrigued that they essentially marketed the same fragrance. After some dry down, it leans more floral. I really do think this is black opiums Mother. Neat :)

Absolute underrated gem. What a stunning fragrance! It manages to be somehow fresh, floral, warm and cozy all at once. The clementine and the exotic florals blend beautifully with the warmth and depth of the vanilla and benzoin. You could wear this all season long except probably deep winter or probably even then. It truly is the epitome of understated glamour; elegant and beautiful without being too in your face about it. It is a crime that this perfume does not get talked about much. Deserves a lot more hype. Oh and this would make the perfect bridal scent.

I remember smelling this a number of years ago and thinking that it was the epitome of glamor and elegance. When I recently found it at a discounted price, I leapt at the chance to buy it. Alas, there is only a hint of its former glory and the scent fades faster than the memory did. Sillage and longevity are both woeful. What you are able to detect, albeit briefly, is pleasant but just not present enough to justify the purchase. For anyone in the UK who remembers Joker ice lollies - this is it! Initial blast of warm, orangey-creamy sweetness which quickly fades to a kind of dusty apricot and then vanishes with your hope of having finally found a signature-worthy scent. Dommage!

A nice warm, flowery, not gourmand vanilla fragrance. Expensive smelling, classy and ultra sweet. I can imagine Charlize Theron wearing this on the red carpet instead of J'adore. Overall I am happy I ordered a sample and not the full bottle as this is not something I consider groundbreaking nor would I wear it often. Sillage is strong, longevity moderate in my sample.

Cinéma by YSL is more than just a fragrance; it's an olfactory journey that transports every woman into the dazzling world of Hollywood glamour. Imagine walking the red carpet in a golden aura, exuding timeless elegance and radiating the allure of classic luxury. This scent is a symphony of notes that evokes the romantic charm of old movies, glamorous gowns, and star-studded evenings.

The delicate top notes of clementine, almond blossom, and cyclamen lay the foundation for a fragrance that unfolds like a cinematic masterpiece. As it progresses, the heart reveals a floral melody of jasmine, peony, and amaryllis, adding depth and sensuality. The warm and opulent drydown, with amber, musk, and sweet powdery vanilla, leaves a lasting impression that is as soft as it is captivating. Cinéma is not just a perfume; it's a memory trigger, a journey back to moments of childhood joy and the discovery of a scent that's both refreshing and comforting. It's a fragrance that encapsulates the epitome of elegance, perfect for special occasions, and a timeless companion that complements every season, leaning towards the warmth of autumn.

This hidden gem, often overlooked in the sea of fragrances, is a flowery vanilla masterpiece that deserves its moment in the spotlight. Cinéma is not just a scent; it's an experience—a celebration of femininity, confidence, and the magic of the silver screen. Embrace the golden glamour, let the sparkling aura envelop you, and walk your own red carpet with the exquisite fragrance that is Cinéma.

This is such a classy, feminine, cozy and alluring scent. It smells fantastic, lasts for hours, just two sprays needed and doesn’t cause headaches later during the day/night.

It has a nice bottle too and the notes work well together. One of my all time favourites. Can be worn in any weather and events. Perfect for both young and mature women, it’s simply glamorous.

Beautiful, rich and warm fragrance - very almondy and ambery, only 1 spray needed for 12 hours for me.
If I'm honest I'm waiting to use this as a much older woman. To me this perfume encapsulates that older elegant aunt who is wise, sophisticated and full of surprising stories of mischief and adventure in the French Riviera and Studio 54 during her youth lol

There are so many great detailed descriptions already, but I wanted to add that this perfume is just beautiful. My bottle from fragrancenet is from 2019. I wish I could try it before reformulation but what’s left is such a great scent anyway. I’ve seen Cinema suggested as a replacement for Sensi for so many years that I finally decided to buy a bottle. It doesn’t remind me of Sensi but I love it anyway! I picture cozy sweaters, or fancy dinners out. It’s classy, warm, versatile, and gives an overall happy aura. I’m so glad to have this in my collection and may grab a backup bottle while I still can.

Smells like how I imagine Rose from the Titanic to smell. It is the perfect blend of tart orange and muskiness, and I love the smooth vanilla on the drydown. It moves through the senses like a warm, slightly fruity river and makes me feel sensual and feminine without becoming too dark. It remains both bright and musky. Everything I have been looking for in a fragrance. This is definitely going to be my signature.

Cinéma starts off like an orange creamsicle and resolves to a lustrous amber-vanilla-jasmine powder. The almond blossom imparts a creamy floral aspect. I find this much more wearable than Poème, another iconic Cavallier fragrance.

Update: I suspect that this is a poor reformulation because the longevity in my purse-size decant is quite poor. I like it, but it wore out so quickly that when it was time to decide whether I should just refresh or change it up, I decided to put on something with better longevity. A real pity because the fragrance is lovely, for the time it lasts, although the jasmine is a bit more indolic than I normally like.

I think I found an unintentional dupe for this perfume in a discovery set. The perfume is called Zuraique by Ahmed Al Maghribi. I tried to find it on Fragrantica, but it didn’t show surprisingly because all the other perfume samples did. I don’t know what the cinema perfume smells like so I cannot compare. I searched up the notes from their website and onto fragrantica, and sure enough this one is an exact word for word dupe according to the notes.
Edit 1:
Alright ya peeps here is how I can describe this perfume. This is very good, it’s an airy easy going vanilla that remind me of honeysuckle. It’s also a non gourmand vanilla, and I think it’s timeless. To me, it’s a bit too popular crowd pleasing for me. It also on the skin pulls very floral in my body chemistry.
Edit 2:
I just finished my sample of zuraique, and I got to say. This a more floral than it is vanilla. It does give me a very easy going perfume, but it gives me also like a mom scent if that makes sense. Not old, but maybe a mom or someone else would love this. To me it’s too timeless. I like my perfumes that you can tell it’s vintage, but it somehow has a timeless flare to it. Either that or it’s likable but edgy. This is just too much It’s an easy going floral that has not enough edge to me. It’s definitely crowd pleasing, but I would prefer something else that’s less of a people pleaser.
Verdict- pass for my signature scent.

What a wonderful perfume ! Elegant, suave, timeless, delicate, sensual ! A pretty little film that features clementine, vanilla, jasmine, peony and amber. Simple but perfect, simple but terribly effective.

For me - although very chic - this is not a lady's perfume, it is a perfume that can be worn at any age.

My imagination takes me to Cannes rather than Hollywood : I imagine the south of France during the summer holidays, with the sun beating down and perhaps a cinema icon such as Brigitte Bardot who - at the height of her glory - walks gracefully on the beach. In short, French charm but also a very sensual side.

And now I can no longer find it anywhere. What a pity ! It seems like every time I love a perfume, it disappears !

Edit Feb.24 : Available again where I live !

Layer cinema with spicebomb..... Hypersuperscent!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I tried Cinéma because I run a fragrance channel on YouTube and I've reached the point with trying new designer releases where love is now extremely rare. It's made me hunt down older releases and even vintage fragrances, as this very nearly is 19 years on from its release. I bought a vintage partial bottle to try it out...

So this isn't as wow as I expected from the descriptions and reviews, but it's very easy to wear and I totally understand why so many people love and will miss this one. It's not really vanilla, it's more a warm benzoin, with a definite background of florals also. The florals are most prominently a powdery feeling jasmine, the rest are indistinct. Certainly nothing indolic, strong or piercing. At points, it's got an elusive fruitiness, which is definitely a little orangey to begin with but later could be apricot, it's gentle and certainly the less prominent aspect of this perfume.

This fragrance does have a texture, it makes me think a little of the texture and composition of Trésor, maybe it's the name, because the musk in vintage Trésor (galoxolide) always makes me think of cigarettes and this gives me a similar but less definite impression. It's not a dupe for Trésor obviously or as heavy. My mum, who is 84, said that Cinéma truly smells like a foyer of the cinema when she was younger, almost like the distant smell of cigarettes (not unpleasant or dirty) and fragrances left on seats. Cinéma is ultimately close to skin and intimate. It's shy but warm. On me this doesn't project and lasts around 5 hours. I'll enjoy my partial and then let Cinéma be consigned to fragrance history.

I probably wouldn’t appreciate this perfume as much as I do if it weren’t for its name- as it is, Cinema is what I always wear when I go to see a film at any time later than 7 and it absolutely always holds up. I bought this second hand with about 1/3 left so it’s probably at least a little bit old, but it really holds up in terms of longevity. It sticks close to the skin but that’s where I like it. It stays a very amber-vanilla to me. I wore it a lot in a period of my life where I would finish work, go home get changed and then immediately catch the bus to the bar to meet my friends and now it just makes me think of that easier time, which is to say: it’s lovely. It makes me feel older.

I like the smell of Cinéma by Yves Saint Laurent and I remember loving the glamorous advert that was released for this when Tom Ford was the creative director of Yves Saint Laurent, with the beautitul woman in her lovely designer dress and all of the dapper men in their tuxedos. Cinéma isn't quite as "cinematic" as I'd desire though and it felt a bit lackluster to me.

I smell the refined airiness and spice from the cyclamen, but it is a bit too spicy for my tastes personally speaking and I would have preferred lily of the valley in its place here. I liked the juiciness from the clementine and the slightly nutty floral smell from the almond blossom, though. It's certainly a unique introduction to a perfume.

The heart notes are then all about the peony and amaryllis to me, with the jasmine being completely undetectable to my nose unfortunately. It is a very citrusy and rosy smell and it's not for me, really. I feel like maybe some tuberose instead of the peony would make this smell even better. Sweeter too, but still with a slight spicy edge.

The dry down is quite beautiful and warm, like a big and cozy and gauzy beige blanket on a winter's day. I love the sweet but non-gourmand vanilla, the soft amber and the powdery musk, but the benzoin didn't really belong in this fragrance to me. I felt like the bezoin made the base and the rest of the fragrance too resinous and slightly too strong for my tastes. Slightly less feminine too, like a YSL le smoking tuxedo jacket and tuxedo pants of course.

This perfume leans on the feminine side of unisex, but I could imagine a man with enough confidence wearinf this too. It is a very film noir fragrance and it smells quite vintage too. I'd suggest it for day or night wear in either the fall or the winter, since it has cold weather vibes to me. Something you'd wear with a cashmere sweater or a big mink/chinchilla/fox/sable fur coat.

The sillage on this fragrance was about 6 feet away from my skin on me and it lasted 10 and a half hours on my skin.

All in all, I'd give Cinéma by Yves Saint Laurent a very decent score of 7 out of 10.

Discontinued on YSL site. Still available at the discounters if not sold out. Once sold out it’s gone forever unless being sold on Mercari for a fortune.
I just purchased a couple of bottles and Opium.
Still smells amazing!

Looking at these notes, you would expect something quite different in modern perfumery. I would have placed the year of this perfume more into the 90s or 80s, just because of it's scent profile vs what it smells like, but a very high end version (according to it's time.) So 2000s actually make sense, a more modern version but still lightyears away from what you would expect from the notes listed above today. It really shows the progression of modern perfumes and how much more clearly they are able to replicate notes.

What I would expect from these notes in 2023: a realistic almond, maybe play doh, strong vanilla, a big twist of a realistic clementine, and lots of florals in the back (according to votes these are not dominant) with especially the jasmine and peony being distinct as these notes tends to be a very distinct realistic peony in modern perfumery. A vanillic amber and resinous background.

That I get: A soapy, non-distinct floral, with a touch of sweetness, but not really vanillic nor resinous, maybe powdery, the twist of citrus is there but only in the way that it brightens the scent, nothing distinctly zesty or reminiscent of any citrus fruit. Very washed together kind of floral soapy scent. It's still nice, like a well done avon, but could I pick out any notes if I were not shown them? Definitely not. Probably still a pretty good scent for it's time, although I know perfumes from the 20s that were way more modern in this sense.

** 180+ samples for swap - check my customs, trading 20+ at a time. Eldo Libre 20 set also availale! UK only **

Very unique scent. Not as glamorous as I was expecting but it smells like an old high class cinema during the 1920's during a premiere...as in the actual theatre lobby. That's not to say it's bad. It's unique and a little old fashioned. Some may smell this as a grandma scent because of how classy it is.

Ironically, this reminds me of a girl in college who was trying to smell good for me. I didn't know it then but this was the perfume she was wearing.

Strong room filling scent upon initial spray. Once it dries down sillage is still very strong. Definitely arm's length at least. Likely more. Anyone in your immediate vicinity will smell this. Lasted 8 hours.

This one is really lovely. Warm, sweet vanillic amber with just enough depth and complexity to differentiate it from the other million vanillas on the market right now. Doesn’t last as long or have as much strength as others have boasted, but it’s still long-lasting enough to consider purchasing.

I just got a bottle of this after years of dreaming about it. I fell in love with this when I was a teenager; it smelled amazing, and it was the first time I smelled something like that. I smelled golden glamour walking on a red carpet with a very beautiful, sparkling aura; it was like smelling old money or a vintage golden dress. When I knew its name, I understood it all: this is a classic luxury cinema, like in the 50s. Years passed, and I couldn't smell anything like this; there was nothing in the hundreds of perfumes I smelled. Yes, there are many golden-like perfumes, but not like cinema. I couldn't understand how you could create a perfume like this out of clementine and vanilla! Maybe it's the almond blossom? I don't know, but this creation is divine, and I'm lucky that I can smell and feel it.

when I first sprayed this perfume, I immediately remembered something in my childhood (around when I was 4-6 years old), but I can't tell when, where nor who used this perfume, but I can confirm it's a happy memory, this scent improves my mood whenever I spray. I don't know why people don't talk about this perfume. It's a flowery vanilla scent, at same time it's refreshing, it's a bit sweet, it smells like clean laundry, and can be used in any season, but Iean more towards autumn
10/10

Cinema is not discontinued. It’s available fairly widely in the UK and the YSL website has it online too.
I’m wearing my old bottle today which I’ve had for a long time and it’s still as good as ever. Rich and opulent with lots of warm vanilla, Amber and musk. It reminds me of Tocade in some ways although lighter. A real winner for autumn and winter. I highly recommend this beautiful perfume. I’m wondering why I don’t wear it more often. Superb.

Beautiful beautiful scent. I was very fortunate to be able to grab a bottle from a discounter. I really enjoy that there is this uplifting jasmine tea-like aroma floating on top of the soft vanilla. It brings me so much comfort.

Too bad YSL discontinued Cinema. Vahina Sylvaine Delacourte smells almost like it but Cinema performs way better.

Cinema by Ysl is an elegant fragrance of prodigious sweetness by mixing vanilla, almond blossoms and clementine mandarin so well. I personally don't feel that it is a retro or out-of-fashion perfume, it's just that Cinema has that youthful ease that never saturates. I feel very sexy in it and I like to wear it in fall, winter and some cool summer nights. If you like vanilla with a good mix of citrus you should try it and above all find a Cinema that is somewhat vintage, the Cinemas that have been sold in recent years have been too reformulated and no longer have their sparkling and chic sweetness.
It is the perfume of an independent actress, although not arrogant, who is known to be attractive to the camera. Ysl used to do divine things like this, but they don't work as well making perfumes anymore and they discontinue it

Yaaas!
I've got a new formulation most likely
I do understand all those delighted reviews
But... it's totally weak, gone in a moment...
The scent itself is mostly about vanilla, clementine and jasmine
I do now understand all those references to the dirty suggestions ;)
It really smells sexy , but... longevity is a shame now

Can we all just email the YSL customer service and bother them so terribly much this regret discontinuing it ?

Cinema starts out with a punchy, tangy clementine (but to most people will just jump out as a nondescript citrus) and then you immediately get this soft, buttery almond note. This part is so nice, I usually dislike almond in perfume as it tends to turn way too musky and cardboard-like on my skin. When it settles it's very floral forward, and the base is just as you'd expect, your typical vanilla, ambers yada yada; pretty standard base notes, but in Cinema's defence they're done very well. They're lovely and creamy, and the top notes still linger, albeit a little quieter.

In all, Cinema is a lovely floral vanilla concoction - and dated in a chic way, the same way old magazines from the 90s are fashionable and cool and nostalgic. But I don't think she suits me (yet)

Update: Despite how beautiful this smells, the longevity is atrocious. Barely lasts for 20 minutes, even on well moisturized skin. I've even tried applying it on top of Vaseline as some people have recommend to make it last longer. Not only this, but whenever it's sprayed it feels like you can feel it in your throat which is very unpleasant. I think I'm going to pass on a full bottle because of this.

My beloved Cinéma... In my opinion (and experience), this gorgeous scent - so feminine, playful, velvety - is made to be worn in the spring/summer season. The clementine note is bothering me in the winter; in the cold it sticks out, destroying the "cat paw" feel of the perfume, making it sharp and zesty. In the warmer days though - everything falls into place and the harmony is perfect.
A gem from YSL and J. Cavallier !!

Cinema may have been rich and gorgeous at one time, but based on my experience now, it must just be a whisper of its former self. Reading the notes and reviews, I just knew I would love it, but there’s just not much to work with.

For me, the notes profile does nothing to help me understand what I am smelling, as sometimes happens. So here I am, afloat with my own impressions only...

My first impression is that it smells like opening a jar of chammomile flowers for making tea -- dryly floral, haylike, a hint of honey/pollen, and (forgive me) a sweetly urinous smell. As it develops, I do get some citrus, a powdery vanilla, and a sweetly resinous base. Benzoin can get really cloying for me, but Cinema remains an ethereal, gentle "Oriental" fragrance -- this is not a dark, sticky, last-forever resin base. Overall, it also reminds me of a pile of brown, fallen leaves that that have been warmed by the sun...toasty plant matter, sweet decay, sunshine, imminent autumn. I've never smelled anything like it before in a fragrance.

I love so much about the concept but this scent is admittedly past its prime - it's the 90s in a bottle. Is it a well-blended vanilla lover's dream? Yeah. But it also smells 1:1 like the ancient German drugstore brand Bettina Barty Vanilla. Save your money hunting after these beautiful elusive bottles and douse yourself in that instead. Even if it means sacrificing glamor.

I love this. It's simply beautiful. YSL CINEMA SMEELS LIKE HAPPINESS. Or happiness smells like Cinema.
Soft cozy vanilla dry down, very classy and beautiful. On clothes stays for eternity. Isn't very flowery, isn't harsh. Just in the middle of perfection.
For me it's 10/10.

As a man, i think this semi gourmand vanilla is perfect for my needs.
It is unisex, powdery and not cloying sweet.
I wear this with a suit at the office and getting dirty suggestions from both men and women on my coffe break.
You do the math.

The clementine, almond and vanilla steal the show and make this sweet and boozy smelling, whilst it’s balanced with enough floral notes to stop this being your average gourmand. Later I get the amber clinging to my skin for hours, and sometimes the next day. This is my autumn/winter fragrance and I always get compliments on it, it’s in my top 5 perfumes of all time. Unfortunately like many of my other favourites I’ve heard this is being discontinued. It’s still widely available online so the prices haven’t sky rocketed yet, but my advice would be to panic buy now before it starts going for silly money on eBay etc.

ALL TIME HOLY GRAIL SCENT. They do not make them like this anymore. This is ultimate classy girl essence in a bottle. Luxurious but not too mature, I believe it would suit anyone. Quite a modern but sophisticated blend, makes you smell so very expensive and feminine. I pray they never stop making this...

I knew I would love this but wasn’t prepared for just how head over heels in love I would end up falling for this.

It’s truly exquisite. This fragrance takes you on a journey. It opens with very powdery white floral blast that immediately takes you into a dressing room. It’s a very classic makeup type powderiness that is definitely a bit “grandma” but the idea one should take away instead is that of an old timey dressing room.

After that, the orange starts to come through and it is bitter and realistic to begin with. I see this as stepping out into the city and stepping into your ride. Looking out the window at the bitter reality of the dirty streets of LA.

Finally, we reach the destination and this scent blooms into the most exquisite floral gourmand I have ever had the luxury of smelling… and it IS luxurious. A pure floral orange creamsicle scent which exudes feminine sensuality without being overtly juvenile.

This is a mature women’s gourmand. The classic floral element gives a subtle restraint to an otherwise super sweet yummy yum yum of a fragrance. I’m getting warm and well seasoned flesh that might not be as taught as it used to be but is well oiled and still sumptuous and is peaking out from a slit in a white dress.

There is also a bit of a smoky element which is ever present in the background of this fragrance at all its stages. It adds a bit of grit, coolness, and mystery to it.

This fragrance makes me think of Anjelica Huston’s character in The Grifters.

This is THE fragrance of a lifetime to communicate WOMANLY sensuality throughout the ages. Most fitting for someone in their 30s or 40s but could easily be worn perfectly by a woman in her mid 20s onward (in the right outfit) to give off a more mature air or even by a woman in her 50s or 60s who’s still got it. Yummy but not immediate. Yummy in a way that makes you think. Yummy in a way that makes you want to ask questions.

*dowses myself in this constantly*

I had the ultimate chance of smelling this beauty last year after a long process of searching for the right perfume. I don't exactly remember what the notes were or how it smelled like, what I only remember is that I very much liked it. Finally just got my hands on this beauty today, it was an online second-hand purchase and the bottle is from 2016. However, this is not like what I remember when I smelled it on the counter. This smells cheap, does not last long and literally have no sillage. I am pretty sure that this bottle is not fake, but I don't understand why?? Is it because it is old? but i thought the older the better?

As always YSL doesn’t disappoint with this one. Lovely fragrance.

My appreciation for this scent has deepened. My first impression of this fragrance was that it was turned, like vintage citruses. However, I think I was initialy mistaking the almond blossom note for turned citruses. Whether it took getting the first few sprays out of the way, or who knows what...

Imagine the stars twinkiling at the outdoor cafe of Cinemateque Tangier. The fragrant blossoms of orange and almond trees dance on the breeze to the hypnotic strains of Egyptian crooner, Umm Kulthum. You're sipping a rootbeer float, garnished with clementine and a little parasol, as you enjoy watching the crowds go by.

Comparison to Mania Armani 1999:
Jaques Cavallier's hand is evident here in the opening, which is sour, spicy and soapy citrus-florals. That plus a dash of whatever Jacques keeps in his back pocket so we know it's him. Reminiscent of Mania Armani 1999 and Trouble Boucheron, both by Jacques Cavallier.

Comparison to Alien Essence Absolu:
These are very different - especially the openings, but to my nose In the drydown you get a root-beer or root-beer float vibe from the vanilla and benzoin similar to what I smell in the drydown of AEA. It is strangely not too sweet, not gourmande, and yet seems to alternate between root-beer on ice and root-beer with ice-cream.

Bottom line: If you like root-beer and scents that are sweet but not gourmande, check this one out.

When I sprayed this on I was reminded of Jean Paul Gaultier Classique. This smells nearly the same, except maybe less headache inducing. But both are not my favourites. EDIT: More I wear this more I like this and less I see the resemblance with Classique. It isnt similar. This is more juicy. I am absolutely in love with Cinema now. Great winter fragance.

This is my ultimate comfort scent. Maybe it’s just the name but this scent does evoke an old Hollywood theater - the velvet curtains, the carved wood, glamorous patrons. It’s slightly dusty and warm. Vintage in an elegant way. The notes are similar to perfumes my grandmother used to wear, which I find so endearing. That’s not to say it’s a “grandma” perfume, though. This is sophisticated old Hollywood glam in bottle. It makes me nostalgic for a time before I was even born. Not something I’d personally wear out because it just doesn’t match my style, but it is my bedtime fragrance bc it’s so comforting.

Sexy vanilla, long lasting

Spray it on your underwear and let the sex-appeal do the rest 🔥💯💯💯

Gorgeous warm, not crispy vanilla and almond/amber scent, great sillage, perfect dry-down. This was my scent for the wedding. Yes, no white flowers, just Cinema.

This is a lovely amber vanilla with hints of citrus in the top, making it juicy rather than fruity, and flowers and musk interlaced throughout. The blend of benzoin, amber, and musk gives it a warm, sweet, powdery, almost creamy character. It's cozy, rich, and decadent.

I always used to layer this back in the day with a strong, powdery vanilla (Santa Maria Novella's Valignia) and then stopped wearing Cinema for a good 10 years. After hearing its being discontinued I bought a new bottle at clearance price last week. Instead of Vaniglia I decided to layer with Kayali Vanilla which has a deep, brown sugar angle – now I can't stop sniffing myself. For those below commenting on this perfume having a missing something, I would highly recommend layering with Kayali.

This is an elegant fragrance, a real REGAL Van Diesel- a powerhouse vanilla fragrance with more elements than just vanilla. Very nice sillage with okay longevity (3 hrs max on my skin). Floral Amber Vanilla. I think everyone should at least smell this beauty before you can find it no more.

I'm a guy, but I fell immediately for this jewel. What a beautiful citrus sweet (clementine) opening and such a wonderful flowerheart with an amazing vanilla ambery musk at the base. I am such an admirer of Jacques Cavallier. His timeless compositions are attractive, stylish, complex but very accessable and likeable. It doesn't scream but whispers subtle but noticeable. YSL Cinema is perfection in perfumery that to my opinion surpasses the gender borders and certainly many niche fragrances.

It's a floral and (impotent) ambery vanilla with a subtle touch of incense to it. Honestly, when you compare it to other smoky vanilla florals of its time like Dior Addict, it's pretty tame and boring. Maybe this used to be more of a beauty way back when, but I find it to be really anemic and 'perfumey'. It feels very heart notes heavy and pretty lackluster on the top and base notes making for a pretty muddied and generic smelling fragrance.

A lot of people seem to prefer the EDT, saying it's more balanced and vanilla-focused than the original, so hopefully I'll get to try that too.

Mature, vintage, elegant. I disagree that this perfume has no personality. I think this is for those who have experienced and achieved so much yet remain humble. Can't wait to wear this to a movie date!

A soft vanilla, a little incense smoke as if from far away, a soft powder tying it together. It reminds me of kenzo amour, but it’s not a dupe.

This is a fairly forgettable fragrance that has little wow power. The floral opening is very old fashioned and indolic to me. Strong and slightly acrid floral (something from the 90s your mum might have worn). It takes a long time to dry down but I enjoyed the vanilla and amber base notes. It reminded me of FM Carnal Flower in the beginning, then almost like Chanel Allure in the base notes (but not as nice).

This lasted 48+ hours on my clothes and I've gotten like 10 compliments the first time I wore it. It's not overpowering, at least for my case, and the dry down is just straight up vanilla. Not really the kind of gourmand vanilla though. I think this needs to be layered with something for it to stand out more (I actually tried it with CH very good girl and it isn't bad). But it's elegant, and it does make me smell like I have my life together so I'm not complaining.

I layer this with CK Truth and CK Reveal. Cinema alone on me becomes very dull and flat, but with these 2 it’s much more interesting.

Cinma is a really traditional perfume, in my opinion.
YSL wanted to make a perfume that was as safe as possible, so they created one that had no PERSONALITY at all.

Has this undergone some wild reformulations or did I get a counterfeit? Got a decant/travel size from FragranceNet and it is virtually unrecognizable from the fragrance I know and love! No vanilla at all...

I layer this with ombre leather.... Its a super scent!!!!

A delicious fragrance, I am a YSL fan, maybe because they make sure having vanilla in their perfume notes ?
It's a classy and feminine fragrance that I loved and will love - never change my mind about

I didn't get this when it first came out, there were too many other things I liked, but they are all long dead, only available at Ebay silly prices or have gone off. Saw this in a sale n got it for the era. It's not quite the thick purple thing I remember but presume this is the last formulation. I get clementine, amber, vanilla, not overly sweet. The bottle reminds me of the pattern on my Aunties 70s cutlery, not sure if that will mean anything to anyone. I'm not finding much projection. This is not a modern pudding vanilla, but I get why some people think this smells vintage or a bit old fashioned. For me it's on the cusp, a half way house between the current gourmand fashion n very old things that smell really.. perfumey. Cavalier can do no wrong anyway imo.

I have both EDT and EDP version in sample sizes. The EDP is too strong specially with the almond blossom. It performs linearly, blended well with hints of vanilla towards the end. It's a shame that I can't tolerate the almond blossom smell which borders on incense and gave me a headache. I love the EDT version which is lighter and more a amber-vanilla than this one.

Cinéma feels very classic and familiar without being dated or old-fashioned. It has a slight retro vibe, but nothing stuffy. In my opinion YSL could have revived the line with a new flanker or marketing campaign instead of discontinuing it, but for some reason they didn't ask me :)
The opening is quite flowery with lots of jasmine and watery cyclamen. It's a little sharp at first, and this is the phase where I understand the most why some other reviewers say it has a vintage vibe. But the main notes are zesty clementine, almond blossom and vanilla, and you don't have to wait long for them to arrive. I always like it when mandarin or clementine is incorporated into warmer scents, it's such a mood-lifting note. In Cinéma it's blended into a creamy, warm, dense base of vanilla, amber and musk. The almond blossom note adds a beautiful almondy accent without making the scent gourmand (like a true almond note would). It's a grown-up kind of vanilla scent, sensual and elegant, with a little hint of playfulness from the clementine.
This is a true allrounder perfume that can be worn day and night, in winter, spring, fall and on disappointing rainy summer days. It would certainly fit into an old cinema with plushy red seats, but it would also work almost everywhere else.
To me it's a big like, but not a love. It might be a little too versatile and polite with nothing that really stands out to me. I don't know, there is nothing to dislike about this, it just doesn't completely blow me away. Which is fine, as it's discontinued now and nobody wants to fall in love with discontinued fragrances, right?

i was about 16 when Cinema was newly released and i got a sample with a magazine, it was a love at first smell. i had to wait years to manage to buy a bottle of my own and since that i always have a bottle on my shelf, it's my forever love, accompanied me half in my life, we have so much memories together.

Masterpiece! Cinema Yves Saint Laurent is a lovely amber vanilla scent with clementine nuances that is floral, fruity and musky too. There is warmth, richness and decadent in it. I tend to get warmth of vanilla in this along with almond mixing well with the clementine orange making it vibrant. Combination of amber, benzoin and musk gives it sweet, warm, creamy and powdery quality. Classy vibes from this makes me drool for this one. On my skin, this fragrance is a pure perfection that is my new found joy and is elite and ultimate scent. Definitely a signature scent worth that is pretty and warm. Absolute brilliant scent to fall for. Anyone who is sophisticated and classy women must grab hands on it. Enjoy it!

Is the best perfume ever. My love forever 😊❤️❤️

I like Cinama. It's a nice and safe fragrance to wear out in the fall and winter. I can picture myself wearing it to the theater maybe to see the Nutcracker or A Christmas Carol. It's not going to offend people sitting aside of you, but it envelopes you in a nice and warm aura of holiday anticipation. The florals add to its softness. Very nice.

Cinema is the epitome of elegance. It is a soft, sensual scent that leaves a beautiful and delicate floral amber vanilla trail. It is perfect for special occasions and warm hugs with loved ones. This is my go to scent when I want to feel like I have it altogether, leave my worries behind and can literally glide effortlessly through the evening. An absolute must have for vanilla lovers.

Sweet gourmandy vanilla scent with a nice floral bouquet that doesn't induce a headache but just gives a lighter overall result to the scent. You can guess the era it's made by smelling it, but it stays a lovely scent in winter. Unfortunately, my collection of gourmands is already extensive enough that I have enough ones that smell similar, but it remains a lovely pleasing scent that will last on your skin a good while.

Warm, cosy ambery vanilla with clementine. It has a syrupy sweet quality to it which I love and Cinema is probably my favourite vanilla. I wouldn't say it is too heavy and personally wear it during the daytime, but it would be perfect as a night time scent. It is very soothing and comforting which makes it perfect for the colder months. The bottle is beautiful and suits the perfume really well creating a very glamourous and sophisticated feel. Must smell for vanilla lovers. I agree it is underrated and it would be a great choice if you want to stand out from the crowd.

This bottle can definitely warm you up on a lonely and cold December evening. I had expectations about this vanilla, for some reason I thought it would be mineral but it's quite sweet. I like it in general due to the combination of almond-vanilla-jasmine. It smells like warm gold, the bottle really reflects the idea of a fragrance. It gives me a mature and sophisticated mood, but still, I can't find anything special about it. I enjoy its trail a lot but I believe if I keep it in my collection I would barely use it cause it's nicely boring. I guess it's a fortune of all crowd-pleasers: to be enjoyable and at the same time to avoid being outstanding. if you wear such scent people around will compliment you but won't remember. As it dries down reminds me Lalique, the one with vanilla-bay leaf story, but Lalique is way less sweet which brings him out of the crowd pleasers' gang. My resume's a really well-made not-too-sweet vanilla scent that dresses you perfectly for any night occasion.

Borscht rating: 7/10

I stumbled onto Cinema on a cold, gray, December day in Avignon. Being a tourist town in the off season, many smaller boutiques were closed, so I ducked into Sephora to warm up and sniff around a bit. I'm a total sucker for anything golden-age-of-Hollywood, so this jumped out at me from the shelf. It was love at first spritz. It reminds me of an oil I picked up in Cairo years and years ago--timeless, self-assured, gracious, red lipstick every day, tender but impermeable, equally befitting satin on the red carpet or bias-cut sundress on an late-afternoon walk through the city. Something about it just makes me feel whole, like I'm living up to my full potential. A glamorous, confident nighttime scent for all seasons.

Vintagy smelling, good but dusty, just be aware of that.

I must have bought my original bottle of this around the time it was first released. It was a blind buy and one I fell in love with very quickly. I only stopped using it because the spray cap came off. I still have the bottle and decand to use it occasionally.

It was discontinued for some time and I was very disappointed that I couldn't get another bottle, so as soon as it made it's return, I grabbed a new one.

It is a very warm, comforting scent. The citrus from the opening fades into the background quite quickly and the result is a blanket of dark, comforting vanilla, amber and benzoin. I really don't get much florals at all. I totally get the vintage vibe but that doesn't mean it's dated.

Cinema works brilliantly in cool weather for casual daytime wear with a cosy sweater, but also works equally as well for a glamorous evening out.

Comparing the original to the new bottle, I think the new might be a little lighter and the citrus appears a little more prominent in the opening. Aside from that, it's still essentially the same fragrance.

I was wearing this scent at the time, so it seemed fitting to review it.
This was the first scent I ever fell in love with and although that was many years ago,YSL have not altered the formula for the worse like so many brands have. A smart move because it’s a unique, sophisticated, memorable fragrance.

The vanilla, Benzion, jasmine and almond give it the warmth of a gourmand scent with the clementine to cut through the sweetness and give it that signature combination of notes that makes Cinema so unique.

It has a caramel quality that is reminiscent of the first stages of caramel making, when the scent starts to flood the kitchen (I’ve made a lot of caramel over the years!).

For vanilla lovers.
Silky vanilla with sweet fruits, amber and flowers, that gives it such a specific scent. It has the silkiness and warmth (amber) of Armani Code, but is much more vanilla-floral.
It reminds me a little, a little of the flowers from the Orchid Soleil (probably a lily).

I even forgot I have this fragrance and I can’t understand how i liked this once but I think I bought it for the bottle design. Way to heavy and masculine vibe for my tastes. For me, this is not a vanilla fragrance but a man cologne with hints of citrus and also can induce migraines. Not at all a safe blind buy.

Sweet vanilla-y pencil shavings. Not unpleasant, but not something I want to smell of.

I adore this scent.
Masterpiece.

This perfume is the best, I’m using this one many years ago, always get a lot of compliments, perfect for a date. Doesn’t smell like a sweet vanilla. Is amazing.

I like Cinema. I do not love it, but it's better than a 'meh'. It's warm and comforting and inoffensive. I get no floral besides almond blossom. It's more about the citrus, the vanilla and the very lightly spiced amber for me. A good everyday fragrance but not special. Kinda like a creme brulee - creamy, a touch of burned sugar, served with an orange slice. A very friendly perfume but not a 'wow'. It's what I know is safe to turn to when I can't decide which perfume to pick.

This envelops me in a smooth, gorgeous, comforting vanilla cloud. It really is “soft, mildly honeyed, subtly and darkly spiced, and enrobing in nature. It's a blanket fragrance, enshrouding the wearer not in a mist, but a solid aura of fragrance” as per lyciumchld’s review. The person who wears this is quietly confident, ethereal, and warm.

I’m in my mid-20s and I don’t find this as dated as other reviews suggest, and my tastes lean towards more juvenile gourmands and fruity florals. It does smell vintage on paper but it’s transmuted into a comforting, intoxicating, timeless scent on my hair and skin.

Don't believe the YouTube hype, this is vintage and smells like the late 90th. It's not a modern soft fruity vanilla, it's in your face screetchy soapy balsamic vanilla. You might like it, depending what your nose picks up on. But at least get a decant before you buy.

My review will not be helpful because I will describe the sensations and associations to this fragrance, which I don't remember. I remember it was an impact to me in my prom night, I studied in a private school where most kids were very wealthy and the girls even as teens always looked polished, calmed and selfassured (only after years later I found out about their fights and stabs in the back) while I was the tomboy outsider goth, though, and middle class like some other kids. I wasn't into beauty because I thought it was all too vain. But this scent on one of these girls made quite an impression on me. A tall blonde one always with perfect hair and clothes, later she studied medicine and became a plastic surgeon. I asked her about her perfume that night, it was this one. She has this perfect outside but actually many sad memories from school. And this was her glamorous scent that was a makebeliever for me for so many years. Hope this story translates the feeling this perfume delivers.

I loved Cinema a surprising amount. Up top, I get a blast of sweet candy like clementine. The majority of the wear is a smooth powdery vanilla almond with the slightest hint of floral notes to keep it light and airy. I'm hearing this has been discontinued which is a real shame because it's quite unique and cozy. Very warm and inviting. I first wore this to a winter party thrown by the company I worked for and it made me feel so precious and deserving of all the compliments I received.

Real quick -

this smells like lemony vanilla white-flowery perfumed soap. It doesn’t project and it doesn’t last long.

these can all be positives btw. just depends on what you are looking for.

It's almost impossible to tell this is a vanilla fragrance until well into its dry down. Cinema opens up with a blast of sparkly citrus then transitions to a crisp, light, delicately sweet floral. After some time (1 hr+), a musky vanilla base emerges with a little citrusy tartness left behind. With a few more hours of wear it loses all of its citrusy notes and what I'm left with is a rich creamy vanilla scent. With patience, it's an alluring Vanilla that needs a heavy hand of application as it's otherwise a skin scent. Overall I'd call it a musky citrusy floral with vanilla. Soft and wearable in any setting. Projection is low as is lasting power.

I bought this partly for nostalgic reasons - I remember trying Cinema in the shop years ago when I was in my early 20s, and found it very glamourous but a bit too formal or rich for me back then. To my surprise (in a good way), now to me it is not a super rich, glamourous or formal floral that I had expected it to be. Instead, it is a pleasant floral with a fresh citrus (not bubbly or sharp) vibe, with a dominant vanilla scent which I like. I can see myself wearing it for day time any season of the year, both for work and for casual occasions.

Maybe the reformulation has something to do with the different perception I have now, but I dont mind it too much (as I already have much heavier, deeper and thicker scents for use at night time). Cinema is overall very pleasant and lady like, not old fashioned at all, but classy and likeable.

EDIT: for the current formulation (2021 purchases), projection is quite weak, and longevity is only moderate.

i would highly recommend this scent ....... has a very beautiful almond opening and very gorgeous dry down well blended / composed with musk and vanilla and quit potent

This is okay. To my nose this is very reminiscent of viktor and Rolf Bon Bon. This is just a fancy sweet Perfume. The notes look lovely but this is almost a gourmand sweet fragrance to me. I'm debating selling the travel spray I have because although it's nice it lacks character in my opinion. It smells expensive and it smells sweet that's all I really get out of it. I also get similar vibes and feel the same about Nuit a la Folie and Olympea Legend except this smells more refined and slightly more mature or professional. Hope that helps.

It's meh. Beautiful bottle design though, they got me there.

Interesting fragrance. I bought a travel size vial of the current formulation last year and I really like it. It may seem strange to think this is unisex but in small doses it absolutely is, at least to me. The DNA is unmistakably YSL yet it's not too much of a stretch to think that the original versions of Paco Rabanne's One Million - both the women's and men's versions - drew some inspiration from this juice.

Cinema strikes me as somewhat of an unsung gem that may have been more influential than we realize.

I wanted to love this after reading all the notes and the fond reviews. My mini sample was a little underwhelming, to be honest. Maybe I'm just trying too many gourmands, but I was expecting to experience the top notes--almond blossoms, clementine, cyclamen...sounds amazing! But all I found in this were the white florals (peonies and a little jasmine) engaging with the musk and vanilla. Nothing really stood out at all for me. It reminded me of vintage late '90s vanilla florals that were wildly popular amongst the younger crowd, so it makes sense that it came out in '04.

Sillage was moderate to low on me, but longevity was impressive.

I like it, but this is one of those perfumes you'll pass over for more exciting and signature fragrances--this is the one at the back of your dresser or the bottom of your shelf, until one day you re-discover it and try it again to underwhelming results. Then back to the drawer it goes.

I had it years ago so I assume it must have been the classical formulation. This one was a bit heavy and overwhelming for me, even though I did and still like the fragrance. It is intense, sensual, floral and sweet, with a strong amber dry down. Amazing projection, good 8h longevity, and it def stands out and can even outwear you, as someone else stated.

This is a really well-balanced combo of citrus and vanilla. To my nose, this perfume stays pretty much the same and does not change or evolve throughout the day. It's an enjoyable scent and lasts on my skin and clothes most of the day. I'd recommend this for someone seeking a slightly gourmand perfume with some citrus touches to keep it from being too cloying.

I first bought a mini - I had never smelled Cinema before that, even though it has been around for a while. I was so pleased with the miniature EDT, that I bought a full bottle of the EDP and I'm very happy I did. This will get worn often because it has the versatility that I need in a perfume, good for day or night, pretty much a year-round beauty. Upon first spray, I get the sweet almond blossom and the fizzy clementine with the vanilla and benzoin base. Some powder comes in but it isn't overdone. I get some of the peony, amber, and white musk as it goes on. Cinema is a very pleasant floral vanilla that lasts moderately on my skin. I do wish I had an older formulation so I had a longer-lasting, stronger sillage scent, but this will do. What a gorgeous fragrance!

I've owned the current formulation of YSL Cinema for a few months and held off reviewing because I wanted the perfume to settle for a while. Now, after about 5 months, I can conclude that this is a very nice floral vanilla scent. However, it is so soft and fleeting that nobody else will smell it. No projection and it is gone in an hour. Such a shame. I'll hold on to it and use it as a bedtime perfume til I get even more frustrated. Hopefully it'll surprise me and become richer over the next year.
UPDATE: A year and a half later, Cinema indeed intensified. I can smell it for over 12 hours. in the summer. It remains a mild weather vanilla.

I got a travel spray, which I assume is the newer formulation. On first spray, I said "wow" out loud. I get the vanilla, amber, and some bright crispness. The scent is quite lovely, but I would agree with the prior reviewer that it is weak. I find it is intimate and sits extremely close to the skin, and lasts 3-4 hours maximum. If projection and sillage were better this might be a favorite. As it is, and especially because it is discontinued, I will not be investing in a bottle.

One of the most iconic YSL perfumes. I love the clementine and almond blossom accord; it's just very sensual and bright. To me it's a classic ; it just smell like "perfume" ; that's to me what a women's perfume should smell like. I own the old formula! A delight :)
i've head the newer formula is very weak, is that true ?

You can't hate this smell like it is not possible to hate this one in my opinion... because it is such a mass appealing scent that you would want to just spray it all over you and then go about your day but to be honest this would work the best in the evenings and I didn't even know that this si supposed to be glam. fragrance but now I do and I think it really does what it states. gives you the feeling that you are a film star, someone very important at a fancy place and in a very glam outfit. I would only get this for special occasions because I would feel like a queen when wearing this. At first, I thought it had orange blossoms in it because of the very mass appealing scent but I think what makes it so nice is the fact that it has peony and jasmine in it... very flirty and sensual in its formulation. You must have it, really. However, I do think it is a feminine fragrance, but still if you like it (I am pro wear whatever you want regardless of your gender) wear it. the opening of this is so lovely which could almost make it a summer daytime fragrance but still, it leans to a heady heavy fragrance type because of its composition. 10/10 but yeah risky to wear it in casual wear because this could outwear you. and actually, the more I smell it on my wrist i can imagine a man wearing this as well, it is all rounded nice one tbh. also this kinda gives me the vibes of living in the Mediterranean and having a breezy evening walk by the sea...

This occupies a weird niche for me - a comforting go-to scent for when I get bored with my current obsession. It's not quite exciting enough as a statement fragrance, but it's an all around, pleasing fragrance that's easy to like. Think of it like The Baxter of perfumes, never my first choice but it's an enduring standby.

This has been my signature scent since I was 16.

It is a sparkly, golden vanilla with a fresh citrus burst at the opening which vanishes and leaves a powdery, creamy, sexy feminine scent. It isnt an obvious white floral like ‘Dior Pure Poison’ because the vanilla, musk, amber etc notes are so strong here you cant identify a single floral that compliment them.

Out of my whole collection this is the one that repetedly gets me stopped. Women and men always ask me what I am wearing. It seems to be a favourite with my family too yet when I have purchased it for my sister it doesnt work on her skin.

I often put this on first and let it settle before chosing another scent to compliment it (dress it up or down) as I do feel even though its a great day to night scent... it isnt special enough for a huge occasion. For date night I prefer a more intoxicating scent.

Addendum:
RIVE GAUCHE a stellar masterpiece stands with YVRESSE (Champagne)
CINEMA imho needed more work.

CINEMA YSL
What is it about some perfumes which end up smelling like a desk full of pencil shavings? Probably just my skin chemistry. Or messed up olfactory system.

I LOVE all the reviews and feel a bit envious of perfume aficionados who are able to separate each glorious note in CINEMA. After 3 hours on my skin, it’s still raspy pencil shavings! A bit sweet, I’ll concede some florals, clingy denseness and deja vu of my dusty school bag.

I’m glad it works for so many. I’ll happily sell you mine at a huge discount. Only sprayed once. Inbox me.

After CHAMPAGNE, now called YVRESSE first in old packaging, later poured into a nondescript new packaging and weak formulation, nothing from YSL seduces. Original bottle was a design bomb.
Yves must be yawning.

From the sublime to the pedestrian.

I finally broke down and purchased a 3 oz bottle of this beauty, despite telling myself that I wouldn’t buy a full bottle of anything else until my 100+ bottles start to dwindle down some more. BUT she was calling my name like a siren for months. I kept breaking down to order 3 ml decants to hold myself over, but those quickly were used up.
This champagne like scent has me mesmerized...the clementines sparkling on the forefront, the delicious almond blossom in the middle, the intoxicating vanilla and amber base notes that warm me over in the same way Mugler Alien Essence Absolue does.
The sparkling gold bottle, and effervescent gold color perfume inside, is a work of art. And I can justify getting this. I have no other almond centric scent in my collection, and Hypnotic Poison doesn’t have that “sparkling gold and champagne” aura about it the way this does. So I chose this over H Poison.
I can see this working in a variety of settings... a movie star at the Grammys, a wedding, a prom, or just sitting home alone and wanting to feel fabulous regardless (hi! 👸🏻).
You got me, Cinema the Siren. You got me....especially when I walked past you at the mall yesterday. I knew it might be one of the last times I lucked out enough to see you in a store in person, knowing that you were somehow discontinued (what was YSL thinking??). You are a bit too weak in sillage for me, which wasn’t always the case based on older reviews mentioning your strength. But I can easily fix that by dousing myself in even more of you. You make me feel fabulous and you are worth gold to me. Hail to the sparkling almond queen! 👑

This is an incredibly delicious, syrupy vanilla, yet the powder makes it feel inedible. I find it rather conceptual and the closest mate to my beloved Georgio Armani Sensi. The DNA is in there, and it takes you on a similar journey. I agree with another reviewer below in mentioning D&G The One.
This bottle feels good in your hand, nothing is cheapening it. The flecks of gold on the glass give it a stunning regal appearance. Even the cap...solid, heavy. Atomizer...sturdy..intentional.
It’s definitely best suited for cooler months. I’ve found when met with fall temps this fragrance really comes alive. In the summer stays closer to my skin. It’s very well blended and Cinema makes a great partner to other perfumes should you want to layer.
I’ve heard others reference it as a 90’s perfume...but I don’t find it distinctly 90’s. It’s not of the cedar and sandalwoods and one note offerings trending today...but I love variety.
And sometimes a girl (or boy) wants to smell like a warm, scrumptious, elegant vanilla...

First off I'm going to say, I may be a flanny and boot wearing boag but I still appreciate the art of fashion dedign; and I've always had mad respect for the late Yvres saint Laurent as a designer, his work was a big step forward for his time, both in clothing and fragrance design.
But those days are behind us, and the world of fragrance has changed to move with the times..we no longer get Opium. ( What's been done to that, now thats an abomination) We get crowd pleaser such as Cinema. Don't get me wrong, I really like this one. It's pleasant and very easy to wear, but it just doesn't say YSL to me...

Anyway, On with it to the reveiw..
So this again, is nice, nothing in here is too much, it's not too sweet or too powdery or whatever, it's very well balanced and blended. It's a great throw on day fragrance for when I'm out and about but still wanna wear something that feels luxurious.
It's in the same vein as dolce and gabanna the one; one of those rich syrupy overly ripe fruits drenched in golden vanilla type of smells. It's sweet Clementine and creamy almond blossom in the opening , note, it's amond blossom not straight up almond, for all those who are disappointed in not getting almond from this. I like it; it's creamy sweet. Middle is quite floral and slightly nectar- ish, this is where I get over ripe fruits simmering in vanilla and syrup dusted with golden powdered sugar, really nice but never cloying. Interesting to read all the comments about the reformulated version being heavy on the florals with less vanilla; because I dated my bottle by the batch code and it was less than 3 years old but it's quite heavy on the vanilla and benzoin. It's what keeps the florals in check. I do love that this is a benzoin heavy scent that doesn't go chokingly powdery on my skin; which is what I find normally happens.

Yes, golden is just the best word I can think of. It's in no way aldehydic, yet has a real sparkling champagne vibe going on but that may be my own mental association with the colour of the liquid. It's balmy yet slightly powdery, creamy but also syrupy. A stewed fruit compote drizzled with vanilla infused golden syrup, and a glass of expensive champagne with almond flowers floating on the top.
It seems heavy on the skin but it doesn't project that way, it just gives nice little whafts throughout the wear to remind you that it's still there and others can smell it.
All in all, if im being honest, i do think it's overpriced but I do like it a lot and I do find myself using it a lot during the day

When I wear this perfume I think about a golden screen very classy actress.
Cinema is so beautiful. The opening is so citrusy from the clementine. Then the almond blossom peaks through and the beautiful Vanilla and benzoin, this is a year round perfume, it works in any situation and it’s not to intense. 10/10

Just received my sample. This is really pretty, very soft and very white floral. I think it smells very much like Gaultier Classique Essence. If you like that, you'll probably like this. Projection is low.

Found a 1oz sealed bottle for a bargain e snagged it. I had really high hopes for it, being compared to my dear Trouble and all, alas, my expectations were not met. Don’t get me wrong, I still like it, it has a lovely round and soft dry down in my skin, but it stay veeeery close. It is a keeper, when I am in craving mild sweetness I will go for it.

At first spray I get the Peony and Citrus notes. After 30 minutes or so I’m happy to say that these notes soften up because I am not a fan of peony or heavy citrus fragrances. It’s a very well blended sweet vanilla based fragrance but not just a plain vanilla.

It would be such a pretty fragrance if only it could lack the cloying mandarine note.

Omg this is so 90 s even if it's created in the 2000. Its warm, cozy vanilla, the benzoin is making it warm... and the cyclamen/amyryllis old schoolish.... It reminds me of the time in the 90 s where my cousins and I got into the Munich opera house and all women were beautifully dressed up in glam dresses with nice hair... The women who wear this is coming straight from the opera, she wears silk.. under her dress.. and gold as jewellery.. this is not for every day.. but if you feel like it, go for it :)
Its more for day time.
Great signature-I agree.
Time of the year-Autumn, because it does not have enough power for Winter.

Oh, honey beehive! No seriously, stay away from bees and bears and go next to your lover when you wear this. A friend recommended Cinema to me as one of her favourite honey fragrances ages ago and I remember not seeing it registered as a note, however, the floralcy, creamy vanilla and powdery amber smells like nectar recently sapped from mimosas and almond blossoms, doesn’t turn sour, sweaty, dowdy, urinous and ruinous like most other honey fragrances on my skin, so I am now a bee-liever.

A cautionary advice, at first it smells like mandarin soap with a shard of plastic, but wait for it, this is pregnant with greatness and is going to deliver it at the end thanks to the gravitational pull of the amber. A gleaming golden tray of the best Lübeck marzipan sweetened with honey instead of sugar in the shapes of clementines and mimosas.

This is really nice. It starts with a zesty mandarin blast (thought it was neroli at first) that mellows down very quickly to a more rounded fragrance that's still fresh. Then the scent goes through adolescence and transforms into a dry but not powdery, smooth, moderately sweet vanilla-almond. At this point, it's not fresh, and sort of smells like a classy freeze dried creamsicle. It stays in this phase for the rest of its adult life. This is not dated at all. Classy, cozy, sexy...perfect first date perfume. Fantastic non-plastic vanilla that's not too cloying.

i believe this opens with amber and amaryllis with a bit of peony. a bit later i start to notice the benzoin and clementine. it's a citrussy floral amber at this point. i finally get some vanilla and almond after about an hour but it's pretty subtle. it took about an hour but it's really growing on me. at first it's quite strong! however it is a pretty scent. it's warm, spicy and a bit sweet.

A very pretty and warm vanilla fragrance. Great as a signature scent!

EDIT: Everytime I wear this, I received so many compliments (just recently purchased it) and they are mostly from people who NEVER compliment me!! The cloud this fragrance leaves, so many people love on me!!! Absolutely brilliant fragrance!!

I remember smelling it for the first time when i was much younger; probably it was when perfume was launched; a tester bottle came to me inside a fashion magazine that my mom bought. I smelled it and as a teenage girl i was amazed! I immediately looked up to its name; Cinema and i saw its glamorous ad, i literally memorized it.

Anyway all those years passed and i remembered it in some periods; decided to try it but then forgot and it was like a cycle; wanted to try it but forgot; again and again.

Afrer this brief story, right now i have this gem, after all this year; with possibility of having a let down because its possibility to be different than i recall; i got it :D I am not disappointed at all; it is the warm and nice smell i remember.

To me it is clearly a vanilla; it s not a pure vanilla smell, it s supported by nice amber but vanilla is so dominant to my nose. I can say that it is a warm, elegant and mature scent. Also It is mentioned below; i cant smell florals too.

Sillage and longevity is good. To me it s a really good winter scent, definetly would go so well with cold weather. I cant imagine wearing this during summer. This s a perfect perfume to smell from your thick scarf during winter.

I tested out the eau de toilette but made the mistake of purchasing the parfum. While the edt has less citrus and more vanilla, the parfum keeps about the same amount of vanilla and amps up the citrus (and another note I'm not to sure of) which results in me not liking this frag. I wait and wait for the citrus to fade but unfortunately, it never does. I've given it many many chances but its just not for me. Hopefully the person I've passed it along to (a total vanilla lover) could love her in the way I couldn't. This seemed like but wasn't a safe blind buy. On the other hand, a similar scent (in that it combines citrus and vanilla) which I have been testing and am so far loving is Guerlain Shalimar Souffle Intense. One thing about souffle intense though is that it is a rich (bordering heavy) scent that has strong sillage and because of its "old fashioned"-ness and powderness won't be for everyone. While cinéma isn't a brand new creation, it does feel more modern than souffle. Back to Cinéma, while I adored the bottle which was luxiourous in design and weight (a beautiful beautiful bottle and a heavy luxe cap), the scent didn't suit its design or even the fragrance's name - which I'd hope would evoke an old hollywood glamour and elegance. I don't know, this one just didn't do it for me. It wasn't bad necessarily, just not good. Not very complex or changing (which might be good for some), a note balance which I did not like, and not deserving of its name or bottle.

Total love.
Once I bought this a present for a friend, then forgot about it. Till 2009. Then I smelt it again, I matured and got hooked. Got a bit upset when they started to discountinue it. Can still buy it online, at airports, guess not travelling though much lately.Thank God I stashed up with 4 bottles and flankers, store it in the wine cellar, cool, dark place. Totally love it. However I have noticed that bottles before 2012 smell nicer, the ones I bought lately seem to be reformulated a bit. Wear EDT too.

This is my absolute favorite vanilla. I sought out a decant after DeliciousDelights on YouTube went over her "best vanilla scents." Love at first sniff! I used the hell out of that decant until I could get my hands on a 3oz full bottle for a decent price (finally found it for under $60, new). She's the perfect feminine, glamorous, delicious vanilla. The clementine top note makes it light and sweet; giving the frag a truly versatile identity. Someone described her as a "work-horse" frag and I have to agree. If I'm not sure what to wear, I reach for Cinema.

A back up 3oz bottle is in order. I shan't be without this gem.

Longevity is good (6+ hours 4-5 sprays). Sillage is soft but strong (arm's length at least for 5+ hours).

One of my all-time favorite vanilla-amber fragrances: deep, rich, and mellow. While I suppose that Cinéma is technically a gourmand, its sweetness is beautifully understated. This is a glamorous yet welcoming fragrance: the name, the bottle, and the note profile all align to evoke the gilded diaphanousness of old Hollywood. The vanilla is warm and natural, filled and rounded out with the nutty-toasty-honey note of candied chestnut. Then voilà, the clean softness of the florals (fresh peony, airy cyclamen, and elegant amaryllis) paired with juicy clementine (not as acidic as orange or as lactonic as apricot or peach) makes an entrance, adding just the right amount of citrus-floral delicacy. After a while, the amber, musk, and resin take over, radiating a golden light and girded in fleshy jasmine. The evolution is remarkable and none of its stages ever disappoints. Cinéma is one of those rare perfumes that is destined to become a classic yet which will never alienate its wearers, unlike other famous scents. Comforting and confident, refined yet fun, Cinéma will always have my heart. Anybody of any age can wear this, in my opinion, despite it being more feminine-leaning. Good for all seasons and occasions except for hot, humid weather.

Had a couple of bottles when it first came out. I could smell a garden in Summer with a glamorous woman walking through. I loved the almond and neroli. Why was it cheapened, ruined and discontinued? I could weep.

Dear cinema...marry me! Perfect with my body chemistry, I personally loathe powdery scents, not getting any of that just florals almond blossoms & vanilla with hints of musk & citrus. Very NYC chic not syrupy or too sweet not cloying perfect & lasts 16hrs!

I had a friend who wore this, and I couldn’t smell it on her, she used to shove her arms under our noses and the scent was quite faint, pleasantly sweet and classy, but honestly, kind of boring. I tried it on my own skin, and didn’t like the opening but the dry down was very lovely! Sweet and cozy. However it doesn’t really project and doesn’t have much personality. Jessica Simpson’s Fancy is similar to the dry down and has much better projection, cheaper too.

I agree with the reviews that this smells like vegetables- so weird how I got whiffs oh sourness like pickles and vegetables I’m the opening- it also reminded me of contre moi and then I see it is the same perfumer( they dry down differently ) after the bizarre opening it dries down to a sweet but nit too sweet vanilla with floral notes- in a world full of vanilla florals I can’t say thins stood out nor did it repulse me- it does not smell cheap but I am glad I only bought a mini as it is not a love for me in spite of being a huge vanilla fan

What on earth?! This here is my first and probably my last full bottle blindbuy. I had such high hopes for this; the notes seemed great; the reviews were mostly great; the bottle looked Pretty nice, even sniffing the nozzle got me so excited. Everything was PERFECT until I sprayed this on my arm and I went...okay...wait what? Where is the vanilla? Where is the warmth? All I smell is some flower and something peppery/ spicy that makes me feel sick (the sickly spice was in the forefront for like the first 5 mins). Then at like 10 minutes the floral note became more prominent but the peppery note was still lurking and I just can’t stand it.

8 hrs later and that’s still all I’m getting

The crazy thing is, the scent from the nozzle is sweet, soft and beautiful but on my skin, absolutely zero sweetness, not even a hint. the notes just go bonkers
I can’t bother to try again today...maybe tomorrow

Lesson learned. Do not jump on a perfume wave just because it’s being discontinued; if you haven’t smelled it yet, you can probably go on living the rest of your life comfortably without doing so.
But if you must, test first!


EDIT: *Ahem* I think I got a bit too aggressive back there. 2 months have passed and I’ve actually worn this occasionally. And dare I say, this isn’t just tolerable, it’s also quite enjoyable AS LONG AS IT DOESN’T TOUCH MY SKIN. I’ve just stuck to spraying it on my clothes alone as this keeps the beautiful vanilla in the forefront while the citrus notes give the vanilla an ‘airy’ quality. It’s sweet, light and elegant. On my skin, however, sickly spice comes out to play and that’s the last thing I need

I had a best friend who used to wear it. It was just so perfect for her! She was a classic beauty and this scent just highlighted her beauty. She was only in the beginning of her 20s but she was able to wear it. Since then I wanted to try it out, but I didn't want to wear the same fragrance as my best friend, so back then I tried to ignore it, then I didn't have the opportunity to try it out on my skin, until today. It was very calm and pretty on paper, but on my skin... horrible! It was just a mess on my skin. Such a shame, I wanted to buy this classic scent before the stores run out of it but it doesn't fit with my skin. :(

oh cinema, i want to love you so badly but i'm just not that into you. i've been wanting to try this perfume for the longest time, and when i was finally able to get a sample of the EDP, we just didn't click. the notes listed in cinema are absolutely gorgeous and when blended together, they create a sensuous, classy old hollywood vibe with a fresh touch - but with my skin, it developed into a syrupy, saccharine and powdery floral mess. on me, it smelled like ava gardner, on a night out but it's 4am, and she had too many cigarettes and whiskys on the rocks.

on the right skin chemistry, i can imagine cinema opening up with it's light citrusy and soft floral tones, while the vanilla almonds and amber enters in it's final stage to create an elegant, beautiful and subtly carnal vibe. this one would be perfect for the fall/winter evening on a date night on the town followed by some fun under blankets with your special lady or man friend :)

Sweet, smokey and musk. Nothing special.

I can't believe it I found this! I had given a glass bottle perfume with silver details, no name years ago and loved it. It was my go to everyday scent that winter. Then I finished it up so quickly and it was so sad that i never was going be able to purchase it again because there was not a single writing on the bottle. And today I tested Cinema because many bloggers recommend it as an evening perfume and there it was this familiar scent! Wow. For me it is very wearable all day long. Powdery, warm, inviting and there is this note that makes it the best. Now as I see from the list this note must be the clementine, but I perceive it as very overripe fruit, just before they go bad, some kind of plum, definitely something red like berries.

One of the best vanillas ever toghether with Dior Addict (original). Grab it while you can!

Oh man, instant love! Cinema is a very beautiful fragrance. Sweet and citrusy with intoxicating jasmine and soft almond blossom. The dry down is warm and slightly powdery with amber and vanilla. Impressive sillage and longevity, which is always a plus. Sophisticated, sensual, and glamorous.

With a sparkling yet creamy mandarin mimosa opening, this beautiful perfume transforms into an elegant floral scent. I love how Cinema develops into a fragrance that melts with wonderful warmth into your skin; shimmering with a radiant, amber-vanilla base, with a very subtle mouthwatering caramel note. As someone whose skin normally eats up perfume, on me this lasts and lasts and lasts: I tested this early yesterday morning and could still smell it on my wrist late last night. Ordered a full bottle last night - can't wait to pick it up!

Ah, beautiful Cinema! I'm late to the party here but am glad to have finally made it. Someone sent me a decant probably more than a year ago and I just used it for the first time last week. I was overcome with how absolutely beautiful this fragrance is and am now the proud owner of a full bottle.
Somehow Cinema manages to be sophisticated and dressed-up while concurrently exuding a comfortable femininity, like a confident woman who is at ease with herself and the world around her.
The opening with the clementine is sweet, zesty, and beautiful; the powdery floral drydown introduces an elegant, true but sweet vanilla that has me forever sniffing myself when I wear this.
Fragrance: 10/10
Performance: 10/10 I could still smell this on my clothes the next day!
Value: 10/10 The price is right, the bang-for-buck ratio is excellent.
Will I buy this again? Damn straight, I hope to never run out of this inimitable classic.

I love this fragrance but it will not be produced anymore. Help me what a fragrance is so much like the fragrance that I can replace?

Lovely scent, too much vanilla for me. The drydown after 4-5 hours smells weird on my skin.

Cinéma is elegant and demure, but never loud and in your face. For that reason alone the name is slightly misleading, but the perfume is just gorgeous. If there ever was a perfect bedtime perfume this is it! Cozy and pleasant vanilla heaven all the way.

Longevity and sillage are moderate, but as a curl up skin scent, this is perfect in its own way.

I think KylieBooFace nailed it. I thought this was going to be a beautiful vanilla. Its always suggested on vanilla forums & I see high votes for it but I dont smell it. I get something weird & spicy. The scent is rather off putting. This one is not for me.

Oof. I received a mini splash EDT from FragranceNet and can report this is not how I thought it would smell. It's "off" and smells like an herbal savory spice I don't like. Vegetable? It's not soft vanilla floral or oriental like Avon Far Away. Disappointing, but the bottle is still super pretty for my collection.

When I was looking for my sample of Cristobal I ran across this little decant of Cinema and spritzed some and a couple of other scents on my other arm. I had a couple of things to do before showering and got engrossed in those projects.
My focus was miles away from perfumes and then in the back of my mind thought, "what has Avon Far Away on it?" I was thinking it was on something like my throw blanket but I hadn't worn it too recently. Far Away is in my top five of all time.

Upon smelling my arm again it was the Cinema. Almost an exact dupe, those two scents smell alike on me.
I wondered why I still had that Cinema left over then remembered why! Cinema smells just like Far Away to me and I actually like Far Away a bit more because it's softer in the dry down stage but lasts all day and even into the next morning on my skin.
Cinema is a floral, vanilla scent with amber and musk in the base.
Cinema was launched nine years after Avon Far Away.
Hmmm.

Wow! You never stop discovering. The more perfumes you sniff the more of them start overlapping!
What a pretty perfume! Many women would never buy an Avon scent, not in a million years.
Avon customers who do try fragrances from the line should be happy to know that there are some that could easily pass as high end designer fragrances!

I bought Cinema based on reviews and was not disappointed. It’s an intoxicating luxurious scent with ample sillage. The opening scent is of clementines soaked in sweet liquor and over time becomes a subtle and musky vanilla scent. Perfect for a woman in her 30s who knows herself. I think of someone like Cate Blanchett wearing this. I think it is wearable in the daytime if you keep it to one spray. For the office, I would only save it for when I want to feel powerful.

A note for the packaging: it is absolutely stunning, from the minimalist gold YSL box to the beautiful embossed bottle that evokes the Turner Classics era of movies. Very MGM. The quality is much more impressive in person than in pictures. I love the very solid brushed gold metal cap, even though I dropped it on my foot and it hurt. Such a contrast to the plastic caps we get on most perfumes these days. I’m glad I got a 90ml bottle of this before it gets too hard to find!

Another blind buy, another disappointment. I had such high hopes for C, too, but it just doesn't agree with me. Maybe it's a reformulation, I've no way of knowing the age of the sample.
On my skin this is powdery and fuzzy, with oddly undefinable notes. What's listed in the pyramid doesn't show up in my sample.
Sillage and lasting power are average. C. is that blockbuster movie everyone loves, but it leaves me wondering what the fuss is about.

Omg. VoldeMinuit thats the BEST review.
I have loved Cinema because it reminds me of Sensi but more spicy and fresh. Love it, almond, powdery, slight chai. Yummy. Should have kept it but may but again one day.

Smells like my boss- Chanel No 5 X Vanilla. Like Eau Duelle, one of my favorites, but less spicy and more elegant. Beautiful bottle.

This reminds me a lot of Guerlain Spiritueuse Double Vanille and of Diptyque Eau Duelle. At less than half the price, whatever subtle differences it has compared with the other two is immaterial to me. This is an exceptional quality juice and utterly enjoyable to boot. If you love spicy vanilla that is.

This is a really, really great perfume, very unique, and will definitely make a good signature scent.

Unfortunately for me, I will always associate it with a high school friend of mine who wore it really well. This perfume will forever and always be "her" to me, it's truly her signature.

It's for evenings out, for sure.

I like this but just wish it had more citrus notes. Whenever a fragrance has Jasmine and Vanilla, the Vanilla seems to take over the scent. This is no different. The vanilla overwhelms and everything else is pushed to the background. I really don't smell spices, just Jasmine. It's only in the dry down that the vanilla really comes through but there is that ever-present vanilla muddling up the whole thing. I'm not sure about this yet and really need to do a few more wears, in different seasons, to get a better read on it. As for now, this is just a like and not a love. That is, like every other perfume I'm not sure about, subject to change.

Cinéma embodies the golden age of film for me. The glitz, the glamour and the eleganza. There's a bitterness to it that just seems to emulate the roughness of a perfume from the time. Well rounded, easy to wear... but also not so easy. That clementine and almond combine to create the aforementioned bitterness, but it's accompanied by a delicious and creamy vanilla. As it has been mentioned, this does feel very 'French'. Not in a N°5 way, but definitely in a contemporary (although timeless) way.

A beautiful classic with some of my favorite notes: Clementine, Vanilla and Amber. Stays the same from start to end. Comes out classy, happy and feminine. Slightly sweet but not gourmand-sh.
Decent lasting power, 6+ hours for me.

This was beautiful at one time. Now it is generic and short lived . Nice packaging, but not much to the perfume at all in my experience this month(2019).

Mmm... this is exactly as described. Exactly. Florals, vanilla and Amber. There is a pleasant aromatic quality to start with. And then it's a classy, warm, pretty and feminine fragrance. This is definitely on my want list.

I get grapefruit, honeyed caramel. At a party, eyes lock - she is there and it gets quiet. Still - and surefooted.

I agree that this perfume is an intriguing scent combo. It opens slightly sweet-powdery-citrusy, which is my favorite phase, and stays like that for a couple of hours. It then goes into flower territory, where slightly indolic jasmine takes center stage accompanied by a sweet, fruity-flowery smell (the amaryllis, perhaps?). It then moves to and ends in very powdery vanilla, which is the phase that I enjoy the least, although it's still pleasant. It's very feminine, with a moderate projection and a good lasting power. I'd say it's a cuddling/slouching scent. I wouldn't buy the full-size, but I'll enjoy my mini nonetheless.

6/10

Cinema is an interesting fragrance. I decided that it was the kind of thing I'd wear if I wanted older women to think that I was older and more mature than I actually am. It is not sweet, and is powerful without feeling overwhelming or suffocating. It lasted around 4 hours on me. It dries down to a powdery vanilla, a bit reminiscent of some of the vanillas from Sylvaine Delacourte. It almost has a "gourmand" undertone.

I blind bought this perfume and it was love at first sniff !!
Its a full on orange blossom vanilla almond on me. I was bowled over by the almond note actually and when I got my very first-time whiff i remember thinking Ive waited my whole life to have this perfume. A holy grail i didn't know I was searching for.
I don't save perfumes for special occasions because to me everyday is 'the' occassion. I always endeavour to make every day a beautiful day but THIS perfume became a special special occassion scent. Partly because its hard to find now and partly because its soooo glorious and glamorous. Its a mega love for me.

This was a blind buy gone very very wrong: to me, the vanilla of Cinema was overpowering from beginning to end - also the sillage was huge, as after one spray in the bathroom my family noticed it after stepping in from the front door. I tried to wear this twice and sold it away. I seem to belong to people who enjoy vanilla in the background but not as the star of the show, so for others who have the same tendency, I would not recommend to blind buy.

The perfume is very intense at first - I can mostly smell the jasmine. But it becomes softer with time. I absolutely love the drydown as it’s really warm and cozy. I find myself leaning in and sniffing my wrist once in a while to get that cozy feeling. It’s like a warm hug in cold weather. Perfect for winter and autumn. Longevity is very good, if I spritz myself (one spray on a wrist which I use to dab the other wrist and neck with - I don’t like strong sillage) in the morning, it lasts until the next day.

Edit: I got a reformulated version for Christmas which is too strong and lacks the cozy warmth and sweetness of the old version. It seems to me like they removed some of the more expensive ingredients such as benzoin.

@Desmondorama
Interesting, thank you Desmond!

i'm a man and i was looking for a fragrance for a friend for his birthday.when i tested it i was blowned away.it hypnotyse me and i still remember that feeling till now.my friend told me that his mum want to take it from her because she love it too so i had no choices and i've promised to buy another one for her lol.so lady if you wanna smell class,sophisticated and chic get this.i know a lots of female fragrance but this is probably my favorite.

One of my favorite all time perfumes has always been Sensi by Giorgio Armani. Sensi collected more compliments than any other perfume I've ever owned (men were seduced by it, women were intrigued by it). Usually with many perfumes that men prefer, I detest, but with Sensi, it was a different story. Anyways Sensi was discontinued, and I wasn't able to access it for many years.

On came Fragrantica, and after researching thoroughly on this site, I came across a post that said Sensi had similar qualities to Cinema by YSL and this was echoed by a few on the Fragrantica board. A few months ago, I purchased Cinema, and I'm incredibly pleased. Like Sensi, Cinema is an enigma and smells very similar to the gourmand dry non sweet, spicy vanilla that Sensi produced. Sensi was a bit more spicy.

Needless to say, this is also a man magnet. Every single guy I've asked rated this perfume higher than the others in my collection, and that includes TM Alien, Lolita Lempicka (original), Armani Code, JS Fancy

Scent: 9.5/10
Sillage: 7/10
Longevity: 9/10 (10-12 hours)

You know, there are some bottles which don't tell it's for perfume, but then you come across bottles that immediately bring a picture of a beautiful boudoir with a mysteriously seductive aroma and you see a perfume bottle in front of the mirror, well this is the fragrance bottle I see on that table and the aroma that comes with that picture.

This was my signature winter fragrance for years, through end of high school and early university. It is the most warming, comforting, but at the same time bright and sparkling scent that really shined in the colder temperatures. It had great longevity, and the scent would stay on my scarves for ages. There was a note in it that to my nose smelled like sweetened black tea, which I love and haven’t been able to find in other fragrances!
I took a break from it and then read that it was reformulated and then discontinued altogether ;( why YSL?? Im so sad about this, and will be hunting around for vintage bottles.

Sweet powdery in the dry down that smells like a lot of my other sweet perfumes. Creamy sweet scent that has a hint of floral notes but for me the amber and benzoin notes dominate and create a warm heady composition. The bottle is very beautiful to look at.

This is a beautiful amber vanilla with nuances of clementine in the top making it juicy not fruity with florals woven throughout and musk. It is warm, rich and decadent. I am not a vanilla fan but this one is complex and interesting.

I purchased this solely because I heard so many comparing this to my all time favorite scent: L'Instant by Guerlain.

This is an ok scent, but nothing spectacular. A bit too sweet for my liking and cannot really be compared to L'Instant.

Whereas L'Instant has it's cold, icy and windy mysterious side, which is so uniquely out of this world, this scent is quite ordinary to me. An ordinary sweet and quite warm scent.

The same sweet vanilla and a hint of honey, which can be found in L'Instant is present in here as well (like in so many other scents), but not the mysterious and beautiful coldness and freshness of L'Instant, which makes it so unforgettable and different from anything else. The coldness and freshness also cut down the sweetness in L'Instant, so that the scent is not too sweet, whereas the main thing I get out of Cinema is just sweetness.

The quick dry down time is the best for me.
This perfume could definitely be used as a signature scent, because it's very original. People will recognize you as soon as they smell it.

Glamorous, sexy, mysterious and kind of fresh at the same time.

I have this, and it is rich and opulent, and the vanilla is gorgeous! But the persistent citrus takes it to the furniture polish / citronella candle realm. I wonder if it had less citrus, what other fragrance it would be comparable with?

It really is gorgeous, but those notes overpower and ultimately ruin it for me :( But if you LOVE citrus + vanilla, this might just be your jam! (and it might double as a luxurious bug repellant too if you're lucky ;P *joke* )

interesting one.. it sits somewhere between Chanel No 5 and Coty Exclamation!. it's sophisticated due to benzoin, heavy and mature due to amber but a bit kitschy with the sour peach and clementine..? Heavy, evening scent, elegant and mature with Coty Exclamation! twist. I have it available for swap if you like. UK only please.

Not doing anything for me. Not liking it at all.

I love it.. I agree that it is reformulated, as it is more citrusy and less syrupy than before, maybe not syrupy anymore. This is the reason I love Cinema now, it is wearable and so so nice... I did not like it when it was released. This reformulation is good. I hope they keep this formula, as I am thinking to have this as my signature fragrance for a long time. Also, its longevity and sillage is good enough for me.

A wearable, easy to like vanilla-amber with a dollop of citrus, mainstream scent. File this under guilty pleasure: I've always liked it but have never pulled the trigger for a FB. Sampling a decant of the original formula.

(reformulated version)
This is weird. I detect hardly any vanilla, just sweet flowers with a bit of sour fruit. It goes almost powdery on me! I hoped for a more syrupy, rich kind of scent... It smells good but nothing to write home about. Sits very close to the skin and longevity is poor, I'm afraid. :(

An everyday fragrance, nothing out of ordinary. The bottle is gorgeous, though!

Peony + sweeeet benzoin + wet newspaper/tea bag ; at first it is nice, "effervescent" and even wearable, but after 15 minutes changes into cheap, fruity, sticky, syrupy scent resembling Wink by Avon.

This sweet vanilla beauty is definitely one for colder weather and definitely not one I would have worn as a teen.
It is sophisticated, sweet and spicy.
I love it!

If associated with a movie, this perfume would be in Italian movie, scent of those sexy, over the top glamorous ladies, wearing luscious curls and red nail polish with flowery summer dresses. This is all creamy vanilla and taste of sparkling mandarin wine in your mouth. Love it.

I got my red dress on tonight
Dancing in the dark in the pale moonlight
Done my hair up real big beauty queen style
High heels off, I´m feeling alive
/Lana Del Rey - Summertime Sadness/

Cinema is a glamorous scent for a red carpet event. It offers you a unique blend of smoky vanilla & sparkling oriental notes /candied orange peel, soft almond blossoms, mysterious scent of cyclamen & honey-sweet resins/. It´s sexy and romantic at the same time & it reminds the echoes of the golden age of Hollywood.

Im a bit worried to read the reviews saying Cinema is not too good these days. My bottle I purchased sometime ago is DIVINE and I felt as if I had waited my whole life to smell such a glorious scent. The almond orange vanilla in this is amazing. I think I will still get a couple of bottles as I know its a discontinued fragrance. I really can't believe they would stop making it. Why oh why. Its just like Nina Ricci's Farouche. Another glorious scent but was discontinued in the late 80s. Why oh why oh why !!

One of the few perfumes that truly makes me sick...cloying, syrupy, chemical, sweet, synthetic mess. All i smell is cheap tangerine and almond blossom with some sharp musky/peppery note that I can really only describe as chemical/plastic, with a strong whiff of alcohol. It smells like a dollar store knockoff body spray but I know my bottle is real, the only thing it has in common with other expensive perfumes is that it's strong, but that just adds to how cloying and sickeningly sweet it is. YSL perfumes don't seem to work on me and sorry but this one is just plain bad, a true scrubber. Maybe it's just the reformulation because I agree with the reviewer below who compared it to the smell of cheap hairspray.

let me start with what i still remember from cinema when it first launched... femininity, sexiness, curves, red lipstick ... Film Noir woman! years and years passed by and i always wanted to sniff it again so i ended up ordering a bottle and i was so eager to try it! well it dissapoint me :( the reformulation killed the scent, now it's an alcohol mess that smells like a cheap hair spray with no projection... why YSL why??? this is a classic in the house perfume history and yet they killed it! i don't get why all the high fashion houses insist on killing their perfumes with reformulation?! is it because the material got more expensive? well simply keep the quality and higher the price! they are a luxury brands so one should expect their perfumes to be expensive! gotta hand it to new perfumers who r making niche perfumes that worth every penny! RIP Cinema :(

it is very rememberable fragrance :)

A truly elegant and beautiful fragrance. This is one of my favorites makes me feel like a goddess every time. A 10/10 for sure.

My review is for the current formulation. I blind bought this fragrance because of the glowing reviews. It is pleasant but in my opinion not worth the hype. Cinema smells like a well crafted celebrity fragrance. It opens up very strong and almost overwhelming but then disappears very quickly. I like the combination of white florals and vanilla but I will stick with Classique EDT and Organza which to me are more memorable and long lasting.

Another IFRA disaster... A beautiful, aristocratic smell, turned into a chemical mess which lasts 1 hour and then is GONE. The first edition is a treasure, is a liqueur, almost an essence.Deep, strong, with personality. Nowadays (or what is still on the markets because it was discontinued this year) is a pale clone of the real Star it was before. RIP, beautiful Cinema. And welcome all the craps YSL is producing nowadays.

The thing that set this apart for me when it came out was the almond note. The almond, vanilla, and amber were very smooth and sensual without being too sweet. The white flowers rounded things out nicely, and I remember it being sexy but not too heavy. I keep seeing that word "elegant" in other reviews, and the description is apt. Cool bottle as well. I really loved this fragrance, but unfortunately I ended up being allergic to something in it (the first and only time I had a reaction to a perfume) and my skin and it did not play well together, so I had to get rid of it.

This dries down to an aldehydic white floral which bears some similarity to Chanel No5 (due to the aldehydes), but is peachier, in a sophisticated way, and more modern.

Classy, understated but noticeable. Sensuous not salacious.

Longevity is very good, I am smelling the dry down from a test strip after 24h and it is still full bodied.

Could suit any age - the fruitiness keeps it youthful, but the aldehydes give it a classic feel.

I may buy this for my wife!

For me, Cinema is a fairly simple citrus-vanilla-amber fragrance - I don't really get much of the floral - but its simplicity is what makes it so graceful.

The EDP comes off as strong, generic citrus for the first few minutes, but quickly dries down to warm creamy vanilla, with freshness and sweetness from the clementine and powdery white musk in its final stages.

Medium projection and longevity. Ultra feminine and classy. Smells expensive. Just delightful.

It's really quite sweet and syrupy, it almost reminds me of some sort of liqueur, maybe Amaretto with the almond note...I notice that fragrances that get the "love" vote on Fragrantica are often atomic bombs of perfumes, some of us are just have more delicate sensibilities ;)

My very good friend says that Elle and Cinema are both perfumes for bigger size women. She says you have to have the height and the weight to be able to pull these off. And while I admit that I would like to be in place where I can just borrow Elle from my mom, I would actually like to own Cinema. Even though the ad says it's for glamorous women who boast Hollywood scale social life, I believe that in 2017 that translates that it is even for those who like GOING to the cinema. :) I swear I can feel dust in this perfume. The dust of the movie theater even though these new ones are sprayed and sterilized all day long. But, we are talking gold. The gold of the movie screen, the romantic date, and definitely an autumn evening stroll. No, it is not a daytime perfume, it is a very big "hommage" perfume, not only for glamorous girls but also for girls who admire glamorous girls. There is a very urban and trench-coat feel to it, very old times feel to it, buy it and wear it now, in September, October and November- when the new releases hit the movie theaters (nobody goes to cinema during summer in my country). Cinema is rightfully golden. 10/10.

I tried it once at fragrance shop on my skin. I liked the name, but the scent seemed soo boring to me! And the smell was deasapeared in an hour. Maybe that is just my skin. Though, i will give it a second chance due to good reviews here.

A sweet citrus opening with a creamy vanilla dry down. Elegance and coziness with excellent performance, what's not to love?