PREMIUM THEATRES
Arclight - The Bridge - El Capitan - Grauman's Chinese
Universal Studios Cinema
Art House & Revival Theatres are on this page.
Featuring the Cinerama DomeARCLIGHT CINEMAS
6360 Sunset Blvd
Hollywood CA
Website: www.arclightcinemas.com
TICKETS: $14 Friday & Saturday evenings, $11 other times
DISCOUNTS: members who register at the website earn points for purchases which they can apply to get a free ticket on ?Member Movies? (usually titles that have been screening for more than two weeks); free 4-hour parking with validation.
FEATURES: large multiplex with advanced, reserved seating (members can order ahead of time online); excellent projection and sound; no pre-movie commercials; a store with books, posters, photographs and other souvenirs; a small caf?taurant (serves Brunch on Sunday); the only theatre in Los Angeles, licensed to serve alcohol, which they do at their 21-and-over screenings.
HIGHLIGHT: the large curved screen in the Cinerama Dome, absolutely the best way to see a movie in Los Angeles.
DRAWBACKS: expensive prices, but the luxury of the movie-going experience is worth it.
SPECIAL SCREENINGS: frequently programs midnight screenings; exclusive 21+ screenings (usually Friday through Monday of a film's opening weekend), restrict admission to people over twenty-one, and serve alcohol (including wine and martinis).
SPECIAL SERIES: Master Storytellers features Q&A sessions with filmmakers. Also presents regular series like AFI?s 100 Years/100 Movies (classic films form the American Film Institute?s Top 100 list) and an annual Music Documentary series.
THE BRIDGE CINEMA DE LUX
Featuring IMAX
6081 Center Drive
The Promenade at Howard Hughes Center
Los Angeles, CA 90045
(310) 568-3375
Website: www.thebridgecinema.com
TICKETS: $11.50 adults, $7.75 bargain matinees and children
IMAX: $13.75 adults, $10.75 children
FEATURES: stadium seating, wall-to-wall screens, Dolby surround sound; premium screening rooms (?Director?s Halls?) with leather seats and assigned seating; Center Stage presents brief live entertainment before weekend screenings; 12 Lounge serves appetizers and martinis; the Coffee Bar serves cappuccino and other specialty drinks.
HIGHLIGHT: a giant IMAX screen, one of the most impressive large-film formats in existence.
DRAWBACK: Most feature films are not shot in the IMAX format, so blowing them up onto the large IMAX screen (which emphasizes height rather than width) can sometimes result in lower picture resolution and a cropped image (similar to what happens when you watch a widescreen film on your television set without letterboxing).
EL CAPITAN THEATRE
6838 Hollywood Blvd
Hollywood, CA
1-800-347-6396
Website: Disney's El Capitan Theatre
TICKETS: $15 adults, $13 children and seniors
VIP Admission: $24 (includes popcorn, soft drink, reserved seat)
GROUP RATES: $11 (for twenty or more)
FEATURES: One of the most beautiful theatres from the golden age of movie palaces, El Capitan was restored to its former glory several years ago by Disney, which now uses the theatre to premier its brand new films. The interior decor is colorful; the seating is comfortable; the screen and sound are excellent (many films are shown in digital projection here).
HIGHLIGHT: The balcony gives an excellent view of the screen, and it holds you up close to the theatre's richly detailed ceiling, a wonder to behold in and of itself. (A few years ago, while waiting for the premier of the latest Disney animated film to begin, my youngest nephew was tryng to convince his older brother that had had been along with us for a previous premier. "You're always saying you saw things that happened before you were born," the older newphew said. The younger nephew replied, without missing a beat, "I was watching from heaven." Intrigued, I asked, "Really? What does heaven look like?" My newphew looked around at the fabulous ceiling so close above our heads and said with complete sincerity, "Like here!" That's a pretty fair assesment of the view from El Capitan's balcony.)
DRAWBACK: Ticke prices tend to be high, because they usually include the cost of a live-stage show preceding the movie. You have to deal with traffic on Hollywood Blvd, and parking can be difficult. Fortunately, it's worth all the effort, once you get inside the theatre.
GRAUMAN?S CHINESE THEATRE
6925 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90028
(323) 464-8111
Website: www.manntheatres.com/chinese/index.htm
Or click here for show times from MovieFone.
TICKETS: $11 adults, $7.50 child, $7 senior
FEATURES: state-of-the art projection and sound, making it the second best best place in Hollywood to see a movie (right after the Cinerama Dome)
HIGHLIGHT: the beautiful interior design of the theatre, with its color oriental d†Ë, is worth the price of admission all on its own. And don?t forget the famous footprints in concrete, outside.
UNIVERSAL STUDIOS CINEMA
Featuring IMAX 3D Theatre
100 Universal City Plaza
Universal City, CA 91608
(818) 760-8100 general IMAX information,
(818) 766 IMAX [4629]
Websites: Loew's CityWalk Cinemas
Or click here for show times from Fandango.
TICKETS: $10 adult, $7 children and seniors.
IMAX: $12 adults, $9 children and seniors
DEALS: Movie Meal Deals for $19.95 per person (two person minimum) give you a ticket to a movie, dinner at one of a half-dozen restaurants at Universal CityWalk (menu choices are limited with the deal), plus an $8-dollar refund on your parking. Find more details at the official website by clicking here.
FEATURES: 18 screens, 6,000 seats; pastry and cookies in the Cinema Caf?sp;Located within the Universal CityWalk, so there's lots to see and do after the movie.
HIGHLIGHT: IMAX 3D Theatre, with a screen six-stories high and eight-stories wide, combined with a six-channel 12,000-watt sound system. Not all IMAX screenings are in 3D, obviously, but when they are, the effect is stunning, thanks to futuristic helmets that include not only polarizing lenses for your eyes but also stereo speakers for your ears?quite an advance over the flimsy cardboard glasses from the 1950s.
DRAWBACKS: the theme park attracts crowds on the weekend, so be prepared to deal with that; parking can be a bitch, too, but once you?re there, you can enjoy spending the whole day.
NOMENCLATURE: Because the theatre complex is located at CityWalk, which is a part of Universal Studios, there seems to be some confusion about what to call it. Depending on whether you're reading the newspaper or going on line, you might find names "Universal Studio Cinemas," "Universal Studios Cinema," or "Universal CityWalk Cinemas." We've opted for "Universal Studios Cinema" (or "Universal Cinema" for short).
