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Aric M L
05-03-2005, 06:23 PM
So I'll admit, I'm a nerd and have already ordered tickets to opening night. Is anyone else nearly as excited for this finale as I am? Also could we all be hoping this is the exact opposite end the spectrum from Episode I

Kam
05-04-2005, 05:45 AM
first movie i'll be going to watch opening weekend in a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ong while.
next will be batman begins and then war of the worlds.

peace
k2

kexodusc
05-04-2005, 08:10 AM
Dunno about opening week, unless I can scam into an early afternoon weekday show (which are usually not too busy here).
I'm probably one of the rare few that actually liked Ep I and II for the most part with the exception of Jar-Jar in I and the bad 1930's romantic movie -love scene dialogue in Ep II. Not on par with the Original Trilogy, but far better than a ton of other crap out there in recent years. Though I think Lucas is starting to go senile or something - he's just not making much sense anymore.

dean_martin
05-04-2005, 08:22 AM
So I'll admit, I'm a nerd and have already ordered tickets to opening night. Is anyone else nearly as excited for this finale as I am? Also could we all be hoping this is the exact opposite end the spectrum from Episode I

Aric M L,

Join us at the Favorite Films board!

topspeed
05-04-2005, 10:48 AM
I remember seeing the first Star Wars (aka Ep. IV) like 10 times in the theater when it came out in '76. Of course, I was just a kid then and in my estimation, every succeeding episode has just gotten worse (OK, Empire held it's own). I'll take the kids to this one, but I'm not so psyched as to brave the madness on opening weekend. It does look to be more adult oriented and less syrupy than Ep. II. We'll see...

MomurdA
05-04-2005, 10:54 AM
im leaving work early so i can make sure to see it on thursday. yes im a nerd, but i have gone to see the other two opening day as well, so i might as well go. its amazing how many seats are available for a 230 afternoon show.

eqm
05-04-2005, 11:11 AM
I remember seeing the first Star Wars (aka Ep. IV) like 10 times in the theater when it came out in '76. Of course, I was just a kid then and in my estimation, every succeeding episode has just gotten worse (OK, Empire held it's own). I'll take the kids to this one, but I'm not so psyched as to brave the madness on opening weekend. It does look to be more adult oriented and less syrupy than Ep. II. We'll see...

Obviously I don't know how old your kids are, but this is the first one to have a PG-13 rating and is supposed to have plenty-o-decapitations and de-limbings.

looking forward to this one! :cool:

topspeed
05-04-2005, 11:58 AM
Obviously I don't know how old your kids are, but this is the first one to have a PG-13 rating and is supposed to have plenty-o-decapitations and de-limbings.

looking forward to this one! :cool:
Ooooh, really?

Hmmm, I might be rethinking this then as my boys are 5 and 3.

Thanks for the head-up on the heads-off :p.

eisforelectronic
05-04-2005, 07:45 PM
I've had tickets for the midnight showing for almost two weeks now. Yes, i'm camping out as any true geek should. We have considered catering food for our line waiting festivities. You gotta go all out, there won't be another Star Wars premiere to go to.

Anybody buy the EpIII soundtrack yet? It comes with a bonus 70 min DVD, "Star Wars: A Musical Journey" I bought one , but haven't listened to it yet or watched the DVD.

Woochifer
05-04-2005, 09:50 PM
I plan to wait a couple of weeks before seeing it. I have a Memorial Day weekend trip to SoCal planned, so I'll carve out some time to see it on one of the many great single screen theaters down there. Unlike in other big cities, a lot of the big movie palaces in L.A. have survived and kept pace with state-of-the-art projection and sound equipment.

The big screen Coronet theater in San Francisco that showed all of the Star Wars films dating back to the original chapter sadly shut down a few months ago. The few remaining single screen theaters left in San Francisco have inadequate sound systems (not that the Coronet's was that great to begin with), and much smaller screen sizes. Star Wars just wouldn't be the same in some anonymous megaplex, so I'm willing to wait the extra week to catch it in a big theater.

As a sidenote, I read that a group of Star Wars fans have camped out in front of the Chinese Theater in Hollywood for two months, and the movie might not even play there! Ep. III is confirmed for the Cinerama Dome a couple of miles away, but as far as I know, the line has not moved there yet. Oh, if only I had that much time on my hands!

anamorphic96
05-05-2005, 07:14 AM
I beg to differ Woochifer. The Metro theatre in SF has the same sound system as the Coronet except for different surrounds. Star wars will be opening here and be presented in Dolby Digital EX. :D :D :D It is one of the few systems around that is capable of 8 channel SDDS and can still run 70mm. So yes there is still a grand single screen in SF. War Of The Worlds will be coming after Star Wars as well. ;)

Woochifer
05-05-2005, 11:47 AM
I beg to differ Woochifer. The Metro theatre in SF has the same sound system as the Coronet except for different surrounds. Star wars will be opening here and be presented in Dolby Digital EX. :D :D :D It is one of the few systems around that is capable of 8 channel SDDS and can still run 70mm. So yes there is still a grand single screen in SF. War Of The Worlds will be coming after Star Wars as well. ;)

Thanx for the info, but my trip has been planned and I'll probably catch the movie at the Mann Village in Westwood, which is probably my favorite theater because of its projection quality, huge auditorium (1,400 capacity), and standout sound system (the subwoofers alone sit inside of a massive enclosure that required ripping out the front three seating rows to install). The Metro is a nice theater, but it's definitely smaller than the Coronet, although if the sound system is identical to the one inside the Coronet, then it might make for a better sound experience. I always thought that the sound system at the Coronet was pushed beyond its comfort zone, but it had the huge screen and the buzz with a full house.

paul_pci
05-05-2005, 12:46 PM
I plan to wait a couple of weeks before seeing it. I have a Memorial Day weekend trip to SoCal planned, so I'll carve out some time to see it on one of the many great single screen theaters down there. Unlike in other big cities, a lot of the big movie palaces in L.A. have survived and kept pace with state-of-the-art projection and sound equipment.

The big screen Coronet theater in San Francisco that showed all of the Star Wars films dating back to the original chapter sadly shut down a few months ago. The few remaining single screen theaters left in San Francisco have inadequate sound systems (not that the Coronet's was that great to begin with), and much smaller screen sizes. Star Wars just wouldn't be the same in some anonymous megaplex, so I'm willing to wait the extra week to catch it in a big theater.

As a sidenote, I read that a group of Star Wars fans have camped out in front of the Chinese Theater in Hollywood for two months, and the movie might not even play there! Ep. III is confirmed for the Cinerama Dome a couple of miles away, but as far as I know, the line has not moved there yet. Oh, if only I had that much time on my hands!


Wooch, have you been to the Bridge right off the 405, just north of LAX? It's an awesome theater, with a bar and everything. I'd be happy to join you if I'm not outta town.

http://www.thebridgecinema.com/home/home.asp?l=7801

Woochifer
05-05-2005, 05:05 PM
Wooch, have you been to the Bridge right off the 405, just north of LAX? It's an awesome theater, with a bar and everything. I'd be happy to join you if I'm not outta town.

http://www.thebridgecinema.com/home/home.asp?l=7801

I have been there. Saw LOTR:FOTR there a few years ago on the IMAX screen when it first opened. Probably should have tried one of the other auditoriums, because a 35mm print projected onto an oversized screen that close to the audience just didn't look right. The picture looked dark and grainy, but the sound was pretty good. I heard that The Bridge has some smaller "director's" screening rooms, with oversized leather chairs and tighter focus on the sound. Sounds pretty cool, and I think that they did something similar at the Arclight (of course, whenever I visit that theater, I'm there to watch whatever's screening at the Cinerama Dome next door, so I don't get to take advantage of the smaller theaters).

paul_pci
05-05-2005, 05:17 PM
I have been there. Saw LOTR:FOTR there a few years ago on the IMAX screen when it first opened. Probably should have tried one of the other auditoriums, because a 35mm print projected onto an oversized screen that close to the audience just didn't look right. The picture looked dark and grainy, but the sound was pretty good. I heard that The Bridge has some smaller "director's" screening rooms, with oversized leather chairs and tighter focus on the sound. Sounds pretty cool, and I think that they did something similar at the Arclight (of course, whenever I visit that theater, I'm there to watch whatever's screening at the Cinerama Dome next door, so I don't get to take advantage of the smaller theaters).

I also saw the LOTR (TT/ROTK) in IMAX there. Sometimes I wonder abut IMAX. If you're up to close, then it's not really a good experience. My first experience there, though, was the director's hall as they call it and it was awesome: assigned seating, precisely the oversize leather chairs you mention.

Woochifer
05-05-2005, 07:36 PM
I also saw the LOTR (TT/ROTK) in IMAX there. Sometimes I wonder abut IMAX. If you're up to close, then it's not really a good experience. My first experience there, though, was the director's hall as they call it and it was awesome: assigned seating, precisely the oversize leather chairs you mention.

I think projecting 35mm onto an IMAX screen just doesn't look right if the projection uses the full width of the screen. It's too close to the audience, unless you sit in the back couple of rows. Plus, with the big screen and closeup viewing, the image looks very grainy. IMAX is supposed to envelop your entire peripheral vision, and the IMAX movies are framed to take advantage of that, and the theaters are designed to put the audience "into" the movie. Plus, the film format is large enough to not look grainy on an IMAX screen.

As a sidenote, I also saw the IMAX version of Episode II, and it was a mixed bag. By transferring the movie onto the large print format IMAX projector, the image quality was stunning. I was actually shocked at how good the images looked considering that the movie was made using digital camcorders. The only image flaw that I could pick up on was that the live action images looked two-dimensional and lacked depth.

But, the main drawback of seeing Episode II in IMAX is that the aspect ratio got truncated. The IMAX version used the full IMAX screen, which unfortunately chops off the image on the sides. This made the IMAX experience more like the "pan and scan" experience. A lot of the action scenes were very hard to follow because so much of it was in the peripheral vision, which just exacerbated the narrow image frame. Still, it made for some interesting viewing, and apparently the IMAX version benefited from some extra editing -- a lot of the scenes with Padme and Anakin were mercifully cut out. :D

anamorphic96
05-05-2005, 09:03 PM
Thanx for the info, but my trip has been planned and I'll probably catch the movie at the Mann Village in Westwood, which is probably my favorite theater because of its projection quality, huge auditorium (1,400 capacity), and standout sound system (the subwoofers alone sit inside of a massive enclosure that required ripping out the front three seating rows to install). The Metro is a nice theater, but it's definitely smaller than the Coronet, although if the sound system is identical to the one inside the Coronet, then it might make for a better sound experience. I always thought that the sound system at the Coronet was pushed beyond its comfort zone, but it had the huge screen and the buzz with a full house.

The biggest problem the Coronet had was acoustics. All the hard surfaces made the system a bit harsh with the wrong soundtrack. It could have used 8 subs instead of 4 but thats not gonna happen anymore.

The Metro has a larger screen by 5 inches in width. The screen at the Metro actullay fits the auditorium better in some ways and has better visual impact. The Metro seats 675 and actually sounds better in the mids and highs. Much smoother sounding. The bass is not quite as tight as the Coronet but there is more of it. I only wish they would ditch the older JBL surrounds for the big EV surrounds that the Coronet had. The Metro uses all EV behind the screen with bi amplification and double stacked bass bins and 4 subs.

eisforelectronic
05-06-2005, 01:31 AM
I think projecting 35mm onto an IMAX screen just doesn't look right if the projection uses the full width of the screen. It's too close to the audience, unless you sit in the back couple of rows. Plus, with the big screen and closeup viewing, the image looks very grainy. IMAX is supposed to envelop your entire peripheral vision, and the IMAX movies are framed to take advantage of that, and the theaters are designed to put the audience "into" the movie. Plus, the film format is large enough to not look grainy on an IMAX screen.

As a sidenote, I also saw the IMAX version of Episode II, and it was a mixed bag. By transferring the movie onto the large print format IMAX projector, the image quality was stunning. I was actually shocked at how good the images looked considering that the movie was made using digital camcorders. The only image flaw that I could pick up on was that the live action images looked two-dimensional and lacked depth.

But, the main drawback of seeing Episode II in IMAX is that the aspect ratio got truncated. The IMAX version used the full IMAX screen, which unfortunately chops off the image on the sides. This made the IMAX experience more like the "pan and scan" experience. A lot of the action scenes were very hard to follow because so much of it was in the peripheral vision, which just exacerbated the narrow image frame. Still, it made for some interesting viewing, and apparently the IMAX version benefited from some extra editing -- a lot of the scenes with Padme and Anakin were mercifully cut out. :D

I liked the IMAX cut of Episode II better than the original release!

Kam
05-06-2005, 05:34 AM
As a sidenote, I also saw the IMAX version of Episode II, and it was a mixed bag. By transferring the movie onto the large print format IMAX projector, the image quality was stunning. I was actually shocked at how good the images looked considering that the movie was made using digital camcorders. The only image flaw that I could pick up on was that the live action images looked two-dimensional and lacked depth.
D

I saw the imax version of Spidey2 and the image quality was incredible on that too. Imax is pushing a new agenda now, where they are going to simultaneously release films in the regular theaters and Imax as well, rather than wait a few months. They're also pushing their 3D technology for mainstream movies, converting many films. not exactly sure how. but also read that lucas is interested in re-re-re-re-releasing the original trilogy in Imax 3D. Just in the rumour mill now, but who knows, might happen.

peace
k2

topspeed
05-06-2005, 10:45 AM
Thanx for the info, but my trip has been planned and I'll probably catch the movie at the Mann Village in Westwood, which is probably my favorite theater because of its projection quality, huge auditorium (1,400 capacity), and standout sound system (the subwoofers alone sit inside of a massive enclosure that required ripping out the front three seating rows to install). The Mann Village is a great theater! Isn't that the one with the big, plush chairs? There are three great theaters all within a few blocks right there and sometimes I'll get them mixed up (Village, Bruin, and one other). The Cineramadome is a terrific theater as well. I wouldn't mind watching the movie at either to be honest.

Woochifer
05-06-2005, 11:42 AM
The biggest problem the Coronet had was acoustics. All the hard surfaces made the system a bit harsh with the wrong soundtrack. It could have used 8 subs instead of 4 but thats not gonna happen anymore.

My impression of the Coronet was that the volume was sometimes cranked too high for the system to handle. The harshness I noticed, but I also heard occasional distortion, especially in the bass. Despite that, I still liked that theater because seeing a movie there felt like an event.

It seems that I've encountered sound issues with most of the big single screen theaters in S.F. The Alhambra, the Regency, the North Point, and the Castro are/were all grand movie palaces. Beautiful auditoriums, but with bad acoustics and/or inadequate sound systems that made the dialog very difficult to follow. IMO, the Castro is the grandest remaining movie theater in S.F. Nothing like getting a concert on the mighty Wurlitzer pipe organ before the show. Too bad the only movies I can follow there are subtitled foreign films! (Behind the screen, there's a huge amount of space, which creates all kinds of reverb)

And that's the biggest difference with the big single screen theaters in L.A. Most of them have treated the acoustics and minimized the reverb from the screen speakers. The Village, Bruin, Crest, and National theaters in Westwood, and the Grauman's Chinese, El Capitan, Egyptian, and Cinerama Dome in Hollywood are wonderful single screen theaters with a grand feel. But, they also have modern sound and projection systems that are better than what you typically find at even the newest theaters.


The Metro has a larger screen by 5 inches in width. The screen at the Metro actullay fits the auditorium better in some ways and has better visual impact. The Metro seats 675 and actually sounds better in the mids and highs. Much smoother sounding. The bass is not quite as tight as the Coronet but there is more of it. I only wish they would ditch the older JBL surrounds for the big EV surrounds that the Coronet had. The Metro uses all EV behind the screen with bi amplification and double stacked bass bins and 4 subs.

Wow, that's great info. I might have to give that theater another try. It's been a few years since I've visited that theater, and if I recall it was refurbished not too long ago. Since that pie shop on Union Street closed, I haven't been as inclined to drop into that neighborhood to watch a movie!

Woochifer
05-06-2005, 12:05 PM
The Mann Village is a great theater! Isn't that the one with the big, plush chairs? There are three great theaters all within a few blocks right there and sometimes I'll get them mixed up (Village, Bruin, and one other). The Cineramadome is a terrific theater as well. I wouldn't mind watching the movie at either to be honest.

The Mann Village is the big one with the balcony. They remodeled the theater a while back and switched out those old velvety chairs for newer ones (though now the armrests have cupholders and the rows have a little more legroom). Still an awesome theater, and probably my favorite one overall. After that theater got renovated to THX standards (this was back when the THX label actually meant something), the management used to put this lighted sign out in the lobby that listed all of the equipment that they installed in that sound system. That was some serious hardware and they were understandably proud of the monster that they'd created! The bass in particular at that theater is deep and powerful, but doesn't feel overly pushed or strained like it can at a lot of megaplexes.

The Bruin is right across the street, and the National is the big brown modernist looking theater down the street. Another personal favorite is the Crest Theatre on the other side of Wilshire Blvd. Great sound system and projection, but they also have these fluorescent murals with old Hollywood scenes on the walls. When the lights go down, those murals glow like neon signs. And the ceiling has this shooting star effect that's also really cool.

The Cinerama Dome's got that big deeply curved screen, and they redid the sound system a couple of years ago and fixed the acoustics. Wonderful theater, and the lobby now has bar service! I saw Jedi at the old Cinedome in Orange, which also had a curved Cinerama screen. If you can get a seat in the middle of the theater, watching action scenes and chases in particular on a Cinerama screen can give you a sensation of motion. Definitely worth checking out next time you're down in L.A.

Woochifer
05-06-2005, 12:13 PM
I saw the imax version of Spidey2 and the image quality was incredible on that too. Imax is pushing a new agenda now, where they are going to simultaneously release films in the regular theaters and Imax as well, rather than wait a few months. They're also pushing their 3D technology for mainstream movies, converting many films. not exactly sure how. but also read that lucas is interested in re-re-re-re-releasing the original trilogy in Imax 3D. Just in the rumour mill now, but who knows, might happen.

peace
k2

As much as I love the stunning image clarity on IMAX prints, I do have a problem with the way that the IMAX versions trunate the sides on widescreen movies. Most of us on this forum are all for widescreen DVDs and don't care much for pan & scan versions. But, with an IMAX version of a widescreen movie, it's really the same thing as pan & scan.

I guess if an IMAX version of a movie gets released, I would prefer that they either extend the image frame further at the top and bottom, or "letterbox" the image so that you still get the image clarity of the IMAX print without truncating the action on the sides. Either that or just film the movie on IMAX film and frame off the top and bottom of the image for the 35mm prints. Or maybe even show the movie only at IMAX theaters.

I've heard about the 3D rumors as well. That could be a very new experience! I've seen IMAX 3D movies before, and it's quite a trip how convincing that 3D effect is.

topspeed
05-06-2005, 01:57 PM
The Cinerama Dome's got that big deeply curved screen, and they redid the sound system a couple of years ago and fixed the acoustics. Wonderful theater, and the lobby now has bar service! I saw Jedi at the old Cinedome in Orange, which also had a curved Cinerama screen. If you can get a seat in the middle of the theater, watching action scenes and chases in particular on a Cinerama screen can give you a sensation of motion. Definitely worth checking out next time you're down in L.A.

The National! That's the one I couldn't remember! It's been a while since I've seen a movie in Westwood as the only reason I'll go to LaLa Land anymore is to attend a 'SC game, visit relatives in Newport, or take the kiddies to Mickey's. I have seen a few movies at the Cinerama Dome and I love the curved screen! The downside is when you're too close and off to the sides. It kinda sucks.

This would actually be kind of cool topic for a thread: Best Movie Theaters

If you ever get over to the Central Coast, check out the Fremont in San Luis Obispo. This homage to Art Deco has a great sound system, 70mm screen, and the ceiling is detailed with black lit indirect lighting in a paisley pattern. It's very cool. The wine festival is May 21st if you and the missus need a reason to get away for the weekend (and like to drink great wine).

Sir Terrence the Terrible
05-06-2005, 02:28 PM
The Cinerama Dome's got that big deeply curved screen, and they redid the sound system a couple of years ago and fixed the acoustics. Wonderful theater, and the lobby now has bar service! I saw Jedi at the old Cinedome in Orange, which also had a curved Cinerama screen. If you can get a seat in the middle of the theater, watching action scenes and chases in particular on a Cinerama screen can give you a sensation of motion. Definitely worth checking out next time you're down in L.A.

Wooch, if you get a chance check out a action movie in the dome. I saw T2 there when it reopened after the remodel. They had some issues with the sound system being so powerful that if was fluttering the screen during bass heavy scenes. My impressions of this system is that it sounded like a huge high end speaker system. Exceptionally clean even when at overbearing levels. If Star wars plays their, that's where I am going to see it.

Woochifer
05-06-2005, 02:51 PM
This would actually be kind of cool topic for a thread: Best Movie Theaters

You're right! Great idea because we can trade ideas for theaters to visit whenever any of us are on the road. I'll post the thread later on.


If you ever get over to the Central Coast, check out the Fremont in San Luis Obispo. This homage to Art Deco has a great sound system, 70mm screen, and the ceiling is detailed with black lit indirect lighting in a paisley pattern. It's very cool. The wine festival is May 21st if you and the missus need a reason to get away for the weekend (and like to drink great wine).

I've seen that theater many times. Looks great from the outside and if I'm down there again on business and have to stay overnight, that sounds like a good plan.

Geez, yet another event on May 21st! This is like the fourth item that's been passed onto me for that Saturday! Wine Festivals are always agreeable with my wife (she's got the thing for the vino!), and if it's an annual event, then that might be something to circle on the calendar for next year. Thanx for the heads up. As of now, we're penned in for a club gig with Royal Crown Revue that evening (the bar that they're playing is managed by Mr. Vise Grip, who's best known as the former vocalist for the New Morty Show, another one of the neoswing heavyweights from back in the day). They always put on a great show, and don't come up to the Bay Area as often as they used to.

anamorphic96
05-06-2005, 11:29 PM
My impression of the Coronet was that the volume was sometimes cranked too high for the system to handle. The harshness I noticed, but I also heard occasional distortion, especially in the bass. Despite that, I still liked that theater because seeing a movie there felt like an event.

It seems that I've encountered sound issues with most of the big single screen theaters in S.F. The Alhambra, the Regency, the North Point, and the Castro are/were all grand movie palaces. Beautiful auditoriums, but with bad acoustics and/or inadequate sound systems that made the dialog very difficult to follow. IMO, the Castro is the grandest remaining movie theater in S.F. Nothing like getting a concert on the mighty Wurlitzer pipe organ before the show. Too bad the only movies I can follow there are subtitled foreign films! (Behind the screen, there's a huge amount of space, which creates all kinds of reverb)

And that's the biggest difference with the big single screen theaters in L.A. Most of them have treated the acoustics and minimized the reverb from the screen speakers. The Village, Bruin, Crest, and National theaters in Westwood, and the Grauman's Chinese, El Capitan, Egyptian, and Cinerama Dome in Hollywood are wonderful single screen theaters with a grand feel. But, they also have modern sound and projection systems that are better than what you typically find at even the newest theaters.



Wow, that's great info. I might have to give that theater another try. It's been a few years since I've visited that theater, and if I recall it was refurbished not too long ago. Since that pie shop on Union Street closed, I haven't been as inclined to drop into that neighborhood to watch a movie!

I agree, most of theatres have issues. The Metro is good to my ears but could still use some work at tightneing up the bass. The biggest problem is the companies dont want to pay the money for the upgrades. Down in LA its a different story since the studios are there and DEMAND perfection for screenings and premieres. These houses are under CONSTANT care by the union or an in house technician. Which outside of LA and NY is practically non existent.

As far as the best sounding system in the city. Public - This honor goes to the Metreon's big house. I think its house 13. This house when properly set is awesome. The only things I can attribute this to is proper set up (most important) and the new 3 way EV speakers they installed. This house is also using about twice as many amps as the typical theatre. But the kicker is the picture quality has slipped and they cant seem to focus the lamp or image to save there lives. On top of that half the time the picture is scratched. GRRRR such a shame.
Now for private theatres. This goes to the Dolby screening room. But thats to be expected.

A few other things to note. The Castro did get the Regency's sound system when it closed but they screwed up the install. JBL all around.

The AMC 1000 Van Ness seems to have the most consistent presentation quality along with repectable sound.

The Galaxy theatre despite its terrible seats, no cup holders, and no legroom has two great sounding big houses. But they dont get the movies like they used to.

If you ever have any random questions about the theatres here in the city let me know. I can tell you just about anything you might want to know as far as whats behind the screens and being used in the booth.

anamorphic96
05-06-2005, 11:50 PM
Wooch, if you get a chance check out a action movie in the dome. I saw T2 there when it reopened after the remodel. They had some issues with the sound system being so powerful that if was fluttering the screen during bass heavy scenes. My impressions of this system is that it sounded like a huge high end speaker system. Exceptionally clean even when at overbearing levels. If Star wars plays their, that's where I am going to see it.

Are you referring to Arclight. If so that was one MASSIVE undertaking at 60 million dollars.

A few details -

The screen is 86 feet wide by 32 feet tall. With a 126 degree curve.

Speakers are all JBL. Amps are all QSC. There are five stage speakers with 3400 watts going to each channel. The surround chains use 11 amps with 2400 watts going to each chain. If im not mistaken there are 12 subs but not sure on the power though.

Pretty impressive if you ask me.

eqm
05-07-2005, 06:28 AM
sorry to bring this thread back on topic, but.......

To Topspeed and anyone else with younger children:

Here's a link I found with a full spoilered description of the things that might disturb a child so you can decide whether or not to take the kiddos:

http://www.theforce.net/topstory/story/Parents_Guide_to_Revenge_of_the_Sith_92098.asp

spoiler spoiler spoiler spoiler...and....spoiler. :p

Woochifer
05-07-2005, 04:32 PM
Wooch, if you get a chance check out a action movie in the dome. I saw T2 there when it reopened after the remodel. They had some issues with the sound system being so powerful that if was fluttering the screen during bass heavy scenes. My impressions of this system is that it sounded like a huge high end speaker system. Exceptionally clean even when at overbearing levels. If Star wars plays their, that's where I am going to see it.

I've been to the Cinerama Dome a couple of times since they refurbished it (both times they showed the three-projector Cinerama trailer for This Is Cinerama -- WOW!). The first time I saw Minority Report, and thought that the sound was harsh and grating. More recently, I saw Kill Bill at the Dome, and thought the sound was more like how you describe it. It's an expensive ticket ($14 on weekend evenings), but the service at that theater is outstanding and there is something very civilized about reserved seating. Plus, when the tickets are that expensive, you don't get as many loudmouthed teenagers there.

Episode III is opening there for sure (the lineup party is still at the Chinese, even though that theater has yet to book the movie), so looks like you'd better fire up that hybrid for a roadie!

Woochifer
05-07-2005, 04:59 PM
Are you referring to Arclight. If so that was one MASSIVE undertaking at 60 million dollars.

A few details -

The screen is 86 feet wide by 32 feet tall. With a 126 degree curve.

Speakers are all JBL. Amps are all QSC. There are five stage speakers with 3400 watts going to each channel. The surround chains use 11 amps with 2400 watts going to each chain. If im not mistaken there are 12 subs but not sure on the power though.

Pretty impressive if you ask me.

Thanx for the details, again great info. That sounds like even more power going to the speaker system than the Village in Westwood uses. Aside from the improvements to the system itself, the tricky acoustics at the Dome have been tweaked very well.

I believe that the budget you mention includes both the renovation of the Cinerama Dome and the add-on of the 12-screen Arclight multiplex next door. Still a very high budget for a movie theater project. I've read that the Arclight's smaller theaters have become favorites among people working in the industry because of the reserved seating and the high quality presentation (less acoustical issues than the Dome).

Ironically, with all of the attention to detail with the service and the presentation at the Arclight, The Grove megaplex (built by the same theater chain that owns the Arclight around the same time) a few miles away at Farmer's Market is now the highest grossing theater in the country. That theater has a more flashy design, and is more like a normal megaplex.

Hard to believe that the original plan for that project was to chop off part of the Cinerama Dome and reduce the interior size by replacing the curved Cinerama screen with a flat screen. The multiplex would be adjoined to the dome directly behind the screen. Fortunately, the plans were revised to preserve the Dome and build the multiplex as a separate building. Some preservationists are still miffed that the renovation installed a one-piece Cinerama screen, rather than one built out of multiple strips like the original Cinerama roadshow screens (the designer said that a multi-strip screen would not work because the more powerful subwoofers they included would make the screen vibrate). But, at least the integrity of the Dome design is intact.

Aric M L
05-11-2005, 09:47 PM
Unfortunately, the best option I have available to me (due to money and time) is driving 20 miles to the "Ultra-Screen" in Appleton WI. What I wouldn't give to be able to see this movie on this Dome you're talking about. At the risk of sounding more like a redneck, I'm almost salivating. Although that might be partially due to the trailers make it look like this might be the first "new" Star Wars Lucas has gotten right in a while now. Not that I didn't like the first two, just that Jar Jar really tainted the first one for me. And while the second wasn't bad at all I just didn't get that epic feeling. Just the trailer for III gives me as much of it as II did anyways!

eisforelectronic
05-15-2005, 02:43 AM
My peeps and I have officially started the line for Ep III here in Hawaii! And there's already a family camped out behind us. Let the madness begin!

My friend that went to the Convention in Indy also went to the benefit premiere in LA and seemed quite impressed with the movie.