As much for the pictures as the text!!
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Monday, December 05, 2011
Sundance Cinemas, Welcome to Houston!
So far I have attended three screenings at the new downtown art house cinema, Sundance Cinemas, and let me tell you, my movie-going will never be the same! After a much-needed $3 million renovation of the former home of the neglected Angelika Film Center (neglected by Houstonians AND by its corporate parent), the place has been transformed into a Movie Palace.
The ticket prices are transformed, too. Introducing a concept called 'amenity fees' -- to counter the cost of being 'green', so they say --each ticket comes with a surcharge of $0 to $2.00, depending on the time of day. You will need a cheat sheet to figure out how much a movie will cost at any given screening. Even after paying more than I've ever paid to see a movie outside of NYC ($12.50 on weeknights, $15.50 to see Hugo in 3D!), I intend to be a regular.
The 3 films I saw there were:
1) J. Edgar -- with such a clear picture, you can see just how bad the make-up jobs were on the actors.
2) Melancholia -- if you have to sit through this bore, it might as well be in nice surroundings (with a pizza and wine). The constant thumping from the Twilight soundtrack in the next theater was a major distraction.
3) Hugo - 3D -- the cool glasses aside (which they wouldn't let me keep!), I did not get much from the 3D experience.
Another plus: each theater's capacity has been dramatically reduced, giving it the feel of a screening room more than a multiplex. The projection was exceptional, the seats plush and rocking. As I said before, I intend to be a regular. Who else should support a venue like this but the foreignfilmguy?? It's my duty, cost be damned!! [I'll never get used to the 'reserved seating' concept, however -- I like to choose my seat once I get in the theater (after I identify all the talkers and avoid them!).]
The ticket prices are transformed, too. Introducing a concept called 'amenity fees' -- to counter the cost of being 'green', so they say --each ticket comes with a surcharge of $0 to $2.00, depending on the time of day. You will need a cheat sheet to figure out how much a movie will cost at any given screening. Even after paying more than I've ever paid to see a movie outside of NYC ($12.50 on weeknights, $15.50 to see Hugo in 3D!), I intend to be a regular.
Concession stand at Sundance Houston
(the wine bar is to the left of this picture)
Yes, a wine bar! And real food (the pizza's are not great, however).
The 3 films I saw there were:
1) J. Edgar -- with such a clear picture, you can see just how bad the make-up jobs were on the actors.
2) Melancholia -- if you have to sit through this bore, it might as well be in nice surroundings (with a pizza and wine). The constant thumping from the Twilight soundtrack in the next theater was a major distraction.
3) Hugo - 3D -- the cool glasses aside (which they wouldn't let me keep!), I did not get much from the 3D experience.
Another plus: each theater's capacity has been dramatically reduced, giving it the feel of a screening room more than a multiplex. The projection was exceptional, the seats plush and rocking. As I said before, I intend to be a regular. Who else should support a venue like this but the foreignfilmguy?? It's my duty, cost be damned!! [I'll never get used to the 'reserved seating' concept, however -- I like to choose my seat once I get in the theater (after I identify all the talkers and avoid them!).]
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