Bow Tie Annapolis Mall 11

Opened by Crown, later acquired by Bow Tie.

Recently saw Transformers here on opening weekend in #1. Presentation was excellent along with the sound, which truly showcased what THX certification can do and how all movies should be heard. The final battle between the bots was mind boggling, very loud, very intense with hardly time to catch one's breath. I found myself 'dodging' flung fighters and slightly jumping during the scorpion bot scene. Excellent and fun time at the movies, if a bit mindless.

I forgot to mention that #10 is outfitted with a Dolby Digital Cinema 3D system. I've seen and enjoyed every presentation, from a technical standpoint. The movies, themselves, are another matter.

They need to go back to having real people introduce the movies and add a bit of trivia to the intros like they used to right before Crown sold the place to Bow Tie. If Bow Tie's sense of improvement is permanently removing the personal touch to their presentations, then they are just as bad as the rest of the corporations that run the rest of the crappy venues in town.

Below posted on another theater page about this theater (in reply to a comment about the other theater) I hope Steve doesn't mind my copying it here, as screen sizes are often important to moviegoers:

Theatre 1 there is 50-feet wide with theatres 10 and 11 coming in at 40 feet or thereabouts. Theatres 5 and 6 are the next largest and I don't recall them hitting 40 feet but they might....yes I helped install that one and serviced it for the first couple of years.

Steve
posted by Steve Guttag on Jul 23, 2007 at 3:39am

I suppose I don't mind...I forgot to mention Theatre #2...which was also largish.

When the theatre opened...all but the little theatres (3, 4, 7, 8) were to be THX certified. They all have the THX crossovers, walls and I think all at one time had certification or were within reach of certification if one or two corrections were made.

The big theatres all had SDDS-8 capability and in fact use the SDDS-3000 systems as their primary sound system. These theatres had ports to plug in either DTS or Dolby Digital as needed.

SG

#1 and 9 are my favorites and of course, #10 and #11 for their digital projection. At one time, they stopped showing DP in #11 and a Customer Service response was that the system there was outdated and no longer supported. Yet, several months later, they were showing DP again in #11. I believe Shaggy Dog and RV were both showing digitally in #10 and #11, respectively.

I'm wondering why they didn't put DP in either #2 or #9, since they are THX certified already. To a non-techie, how difficult is it to show DP in any of the auditoriums for that matter. I gather the projection booth is the upper floor that spans the entire length of the place joining each auditorium. Isn't it just a matter of moving the digital projector to where the film projector is, connect the sound cables and flip a switch? :)

If the little theaters are close to certification, they should do it and make the most of it by advertising it so in the papers and marquee. They'd educate the moviegoing public to know and expect what good film presentation should be and perhaps increase attendance.

Since they opened, I cannot recall a bad presentation here at all, at anytime, with the exception of no air conditioning on a hot summer night back in '04. The crowds are decent, many being the more disciplined Naval Academy students, their friends and/or family.

The little four theatres were never near certification...the rest were to be and I think were. The little four do not have the THX baffle wall, are a bit under amped and have other compromises in them.

As to moving a DCinema system around...no it isn't as simple as moving the projector and flipping a switch though if need be it could be made to be not too painful. The DCinema installation is every bit as complex as a film installation.

The original DCinema projector in theatre #11 was part of the original Technicolor DCinema systems. They were 1.3K systems. The projector at the Mall was the Christie DCP-I, I believe was its model number. While it did well, it is true that the 1.3K systems became unsupported by the Cinema industry (not the manufacturers of the projectors). That is one of the scary things about DCinema as it stands...it is easy for the studios to suddenly cease support of a format in common use...not just 1.3K systems but it has happened to MPEG servers too. That would have been another problem with the original system at the Mall...the server was Qualcom's and they got out of the game too.

I have not been in the booth (shaped like a gigantic "T" since the 2K systems were installed so I can't commment on what is up there now.

SG

We saw the National Treasure sequel in #1, my favorite auditorium to a small audience given the size of the place and time (last showing). They debuted the new Horton Who THX trailer (I think). As usual, the presentation was virtually flawless, excellent surrounds. Sitting in my favorite seat, we were immersed into the adventure unfolding before us. The Goofy pre-movie cartoon was a pleasant surprise and showcased the theater's sound capabilities given the theme was setting up your home theater.

Another plus is they don't have pre-show commercials anymore! Now what multiplex does this nowadays? They need to bring back the personal introductions that Crown used to have. The Mashers have yet to reply to my suggestions to bring this aspect of showmanship back. Though one tid bit of welcome news is that their chain may go all-out Digital in 2008.

Tonight, my ears are ringing as if I've been at a loud rock concert, but alas, it was due to the loud but excellent presentation of the movie, "Cloverfield", in DP. The audience of mostly 20somethings and naval academy kids enjoyed the sold out show, which was introduced by one of the managers, but had little to say other than to move closer together to make room for others. I primarily wanted to see the new Star Trek teaser trailer and knew it would be attached to this movie being that J. J. Abrams and Paramount is involved in both films. Needless to say, I was not disappointed and am looking forward to more trailers for this movie as well as more movies at this, my favorite multiplex.

#9 reportedly has DIgital 3D capability with the newly released "Bolt" animated feature from Disney.

#10 has a new resident, a mouse, which made its debut to this patron during the showing of Coraline in Digital 3D a few Saturdays ago. My friend informed one of the managers on duty, who claimed they've laid out glue traps for it. Given the amount of kids that go through there, I don't know if that was such a good idea. Also, the second concession stand being located just outside of 10 makes me wonder how clean things are there as far as food service goes. Not a good thing.

Saw the new Star Trek opening night and again on Friday in #10. The presentation was truly exceptional. The theater rumbled when it needed to at the climax and one could feel the punches during the fight scenes. If only the screen were larger. I hope to catch the movie again here at least once more before it gets bumped.

Caught the new Terminator Salvation in #1, with the best sound in the area. The theater, itself, was barely full. I doubt this movie will open as big as Star Trek but the market it is saturated and perhaps attendance was fanned out. Unfortunately, they need to replace or use another THX trailer as when it was played, it was scratchy and did not properly showcase what this theater can do soundwise and projectionwise. I wish they'd bring back the popcorn seasonings.

#10 was rip roaring tonight with the showing of GI Joe in DLP and no air conditioning. The auditorium was packed and unfortunately, my niece took too much time enjoying her dinner to realize we should leave to get good seats. We ended up sitting smack in row 1. While my neck did feel some discomfort, the film was enjoyable if a bit cliche with the set up and characters. Channing Tatum stars and acts every bit of a plastic doll come to life. After reading the Variety review, I will agree that some of the visual effects lack polish as if sequences were rushed. What had seemed to be an improvement over the Matrix Reloaded highway chase scene sputters due to some fx shots that lose focus or or cut too quickly to fully realize.