AMC Kips Bay 15
570 2nd Avenue,
New York,
NY
10016
570 2nd Avenue,
New York,
NY
10016
19 people
favorited this theater
Showing 26 - 50 of 79 comments
https://variety.com/2018/digital/news/imax-vr-closures-1202906222/
Hello all, I recently saw Ant Man and the Wasp at the Kips Bay, Auditorium 8. The recliner seats are very comfortable, but I noticed the sound was pretty flat. Almost as if the surrounds were not engaged at all. I found the sound “OK”. Kind of like watching a great action movie at home on a large screen with the sound turned down. Just made it very underwhelming. Have any of you experienced this at this theater (Auditorium 8)? I would love to hear your comments if you have. Also I was thinking of checking out Skyscraper there this weekend, but its in Auditorium 12. Is that upstairs or downstairs? Does anyone have any comments on the sound and screen in that Auditorium 12? I would love to hear your thoughts. Thanks All !!
Imax VR is basically an arcade setup where Imax partners to make games for the HTC Vive vr headset. it off the shelf tech nut it’s expensive to buy currently so IMAX decided they would get exclusive games for the unit that auto end after a set time. It’s basically an arcade you buy tickets in advance for. some of the games are not film linked like IMAX getting an exclusive mission for Star Trek: Bridge Crew “Rescue at Perseph” they have a list on IMAX’s website. the Regal E-Walk Stadium 13 also has an install currently. http://imaxvr.imax.com/
It is purely optional though, you can go to Kips Bay and just see a movie, just do the VR, or both. The VR experiences have their own listing on the theater’s webpage.
The price is indeed high (looks like it is about half the price of an IMAX film for 10-12 minute experiences, and as far as I know there is no discount with pairing it with an IMAX or regular movie admission), and personally based on my bit of experience with VR headsets I find they get uncomfortable or dizzying after not too long (probably why the experiences are the length they are). But there are people I know who are very big on VR, and I’m always interested in seeing what IMAX as a company comes up with, so I don’t see why not to check it out at least once when I’m next there for a movie.
Thanks moviebuff82. Definitely not something that would interest me. All this new technology seems to be a way to just charge more money for something.
https://www.google.com/search?q=imax+vr&oq=imax+vr&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.932j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
What is Imax VR?
This is the location IMAX/AMC have chosen for their VR center in NYC, and the IMAX VR opens today, May 26 (I believe making it the second one of these in the U.S.)
The outside of the theater is now an AMC instead of Loews, and the interior lobby is now AMC.
@CHH32 …AND THE EMPIRE 25 LIEMAX GETS A LASER UPGRADE…
I would love it if they got recliners too. Idk why they havent. Whenever I’ve gone to the Imax 8ts usually 90% empty. It only makes sense to get high quality theaters. It looks like I will be sticking with Lincoln Square.
I like this theater too, especially after the recent renovation – big recliners, large screens, good prices. But they didn’t renovate the imax auditorium, it’s the same as before. It would be great if they also put recliners on imax. Laser imax is usually for 15/70mm imax screens(squared/tall screens), so I doubt the three lie-imax screens in Manhattan will get laser.
I’m a big fan of the Kids Bay Imax theater but I usually go to Lincoln Square because of the reserved seats and now the laser projector. Is there any update on the kips Bay Imax having reserved seats and/or upgrading to laser? If so, I’d probably go back.
And indeed they are renovating this place.
When I went to see Independence Day Resurgence tonight in the IMAX, sections of the theater were closed off as they were renovating (seems to be done in stages with some screens closed first, and the next screens will close when the others reopen). I know the comfy reclining chairs will be part of the renovation (even had a sample pair in the lobby), though hopefully they will also give any projection/sound improvements needed, as well as spiff up the lobby/concessions section.
It will also be interesting if the IMAX screen has any improvements done or also gets new chairs- FWIW I believe IMAX gets control on auditorium layout with their screens.
They need to renovate this place badly. This theater, along with its sister theaters in NYC that have stadium seating that were built before the AMC Loews merger, were one of the last such places to be built before Loews Cineplex went Chapter 11 and was taken over by private equity firms.
As well as a 38 year veteran projectionist like me.
When Media Ingest replaces the building of films on Thursday nights we lose something in the process. Properly projected motion picture film still blows away any 4K digital projection system in terms of image clarity, color saturation, image depth, sharpness. The difference is quite visible to the naked eye.
Sony/Loews was succesful somewhat in the 90’s at least here in Jersey. As far as I know there are no union projectionists in any theatres anymore. Computers run the show now.
Do any theatres still employ Union projectionists or has DCP made them all obsolete according to the big chain bean counters? A lot of projectionists that used to work in the theatres I used to frequent really cared about film quality presentation, it’s just not the same when you have an usher running things like was evidenced at the Kips Bay this past Friday. I think one of AMC’s predecessors then called Sony Theatres tried to get rid of union projectionists in the Mid Nineties if I remember correctly, there seemed to be picket lines in front of the theatres at the time, if I recall.
theatrefan, you are right about amc and their maintenance. But in fairness, here in NJ, they have recently renovated the Mountainside and Freehold complexes. And as to Al Alvarez comment, yes managers and ushers have been trained, if you can call it that. I always took my job seriously. I would recieve prints from some of those theatres that couldnt even been run. Thats why the push for digital was so strong and put me out of work. IM sorry the guys in NYC sucked. But here in central Jersey we were true professionals. We were just lumped into one big group and pushed out by the big bean counters.
markp & Al Alvarez: To give you a comparison. The very next night I went to see the film again at the Bowtie Cinemas Chelsea a Family owned Chain. Picture and brightness were perfect and the sound was great as well. You can see the difference immediately when people care about presentation versus a gigantic cinema chain. I also forgot to mention to top it off my seat at the Kips Bay was missing an armrest. AMC does absolutely nothing to maintain the theatres they took over from Loews Cineplex, the Irwin Seats originally installed that are still there 16 years later are nothing to write home about either, time has not been kind to them. The very first thing Regal did when it assumed operations of the E-Walk was to toss them all into the dumpster. The AMC Bean Counters will probably use them until they completely fall apart in bits and pieces.
Managers (and ushers) throughout the country are taught how to change Xenon Bulbs, though not often in New York City. When I worked NYC theatres in the eighties with mostly lazy old union projectionists, we had some of the worst sloppiest, presentations in the country, a fact often mentioned in scathing newspaper articles and movie reviews.
It was more than likely the xenon bulb had reached its time aqnd needed to be changed. See in the old days a union projectionist like myself would have done it, but the bean counters cant cause they have to worry about getting the money, doing inventory, etc. These days with digital there is no one in the booth. So they call the technician who is also responsible for about 300 other theatres. Such is life in the digital world. I had a great 37 years as a FILM projectionist. Too bad it ended 2 years ago. Sorry your night was ruined.
Went to see “Ricki & The Flash” here Friday evening in Auditorium #14 unfortunately there was something wrong with the digital projector as the image on the screen was extremely dim with excessive flicker & lacking a great amount of detail. They did know about the problem, because I was upstairs exchanging my ticket while someone from the previous showing was complaining to the Manager, yet they still ran the film anyway. After the film we went to complain to the Manager, who was very sorry and we were given a pass for our bad movie experience. He explained there was something wrong the the Sony Digital Projector and they would have to send someone out to fix it, he was not allowed to do it himself also they would probably move the film to an auditorium upstairs. Unfortunately for us our night out at the movies was ruined. It says a lot when your presentation at home is so much far better that going out to the modern multiplex.
I was here today for “Oldboy” at the discount morning matinee and there were no problems at all with the theatre. The problem I did have was the location. Coming from lower Manhattan the only mass transit to and from there is the M15 “Select Service” bus which is a nightmare. Much as I liked the theatre I shall not return for this reason.