There’s some good pictures that give you a good idea of the recent use for the theater, but the three most recent Yelp reviews are not complimentary at all.
If this place is still open, they have some major work ahead of them.
It appears one of the very last links to my childhood in St. Charles is no more. It might still be open but, after that fire and COVID, it was most likely never going to be a true movie theater again. So long, St. Andrews. Thanks for the memories.
Saw the latest Superman movie here last year when I was back home in St. Charles for my father’s funeral. Was glad to see they’ve kept some of the Wehrenberg logos around the building, but it sure felt strange to not see the Wehrenberg intro on the screen in that place. However, I guess you just have to accept that not everything will stay the same as you remember it. Still a cool theater.
After South Coast Village closed, Regency tried to continue the Classic Movie Night at their Westminster location, but it didn’t last. I’ve been to that theater (not for the Classic Movie Night) and it just doesn’t have the atmosphere and ambiance that South Coast Village had. Perhaps Regency can try to do the Classic Movie Nights at the Buena Park Mall location they are taking over (former Krikorian). Still won’t be the same, but maybe that location can work better. We’ll see.
Although it still stayed open until 2025, there’s no doubt COVID really hurt South Coast Village’s business, possibly to where it never fully recovered. A travesty.
Wow! First post in quite a while for me, but had to say something about South Coast Village.
It was heartbreaking to see this theater finally shut down in 2025. It had been the favorite theater for my wife and I for over 10 years. After declining under United Artists and Edwards/Regal, it was rescued by Regency Theaters, who not only rehabbed it, but added a Classic Movie Night every Wednesday night. When my wife and I lived in Costa Mesa right after getting married, I took her here to see Casablanca, which she had never seen. It was very special to take my late father, who we were caring for at the time, to this theater to see classic movies he loved like Singing In The Rain and Double Indemnity (which starred Edward G. Robinson, one of my Dad’s favorite actors). My wife and I also saw other movies here on “Date Nights” after having dinner someplace near South Coast Plaza. They also had the best popcorn of any movie theater in Orange County, popped fresh every night.
Yes, it was just a simple 1970s era 3-plex, but I loved that place. It reminded me of movie theaters I went to while growing up in the 70s and 80s. It had nostalgia and ambiance, especially during the Classic Movie Night on Wednesday.
RIP, South Coast Village. You will never be forgotten, dear friend.
@Chris Utley: That is so awesome!!! I only went to the Esquire once in 1990 when “Fantasia” was re-released into theaters. Lots of memories of that area, though. For me, it was the Science and Natural History museum in Oak Knoll Park, with the big statues of Tyrannosaurus Rex and Triceratops! The Esquire was just down the street from there. So glad the Esquire is still open! Great seeing your post and your photos!
So mall management at the time felt making this place a dollar show would attract the “wrong quality of people”? Sounds like they should have taken action against UA Theaters for building this place the way they did, because that was the real reason this theater attracted NO people!!! I went there once back in 1991 to see The Rocketeer (should make Logan 5 happy) and found dirty carpet, corrugated metal walls, and noises (people knocking against the metal walls, mostly) that interfered with watching the movie. Hard to believe a somewhat upscale place like Brea Mall would allow such a lousy theater to be built.
@jwmovies: You are correct about the location of the 270 Drive-In. However, in newspaper listings, the location was always given as I-270 and West Florissant Rd. Not arguing your point at all (I’m sure it’s valid), but giving the location as I-270 and West Florissant made it easier for folks to figure out where it was.
I grew up in St. Charles and never made it to this drive-in (sadly) but I remember seeing that marquee all lit up on Sunday nights when my folks would drive us home from Sunday evening services at Third Baptist Church.
Personal opinion: Decent theater, but not a great one. I think this has been an underperformer for Regal, due to its location and design. It’s in a very nice area, but it’s kinda buried way back in Foothill Ranch near a toll road. In contrast to the Spectrum, which is right off the I-5 Freeway. The Aliso Viejo is also not right off the freeway, but it’s in a much more active area and is much closer to the freeway than Foothill Ranch.
I agree this is great news…and noticed the last time I was in that area that there was finally some activity on that construction site…but I have to disagree about the Aliso Viejo Town Center. That’s always been a great theater and it’s not that far from Laguna Hills. I would agree, though, that this theater could take business from the Regal Foothill Ranch, since that has always been an underperforming theater. The Spectrum is the Spectrum. Not sure anyone’s going to make a dent in their business.
Just received a message on Facebook that the Laguna Hills Mall Cinema will close on Friday, May 27. It’s because the mall is FINALLY going to be renovated…with plans to add a new 14-screen theater run by Icon Cinemas. So it appears Thursday, May 26, is the last day of the Laguna Hills Mall Cinema. If you want to go there one last time, make plans now!
Does anyone know if the building that used to house Westport Cine is still there? I was looking at Westport Plaza’s website and couldn’t find it in any of the pictures on that site and the center map was no help at all. Does anyone know?
Bob_Villhard: PLEASE share some stories!!! Well, at least ones that are somewhat family friendly…Although I only saw one movie at Westport, I always loved going to Westport Plaza. That place had such a neat vibe, but it just seemed to just lose momentum as the 80s and 90s went by, which was reflected in what happened to the theater. If you can share any insight…as well as any stories…we’d all love to hear it!
Post-Dispatch reported last week that Jamestown Mall is now officially closed. That’s the whole mall, not just the theater. So much of North St.Louis County is just disappearing or a far cry from how it used to be.
I recently ran across some online archives of my old college’s student newspaper (The UMSL Current) from 1985 and 1986. There were a few movie ads in there and one had the Woods Mill Cinema listed in it. The location for the Woods Mill was given as “Hwy 40 and Woods Mill Road.” After doing a quick check of Google Maps, that location would be close to Maryville University. I also noticed a small strip center with a Dave’s World in it on South Woods Mill, just off South Outer Forty Road. Perhaps this was where the Woods Mill Cinema was located. Keep in mind the key word here is “perhaps”. :)
Stephen, I would also like to extend my prayers and sympathy to you and your family. Although I never met your father in person, I knew of him and our mutual love of movie theaters (especially in St. Louis) from this and other websites we posted on (Cinematour.com, drive-ins.com, etc). As my good friend Chris Utley said, your father had true passion for movies and movie theaters, especially in our hometown of St. Louis. God Bless you during this difficult time.
I also believe it’s because the theater is intended to be an “art house” theater, at least partially. But you raise a valid point, JAlex. Highly ironic…also, this will be on the property where Noah’s Ark used to be, I believe. We’ll see if this catches on.
The Westport Cine is now home to Westport Social, which is advertised as a bar and gaming lounge:
https://www.westportstl.com/tenant/westport-social/
By the way, does anyone know how to make a link selectable in these comments? I can’t believe I can’t do that by default here.
Could not find the actual website for this theater, but I found their page on Yelp!:
https://www.yelp.com/biz/st-andrews-cinema-saint-charles
There’s some good pictures that give you a good idea of the recent use for the theater, but the three most recent Yelp reviews are not complimentary at all.
If this place is still open, they have some major work ahead of them.
It appears one of the very last links to my childhood in St. Charles is no more. It might still be open but, after that fire and COVID, it was most likely never going to be a true movie theater again. So long, St. Andrews. Thanks for the memories.
Saw the latest Superman movie here last year when I was back home in St. Charles for my father’s funeral. Was glad to see they’ve kept some of the Wehrenberg logos around the building, but it sure felt strange to not see the Wehrenberg intro on the screen in that place. However, I guess you just have to accept that not everything will stay the same as you remember it. Still a cool theater.
After South Coast Village closed, Regency tried to continue the Classic Movie Night at their Westminster location, but it didn’t last. I’ve been to that theater (not for the Classic Movie Night) and it just doesn’t have the atmosphere and ambiance that South Coast Village had. Perhaps Regency can try to do the Classic Movie Nights at the Buena Park Mall location they are taking over (former Krikorian). Still won’t be the same, but maybe that location can work better. We’ll see.
Although it still stayed open until 2025, there’s no doubt COVID really hurt South Coast Village’s business, possibly to where it never fully recovered. A travesty.
Wow! First post in quite a while for me, but had to say something about South Coast Village.
It was heartbreaking to see this theater finally shut down in 2025. It had been the favorite theater for my wife and I for over 10 years. After declining under United Artists and Edwards/Regal, it was rescued by Regency Theaters, who not only rehabbed it, but added a Classic Movie Night every Wednesday night. When my wife and I lived in Costa Mesa right after getting married, I took her here to see Casablanca, which she had never seen. It was very special to take my late father, who we were caring for at the time, to this theater to see classic movies he loved like Singing In The Rain and Double Indemnity (which starred Edward G. Robinson, one of my Dad’s favorite actors). My wife and I also saw other movies here on “Date Nights” after having dinner someplace near South Coast Plaza. They also had the best popcorn of any movie theater in Orange County, popped fresh every night.
Yes, it was just a simple 1970s era 3-plex, but I loved that place. It reminded me of movie theaters I went to while growing up in the 70s and 80s. It had nostalgia and ambiance, especially during the Classic Movie Night on Wednesday.
RIP, South Coast Village. You will never be forgotten, dear friend.
@Chris Utley: That is so awesome!!! I only went to the Esquire once in 1990 when “Fantasia” was re-released into theaters. Lots of memories of that area, though. For me, it was the Science and Natural History museum in Oak Knoll Park, with the big statues of Tyrannosaurus Rex and Triceratops! The Esquire was just down the street from there. So glad the Esquire is still open! Great seeing your post and your photos!
@rivest266: Just out of curiosity, what were the other two cinemas that closed?
So mall management at the time felt making this place a dollar show would attract the “wrong quality of people”? Sounds like they should have taken action against UA Theaters for building this place the way they did, because that was the real reason this theater attracted NO people!!! I went there once back in 1991 to see The Rocketeer (should make Logan 5 happy) and found dirty carpet, corrugated metal walls, and noises (people knocking against the metal walls, mostly) that interfered with watching the movie. Hard to believe a somewhat upscale place like Brea Mall would allow such a lousy theater to be built.
@jwmovies: You are correct about the location of the 270 Drive-In. However, in newspaper listings, the location was always given as I-270 and West Florissant Rd. Not arguing your point at all (I’m sure it’s valid), but giving the location as I-270 and West Florissant made it easier for folks to figure out where it was.
I grew up in St. Charles and never made it to this drive-in (sadly) but I remember seeing that marquee all lit up on Sunday nights when my folks would drive us home from Sunday evening services at Third Baptist Church.
Personal opinion: Decent theater, but not a great one. I think this has been an underperformer for Regal, due to its location and design. It’s in a very nice area, but it’s kinda buried way back in Foothill Ranch near a toll road. In contrast to the Spectrum, which is right off the I-5 Freeway. The Aliso Viejo is also not right off the freeway, but it’s in a much more active area and is much closer to the freeway than Foothill Ranch.
jwmovies:
I agree this is great news…and noticed the last time I was in that area that there was finally some activity on that construction site…but I have to disagree about the Aliso Viejo Town Center. That’s always been a great theater and it’s not that far from Laguna Hills. I would agree, though, that this theater could take business from the Regal Foothill Ranch, since that has always been an underperforming theater. The Spectrum is the Spectrum. Not sure anyone’s going to make a dent in their business.
Just received a message on Facebook that the Laguna Hills Mall Cinema will close on Friday, May 27. It’s because the mall is FINALLY going to be renovated…with plans to add a new 14-screen theater run by Icon Cinemas. So it appears Thursday, May 26, is the last day of the Laguna Hills Mall Cinema. If you want to go there one last time, make plans now!
Does anyone know if the building that used to house Westport Cine is still there? I was looking at Westport Plaza’s website and couldn’t find it in any of the pictures on that site and the center map was no help at all. Does anyone know?
Bob_Villhard: PLEASE share some stories!!! Well, at least ones that are somewhat family friendly…Although I only saw one movie at Westport, I always loved going to Westport Plaza. That place had such a neat vibe, but it just seemed to just lose momentum as the 80s and 90s went by, which was reflected in what happened to the theater. If you can share any insight…as well as any stories…we’d all love to hear it!
Post-Dispatch reported last week that Jamestown Mall is now officially closed. That’s the whole mall, not just the theater. So much of North St.Louis County is just disappearing or a far cry from how it used to be.
Oops…I meant THX…sorry for the dyslexic moment there…
I saw Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade in 70mm TXH at the Clarkson. It was the only time I went there. The main auditorium was pretty cool!!
It appears Wehrenberg Theaters is going to give Watson Road another try. Check out this article from the St. Louis Business Journal:
http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/blog/2014/05/wehrenberg-theatres-plans-new-theater-complex-in.html
Despite the Kenrick being demolished, it appears Wehrenberg Theaters is going to give Watson Road another try. Check out this article:
http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/blog/2014/05/wehrenberg-theatres-plans-new-theater-complex-in.html
Just out of curiosity, DAL, what kind of problems where they? Were they structure-related, location-related, or customer-related?
I recently ran across some online archives of my old college’s student newspaper (The UMSL Current) from 1985 and 1986. There were a few movie ads in there and one had the Woods Mill Cinema listed in it. The location for the Woods Mill was given as “Hwy 40 and Woods Mill Road.” After doing a quick check of Google Maps, that location would be close to Maryville University. I also noticed a small strip center with a Dave’s World in it on South Woods Mill, just off South Outer Forty Road. Perhaps this was where the Woods Mill Cinema was located. Keep in mind the key word here is “perhaps”. :)
Stephen, I would also like to extend my prayers and sympathy to you and your family. Although I never met your father in person, I knew of him and our mutual love of movie theaters (especially in St. Louis) from this and other websites we posted on (Cinematour.com, drive-ins.com, etc). As my good friend Chris Utley said, your father had true passion for movies and movie theaters, especially in our hometown of St. Louis. God Bless you during this difficult time.
I also believe it’s because the theater is intended to be an “art house” theater, at least partially. But you raise a valid point, JAlex. Highly ironic…also, this will be on the property where Noah’s Ark used to be, I believe. We’ll see if this catches on.