Woodbridge Cinemas 5
US Route 1 and Gill Lane,
Woodbridge,
NJ
07095
US Route 1 and Gill Lane,
Woodbridge,
NJ
07095
5 people
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: Clearview Cinemas
Previous Names: Movie City 5
Nearby Theaters
The Grant Movie City 5 was located in the rear of the old S.Kleins on the Square (Toys R Us) building located on US Route 1 and Gill Lane in Woodbridge, NJ across from the Woodbridge Center mall.
Originally opened as a first run house on January 16, 1981, by the 1990’s it became a discount second-run house. Towards the end of its day’s, to capitalize on the growing South Asian community in the area, the theater began showing Bollywood films in additional to its regular fare. Clearview Cinemas closed the Woodbridge Cinemas 5 on September 1, 2003.
Contributed by
Jack Stachowicz
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Recent comments (view all 18 comments)
I remember this place – it wasn’t the cleanest or most modern, but it was cheap and accessible. I think the last film I saw here was “Sleepy Hollow”, I also recall seeing “The Shadow” and “The Phantom” at Movie City
i remember this theater it was a big theater i went there when i was a kid.
I too worked part time at Movie City 5 as a teenager in 1986. I was an OK job at the time. I got to see a lot of movies as an usher, but we were forbidden to sit down.
From what I recall the general manager was a rather cut-throat businessman and was the main reason my employment only last a few short months.
I started going to Movie City 5 in the summer of 1987. I was 14 years old. It was a first-run theater then, and the first film I saw there was “RoboCop”. I also saw “Jaws: The Revenge” and “Stakeout” that summer as well there. I didn’t particularly care for the theater, the theaters were a bit small, and there was one theater that was always a bit out of focus (and was the theater I always wound up in, go figure). I do remember going back there in January ‘89 for “Deep Star Six” as it was the only theater near me playing that film, and I believe it became a cheap second-run theater not long after that, I went a few more times, particularly in '97 when I caught “The Fifth Element”, “Chasing Amy”, “Con Air”…I think it was $2.50 a ticket.
I grew up in Iselin and saw many movies here. For some reason, I distinctly remember watching “Back to the Future Part III” here in 1990. I was familiar with its history, first becoming a second-run theater, then exclusively showing Bollywood or other South Asian films, but I didn’t know it had closed.
I also always found it odd that the entrance was in the back of the building and virtually unseen from Route 1. I remember there always being a crowd, so I guess it didn’t hurt business too much throughout the years.
Anyway, thanks for posting this, and for the memories.
This opened on January 16th, 1981. I uploaded its grand opening ad in the photo section.
Saw a lot of limited distribution horror films at this one, including DAY OF THE DEAD (first film I saw here,) and EVIL DEAD 2. My most vivid non-genre memory of MC5 was seeing GOOD MORNING, VIET NAM in a sold out screening, with a column directly in front of my seat, obscuring half of the screen.
There was 3 Movie City locations, Woodbridge and East Brunswick, NJ and the Movie City 10 in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
My wife and I lived at an apartment complex nearby in the early 1980’s and went to these theaters a few times. The price was cheap but the screens weren’t very large. I preferred going to Menlo Park or the Woodbridge theaters for the first run movies we wanted to see even though the price was more. We would go here for the movies that were not on our ‘must see’ list.
Closed on September 1, 2003. It was last operated by Clearview Cinemas and was last known as “Woodbridge Cinemas 5”.