Movies

Christopher Nolan filming in IMAX on the set of Tenet
Photo: Warner Bros.

Reopening Movie Theatres in a COVID World
21 August 2020

It’s Friday, 21 August 2020. The tail end of the summer blockbuster movie season that wasn’t. Instead, movie theatres are only now reopening after months of closure because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As an enticement — and to test the waters before major new releases enter the market (hello, Tenet) — chains are revisiting classics old and new with discounted ticket prices. AMC went so far as to offer tickets for 15 cents on Thursday, in part to also mark the 100th anniversary of the chain (one that had been bedeviled by financial headwinds even before the coronavirus situation) with ticket prices from 1920.

For me, it was a chance to get back to my favorite movie experience — Auditorium 9 at the Colorado Center in Denver. IMAX. Starting with Christopher Nolan’s Inception and the Regal ticket price of $6 (other screens are $5). It’s interesting to see AMC is charging $8 for their IMAX “Lite” auditoriums, while other screens are $5.

How was it?

Exhilarating.

A treat.

After more than five months of closure, it was great to be back in 9 for the 10th anniversary release of Inception. As a bonus, there was an extended featurette on Nolan’s upcoming Tenet, plus a new featurette for Inception, marking its return to theatres with a new digital master made from the original film elements. Both offered the kind of verbiage that are my personal “dog whistles,” the kind of language that gives me goosebumps, makes me giddy. Gets the creative juices flowing. The synapses firing like mad.

They were talking about “in camera” action.

Practical effects.

Ambition.

Filming as much as possible without CGI. Nolan astutely noted it’s the visual effects that commonly “age” movies. By filming on-set practical effects, without the use of post-production visual effects, movies tend to age better.

And Inception has aged very, very well. It’s a movie so tightly packed with ideas and so thematically deep, it seems even more miraculous now — 10 years later — that this 162-minute stunner made it to the screen. Originally released in July 2010, it’s the antithesis of the mindless summer action blockbuster.

In the Tenet piece, Nolan noted how he’s built on his prior experiences (all those groundbreaking movies working in IMAX and engaging stories like The Dark Knight and Dunkirk). He and his crew have upped the ante with the global scope and live stunt work of Tenet, which he describes as a modern version of the classic spy movie.

Much like Steven Spielberg and other A-list directors, Nolan uses this North Star to find his projects and ideas: is it a movie he wants to see?

So basic. So sensible.

And it works.

They’re movies designed for and intended to be seen on the largest screen possible, with the best sound possible. But even then, it’s not just that technical excellence. It’s the communal experience. One example I will never forget is The Dark Knight. It’s a packed house (yes, Auditorium 9). Lots of excitement in the air. And yet, enter the Joker. He’s introducing himself to a bunch of Gotham’s mobsters. Then he performs a magic trick. He makes a pencil disappear. In a mobster’s eye socket.

The audience goes deafeningly silent. Stunned. Still.

Then, from one corner, an awkward, semi-courteous hand clap that ushers in a smattering of equally awkward, uncertain applause.

Awesome. That was 12 years ago. That’s what ya call “leaving a mark.”

You. Can’t. Get. That. At. Home.

So, with a big bag of popcorn and a large soda (unfortunately, at regular prices — no discounts on the concessions), it was a tremendous relief to be back in the theatre. It felt great. It was much needed. The huge, immersive screen. The stellar sound system. Life as I like it.

Moving Forward

For the most part, the experience was pleasantly business as usual for all 17 of us packed into the large auditorium. Sure, there are floor mats in the lobby and common areas denoting the 6-foot social distancing rule. Every other urinal is “out of order.” Shared condiment stations are unavailable. Masks are worn by staff and moviegoers are expected to do so as well, even during the movie (except while eating and drinking). Perhaps the saddest part is seeing all the movie posters in the lobby — posters displaying release dates long since past, but still undelivered.

Nonetheless, at this point in the pandemic, it wasn’t as invasive and in-your-face as I had feared. It was just another thing to be mindful of, for now. Even so, it’s time to try to get on with life in some measure, small or large.

Thankfully, U.S. movie theatres finally transitioned to reserved seat ticketing a few years ago. That’s made the current situation that much easier to handle — and it’s also the most notable change in moviegoing as the world starts the journey on the road back to normal.

Now, while selecting seats, every other row is blocked out — unavailable for purchase. And there’s also an odd algorithm going on with seat availability. In theory, there should be two empty seats between parties in any given row. It seems much more complex than that in reality, given sometimes blocks of three or four seats are immediately rendered unavailable.

Taking a break from this COVID-addled world, I thoroughly enjoyed the escape into the intricate narrative of Inception. As a dutiful movie buff (and a fan of Hans Zimmer’s music), I was more than happy to stick around through the end credits. While there certainly wouldn't be a traffic jam of cars leaving the parking garage this time around, there’s also no rush to get back home now, if ever. But I did do one thing — out of curiosity — while the credits rolled. What’s up with that Tenet “Early Access” deal? Earlier in the day, attempts to purchase tickets errored out. Well, midway through the movie, tickets finally went on sale.

Now it’s officially on my calendar: 31 August. 19:00. Tenet. IMAX. Auditorium 9.

Can’t wait!

Stepping Back

Looking at the Colorado Center’s seat selection screen, it looks like there’s a new maximum capacity of 141 (unlike AMC’s screen, which blocks out every other row, Regal doesn’t display the unavailable rows). That’s down from a total seat count of around 300, in this particular auditorium. The complexity of the aforementioned algorithm was painfully front and center at the premiere screening of Tenet — it was “sold out” well in advance; ticket sales had stopped for that one. And yet, it wasn’t much of a challenge to get a headcount. It was 49. A mere 16% of the auditorium’s regular capacity.

Tack on this fact: some theatres remain closed entirely. New York and California, for example, have yet to reopen theatres, leaving some 30% of the nation’s theatres still closed. That makes for a crippling restriction on business.

Update: 3 October 2020, 09:50

It’s only becoming more challenging right now.

Shortly after reopening, theatres started to reduce the number of daily screenings. But, I tried to keep the faith with a weekly Tenet tour. On 30 September, I picked up another ticket for Tenet at the Colorado Center IMAX, for Tuesday, 6 October; it’d be the fifth time for me. Then the dominos started to fall. The very next day, on 1 October, Regal started to scale back the opening hours of some theatres even further. That led to receiving a notice the Tuesday screening had been cancelled. As a follow-up, I received confirmation from the Colorado Center’s General Manager this scheduling shift entails opening the Colorado Center and Continental on weekends only (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). Those theatres will now be closed Monday – Thursday. It’a sensible move, given there simply isn’t enough traffic coming in during the week.

Nonetheless, as a cinefile, it was a painful blow.

But then came the next punch to the gut: the next day, 2 October, MGM announced yet another delay in the release of the new James Bond movie, No Time to Die, pushing out from November 2020 to April 2021 (a full year from its original release date).

Late Update: 3 October 2020, 19:45

Oh no. In the wake of the No Time to Die release date change, Variety is reporting Regal will close all theatres in the U.S. and U.K. once again, as early as next week. In response to the news, I grabbed one more IMAX Tenet ticket for Tuesday — at Colorado Mills.

But it gets worse.

I purchased a ticket for Tuesday then started writing this update. Then I went back to the Regal site to grab a screenshot only a couple minutes later... and discovered Colorado Mills is no longer selling tickets past Monday.

Now I’m waiting for another cancellation notice.

In the thick of all of this, reports are circulating AMC’s financial situation is so precarious, the chain is on the verge of defaulting on loans.

Things have slid back to grim all over. The remaining blockbuster hopefuls holding out for a December theatrical release — Wonder Woman 1984 and Dune — might very well push out to 2021 and Regal might not reopen until the new year.

Update: 5 October 2020, 23:38

A dark day. As in the cinemas have gone dark — again. Regal’s officially temporarily closing all locations for a second time this week.

Plus, Dune has pushed out to October 2021. The holiday movie season looks to repeat the disappearing act of the summer season.

Booked a ticket for Tenet at Arapahoe Crossing, an AMC IMAX theatre. Hopefully this one stays on the calendar.

Regal Closing II:
The Unwanted Sequel

Regal (temporarily) closed (again) and that threw my Tenet Tuesday plans into disarray. One showing was unceremoniously cancelled as the Colorado Center initially shifted to a weekends-only schedule. Then Colorado Mills had a schedule that disappeared almost immediately after procuring tickets, only to clumsily reappear later.

That led to a venue and chain change. AMC’s Arapahoe Crossing IMAX.

It was an odd start. The Noovie commercials started, with the effervescent Maria Menounos. Then, as the lights went down, the screen went dark. Had to notify the front desk the sound was fine, but there was no picture. Problem solved. Then they showed the trailer to the trailer for Dune. Huh. It’s well past the 9 Sept. launch of the full trailer — and it’s a double whammy given Dune’s been pushed out all the way to October 2021.

But, those were mere quirks, ultimately. I’ve been to the Arapahoe Crossing IMAX before (the press screening for Dunkirk was held there). But, I’ve long held a severe bias toward the Colorado Center’s Auditorium 9.

World circumstances have forced a reevaluation of that stance and I started thinking about the differences in the IMAX experience — IMAX is not 1:1 identical from one theatre to the next, kind of like Major League Baseball parks.

Unfortunately, both Colorado Center and Arapahoe Crossing are IMAX digital — I’ve been envious of theatres offering special IMAX film events. And the IMAX Laser at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood is quite nice, too.

I have to give AMC the edge when it comes to concessions. They’ve rethought the whole experience and made it more modern. Plus, they’ve added many touches in the decor that — while still a mere shadow of the glory days of the movie palaces — at least tries to capture a small, microscopic shred of that vibe. The magic fountain is great — Coca-Cola Lime? Righteous! And the popcorn is a little fresher, with better butter.

IMAX Hungry

Ticketing Update

With Regal closed (again), AMC has reaped the reward as an alternative. Upon further review, their ticketing system seems to be more sophisticated and flexible compared to Regal. In the Regal system, every other row is blocked out from the very beginning. With AMC, all seats are open at first. Then, once a seat is selected, each seat to the sides as well as the equivalent seat in the row in front and the row behind is blocked from selection.