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IMAX; yay or nay?

Do you like IMAX?

  • Absolutely! Only way to watch a movie.

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Yes, but not always. Too pricey.

    Votes: 2 13.3%

  • Occasionally, but only for something special.

    Votes: 7 46.7%

  • Don't like it. Too big, too loud. Makes my eyes go funny.

    Votes: 2 13.3%

  • What's IMAX?

    Votes: 4 26.7%
  • Total voters
    15
Howie

Howie

Donkey in a hat
Right then, what are your thoughts on IMAX cinemas? Expensive gimmick, or the ultimate presentation format? Have you seen an IMAX film? If loads, what was your first one? Did you enjoy it? Does viewing a film in IMAX enhance the experience in any way? Does your town even have an IMAX theatre? A 'proper' one, or one of those 'LieMax' cinemas that are cropping up all over the place? What film(s), in your opinion, have best exploited the format?
Overall, what are your thoughts?

Me? I think it's ok, but it depends on the film. I won't watch any old crap just because it's on at the IMAX, I like to save it for the big stuff.
Apart from those documentary things you see at Science Museum/Space Centre/Grand Canyon type places, the first 'proper' film I saw in IMAX was Avatar and it still remains one of the best. Not best film you understand (far from it), but best IMAX experience. Went to Birmingham to watch it, stunning, it was.
Since then a LieMax has opened in my home town and I've therefore seen quite a few more, but I've started to go off it a bit. My main issue is... well, it's kinda hard to explain. It's almost like the presentation is too good, ya get me? It goes beyond realistic and becomes 'hyper-realistic', to the point where it almost becomes a distraction. Anyone else ever get that? It's like you're so busy admiring the clarity and the detail of the visuals that you kinda forget about what's actually happening on the screen?

Another downside to IMAX is that it can really highlight any weaknesses in the special effects department. I particularly found this when watching the latest Star Wars flick; "Aw man, you gotta see The Last Jedi in IMAX" someone said to me, "it's like you're really there". Yes, but the trouble is, more often than not, 'there' is actually a soundstage at Pinewood studios with artificial lighting and a bunch of scale models on wires, and IMAX only serves to reinforce that fact. Even the dreadnought and Snoke's cruiser - when watching in IMAX I couldn't help but think I was just looking at a load of miniatures. But watching it a second time in a standard 2D theatre and boom, they looked enormous again.

So yeah, mixed bag for me. It's good, and it's nice to have the option of watching a BIG film in IMAX every now and again but deep down I think I prefer things the old fashioned way.
 
I don't watch films myself but when I go with my family we just get the cheapest 2D tickets. The cinema is so expensive to begin with.

If a friend wanted to see it in IMAX sure I would go with them but personally cinema is just too expensive.
 
Combination of the something special and too pricey one.

I love it, and it's pretty much a must for any film that's 'major' to me.
Until recently that means the lesser films I'd go for 2D, but now even that's expensive so I pretty much only use cinemas at all for the most 'major' stuff , which then has to be IMAX.

Some of it is probably psychological. Yes you get the nicer seats - none of that flippy nonsense, but you also get a sense you're paying for the best product available and, in a way, giving more money to the industry that is giving you the entertainment. The intro thing is cool too.

I think it's a massive enhancement, but much more on sound than on visuals. I don't particularly like 3D - can't stand it at all in a lesser format, doesn't bother me either way in this format. So my ideal format is 2D IMAX, which is sadly a rarity.
Howie said:
Anyone else ever get that? It's like you're so busy admiring the clarity and the detail of the visuals that you kinda forget about what's actually happening on the screen?
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Nope. I've always had the opposite issue with regular 3D, it catches my eye for the first couple of minutes and then I completely forget about it and may as well be watching it in 2D. IMAX is similar, but at least the earth shattering sound is always there to back it up.

Yes, our local has the bull's bollocks. Also specifically sought it out in a few other countries when things happened to be released while I was there such as Holland, Germany (bastards dubbed it) Denmark and Singapore. Usually cheaper and very worthwhile.

Can't honestly remember the first thing I saw in it and because of the above, not the best person to judge what exploits it best.
 
I don't really care that much for the big blockbuster actions films that lend themselves to IMAX. Occasionally, I've been but it's bloody expensive and I don't really care enough to bother.

I think they are, mostly, a bit of a gimmick - the big IMAX in Waterloo is probably worth the experience but normal cinemas having a 'slightly' larger screen and calling it IMAX...I just can't be arsed.
 
I've never bothered with it. There isn't anywhere local to me with an IMAX theatre, and I've never been bothered enough to go out of my way for the experience. Perhaps if there was something that I really wanted to see, and there was a local IMAX theatre, I'd consider it, but there's very little I'd drag myself to the cinema for these days.

I've also no interest in 3D, so that probably doesn't up the odds of me seeing an IMAX film any time soon.
 
I'm not a big fan of imax 2d, also not a big fan of "regular" 3d.

But combine the two - and Imax 3d is something special! - I have an odean unlimited card, so if I want imax 3d it's only a few quid!
 
^Yeah, regular 3D is not good. I don't even do regular 3D anymore, it's IMAX or 2D for me. The cheapo glasses don't help, but it's the 'flicker' I can't stand, especially during fast moving action scenes. It's a distraction. IMAX 3D appears much to be much smoother and more 'natural' looking.
 
GuyWithAStick said:
I couldn't care less as long as it has those comfy recliners as chairs.
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Funny story (well, not that funny. In fact, not funny at all. Pretty tragic actually.) - bloke got killed by one of those over here not long back. Dropped his phone between two seats, raised the footrest to get underneath them but without anybody sat in the seat, the footrest automatically came back down and crushed him. Ewww.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/20...nema-seat-accident-trapped-electric-footrest/

Speaking of funky seats, has anybody tried that D-box thing? Where the seats tilt, rock and vibrate in sync with the action? Now that's what you call a gimmick, definitely a one-and-done kinda thing. Don't think it's really taken off in the way IMAX and 3D have. I tried it once, Jurassic World. It was like being beaten up for 2 hours. Whenever the T-Rex showed up it was like riding Bandit on a bad day. Not recommended.
 
If a theater is labeled IMAX, I check before seeing a movie there to see if it is TRUE IMAX or LIEMAX. Give me the ****ing massive screen and audio that causes a kids mouth to drop walking in. Dont try and pass off a slightly larger theater as IMAX. **** you AMC.

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Take it or leave it really. One of the two cinemas I regularly go to has an Imax screen, and I'll often see stuff on it, but not just because it's Imax; it's just there. There are only 4 other screens at that cinema, so they often won't have an option.
 
Nope. Waste of time and money IMO. I'm down for the closer theater with comfier chairs with mostly the same quality tbh at half the price.
 
I've seen one film on it (Civil War) and it was great. Much preferred it to a standard 3D showing.

However, it wasn't native 3D, so a 2D showing would have probably been better. But the seats are good and the sound superb.

Not really worth the extra, plus, my nearest is in Telford and who would want to go there regularly? Poor man's Milton Keynes. ;)

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I've seen loads in IMAX and I'm generally a fan of the format but only really true IMAX. Liemax is no better than any other screen.

Best experience was at Futuroscope with their insane double IMAX theatre which had one in front and one below the seats (glass floor). It showed a documentary about the Ocean and it was incredible.

The BFI Imax in Waterloo is the proper one that I go to for the big films I know have been filmed in the format. Annoyingly they tend to be 3D screenings though which totally defeats the point and becomes more distracting than immersive. Why? Because people doing the roto for 3D are hacks so when blown up on a huge IMAX screen all you see is how blocky everything is. For example in Infinity War Captain America swishes his hair around and instead of it being a natural flow of his hair it was like a massive square attached to his head moving around that just threw any 3D effect in the bin.

I do see the occasional movie in Liemax but mainly cause it's like £4 for me to see it in Leicester Sq. Audio tends to be great so its worth the extra (Dolby Atmos is where it's at though).
 
Howie said:
Speaking of funky seats, has anybody tried that D-box thing?
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I tried it for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.
Thought it worked reasonably well for the film due to its pacing, only remember gently swaying with the apes through the trees and the odd jolt when someone got punched, certainly wasn't the 2 hours of 'please stop shaking' that I expected and it didn't have any negative impact on my enjoyment of the film.
Still a one and done yes, but wouldn't dis(?)recommend it, try it once.
 
^Yes, disrecommend is a word :)
I wouldn't mind giving that 4DX a go. Motion seats, in-house lighting effects, 'atmospherics' and... erm, smells (?). Again, purely for the 'one-and-done' kinda thing. The trouble is my nearest one is in Milton Keynes.
Which is like a poor man's Telford.
 
Not a fan of IMAX or 3D whatsoever. Both hurt my eyes and a movie shouldn't need a gimmick to carry itself. Like many in this topic, I'll take the recliners over IMAX if given the choice.
 
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