AMC Dine in Theater

So the new Dine in Theater by AMC has finally come to an area near the Phantom. I had the chance to try it out thanks to the prize for winning a bet with a friend of mine.

The idea is simple enough. The standard date night has always been dinner and a movie. AMC has combined the two together to make it more literal. Possibly a better way to describe it now would be dinner WITH a movie. No more rushing through your meal and trying to pay your check in order to make the movie you want to see before the previews are over (or if you're like me, before the previews start.)

There are two different style theaters, the Fork & Screen and the Cinema Suites. Since I was not paying, I of course went to the Cinema Suites. This is for 21 and over only, for the obvious reason of they sell alcoholic beverages there and you don't want to be bothered checking ID's in the middle of a movie. But I'm getting ahead of myself. You start off like any decent restaurant...by making reservations. This is not only to pick the time and movie you want, but also the seat. Or should I say seats? You see, the Cinema Suites are two seat suites, so you are picking two seats at once. The seats are numbered, so there is no standing at the doorway looking over the seats and turning to your date saying "where do you want to sit?"

Once you get to your seat...you know what...scratch that. These are not seats. These are wide, comfortable chairs that rival your favorite chair in the living room. They are also automatic recliners which can be adjusted by a press of the button on the inside of your armrest. Each seat has a swivel table that makes it easy to get in and out of the table. However, they cannot be adjusted for height or pulled back farther if you are completely reclined, which puts you almost in a laying down position. But who would eat like that anyway? Still, it's not that much of an inconvenience. On either side of each suite is an end table-like armrest that separates one suite from another. This has your condiment station as well as the call button for your waiter. Menus, real silverware and cloth napkins are all set on each table when you arrive. Everything comes in actual glasses and plates, including a real bowl if you opt to go with the standard movie food of popcorn.

Each asile is extra wide in order for your waiter to pass by even if you are in the reclined position. They are also staggered in height so that waiters in rows in front of you do not block your view of the screen at any time either. All this extra space does come at a price, but I'm not talking monetary which I will get to later. What I mean is in making your reservations, make sure to get them well enough in advance because there are a lot less seats per theater and shows will sell out a lot quicker, especially for more popular movies.

Now on to the food. The menu is pretty extensive for a movie theater as you may imagine. They have appetizers from wings to crab Rangoon dip. Burgers, hot sandwiches, entrees and desserts are all there as well as all your classic movie snacks. The food is not bad. I would rate it about the same level as an Applebee's, Chili's or TGIF's. I did make the mistake of ordering like I was in a restaurant. When our waiter came back with our drinks I ordered an appetizer and an entree just before the previews started. On the menu it says quite clearly that food is made when you order, so they both came out at about the same time. Together. But even then, I had enough room for both on my swivel table, if not enough room for both in my stomach.

There is a light that has your seat number next to the call button for the waiter that allows your server to see which table they are delivering to and for you to read the menu items as you go. I found this to be mildly annoying while watching the movie, but tolerable.

Now for the bill. Also on the menu, it says that your bill will be presented before the movie is over. Ours was presented quite a bit before the movie ended and the server came back a few times to see if we were ready to pay it. I found this to be a bit of a disturbance as well because as most of you movie goers know, the last 20 minutes of a movie is usually the most important, action packed or suspenseful. I would much rather have been left with the check right before the end and paid during the credits. Speaking of paying, how much money is all these added additions to your movie going experience? Not as much as I thought. The price of the ticket itself was only slightly more than a regular ticket, however the prices changed throughout the day. The later in the day, the higher the price gets. The food prices were not that bad and again, just a bit higher than if you got the same items at a similar restaurant that I mentioned before. However, the regular movie snacks of popcorn, candy and sodas were the same VERY over expensive prices found at regular movie theaters.

On our way out we were met with an usher with a tray of mints for us to take. A nice touch  to end with. There is a bar  in the lobby as well as comfortable chairs and flat screen TVs in case you want to hang out and talk about the movie after or if you get there early enough, enjoy your time before the movie starts.

I did not go into the Fork and Screen, which is more like a regular theater seats with tables that swing out. It is 18 and over with under 18 obviously being accompanied by an adult.

So what's the verdict? Well, I quite enjoyed the seats and the food and the drinks, and since I had won this experience and didn't have to pay, I enjoyed that too. But truth be told, if I had to do it again and actually pay for it, I might not have enjoyed it as much. But I will be going back. Who wants to come with me?

-I would like point out that the movie I saw at the AMC Dine in theater was "Hunger Games". Which I think is the definition of the word "irony".

The Hunger Games

Based on the book "The Hunger Games" from Author Suzanne Collins, the movie is set in the future where North America is now called Panem. It has a Capitol where the upper class live surrounded by 12 Districts of the poor and middle class who do most of the work. War is a thing of the past, but each year there is a lottery in which one boy and one girl aged 12-18 are picked from each district to play in a tournament to the death. We follow the path of sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen from District 12 who steps in to take the place of her younger sister when her name is picked to be in the tournament. The game field is a simulated forest in the Capitol where different obstacles can be produced by the game supervisor. Katniss needs to play the game not only with her natural survival skills she acquired by providing food for her Mother and Sister, but with new skills she needs to acquire concerning her fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark concerning humanity and love.

Katniss is played by X-men First Class's  Jennifer Lawrence.
Peeta is played by Bridge to Terabithia's  Josh Hutcherson

Donald Sutherland, Stanley Tucci, Elizabeth Banks, Wes Bently, Woody Harrelson, and Lenny Kravits are in the cast as well.

Directed by Gary Ross who also directed Seabiscuit and Pleasantville.
Who will like this movie:

The most obvious answer to this is people who enjoyed the book. Most of the people I talked to who have read it, say that it follows the book pretty accurately. I also see an older "Twilight" audience really enjoying this movie. However, I say older for a reason. There are pretty violent and hard to watch scenes in this where it's not a fictional vampire or werewolf, but real people...kids really... killing for their survival that brings it closer to home and may not be suitable for young teens and tweens. For that reason also, it's almost got a "Running Man" feel to it as well as a bit of Predator (without the Arnold muscles) which rules it out as a "Chick Flick".  It's not a movie to just veg out at.

Phantom Thoughts:

It's hard to imagine that in the future, our upper class will start to wear rainbow colored French Renaissance clothing, but it makes for a great visual. But that's not what bothered me about this movie. The thing that got me was the lack of explanation of what has happened to the United States and what brought about the games to begin with. Maybe those who read the book have a better understanding of it, but I have not. They kinda touch on it briefly, but I still had questions at the end of the film. There have been mixed reviews and I can see why, but overall I liked it. Stanley Tucci did a good job as the game show host, but I feel this could have been better cast (even though I think he's a fantastic actor!). Lenny Kravitz played a wonderful part as the costume designer. Nice to see that they didn't go with the over the top gay character for this role. Woody Harrelson was the drunk mentor who was a past winner of the games. It reminds me of the Tom Hanks character in "A League of their Own". He played the part well, but I think Hanks did a better job.

Predictably, you need the underdog to root for and the bad guy to boo. Katniss is the hero we are lead to cheer and District 1 and 2 are the kids who are trained to fight in the games since birth and are the "mean bad guys" in the tournament. I know people found it hard to watch kids killing other kids in this movie, but it would have been even harder (and more realistic in my opinion) to have these kids battle their own sense of humanity vs. survival as well, instead of just a few of them  the way it is now.

SPOILER:  In the end, it is the BIG government types who are running the Games who turn out to be the "bad guy" and although the movie ends with a full arc, there is a set up for future movies (there are two more books after all). Kind of the way "Star Wars: A New Hope" did.

Not a bad movie. I liked it. It had enough story/action/drama mixed with a little darkness that kept me interested. I will be seeing the next movies as they come out.

Welcome to the review.

Yes. I know what you're saying, "ANOTHER movie review column/blog/site? Just what the world does NOT need!" And I would say you're right. I'm no film critic or have any training in writing or journalism. What I do have is a love of going to the movies. I love the whole experience. No matter how bad a movie is, I've never walked out of a theater. I have opinions on what I like and don't like just like everyone else and just like every other film critic and review columnist.
 But one of the reasons I have wanted to start this blog for so long is that I've gotten tired of reading other peoples opinions on a movie that I haven't seen yet. Sometimes they will tell you the special twist or fact that the director did not want revealed until seeing it, just because they didn't like it or just to be the first to point it out. These are not what I call reviews! Do you?
So here's what I plan to do. I will see these movies like I love to anyway. Then I will post here in three parts.
1) The first part will be as subjective a description of the movie as I can without ruining anything for the reader. I will do my best on this part. If I fall head over heels in love with a movie or completely despise every frame, I am gonna describe it the same. I will give you who's in it, who directed it and some history on it if it has one. It won't be flashy, but it will give you the basic gist of what it's about for you to decide if it's something you may want to check out.
2) Here's the plot twist on this blog. In the second part, I will tell you who would like this movie. Is it for kids or teens? Is it geared toward guys or women? Is it for people who like to think and be mentally challenged or just want to escape reality? This is the section I will try and give you examples of what it's like as well.  "Hey, if you liked movie A then you will like THIS movie."
3) I'll finish of with the obvious. I'll give you my opinion of the movie. But it's only what I think of it, not what I think YOU will feel about it as well. I won't promise not to reveal any secrets in this section, which is why I will leave it to last. But I will tell you before I do with the SPOILERS tag. It's your choice to proceed, but I warn you, I have been known to have harsh thoughts one way or another. Enter at your own risk.

So there it is. Let's have some fun and go out to the movies. Can you smell the popcorn? Mmmmmm.
I can.

See you in the center seat.