Digital Fortress

They say that you can never forget your first IMAX experience so when I learned that Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will be shown at IMAX 3D at SM Mall of Asia, I didn’t hesitate to reserve a ticket even it comes with a hefty price of Php400 each. The weekday mornings are cheaper by Php50.

So does IMAX theater at SM Mall of Asia really worth the price? I don’t think so. It’s overpriced. It should have been P250 or P300 only. They are bragging the so-called “IMAX experience” to sell more tickets. So what really is the “IMAX Experience”. Well, just upon entering the theater, you’ll be amazed on how big the screen is. But even before the movie starts, I was wondering how can I see the whole picture on that super large screen? Whenever there is a wide shot, you have to scan the screen from left to right (or up to down) to see what is happening. That is true during action sequences or even dialogue scenes where the each character is on the opposite side of the screen. At first, I experienced some eye strain, but after about 15 minutes, I got used to it. The most important thing to decide when buying your IMAX ticket is choosing your seat. I sat at H-8. A is the nearest to the screen and the farthest is I think “O” or “P”. I can’t even imagine how can you enjoy the experience when you are seated to row A. The huge screen is almost just 10 feet away from you. You really have to look up and get a stiff neck but I imagine that what will you see is just 1/6 of the whole screen!  I feel sorry for the poor souls whom I think swear that they will never watch an IMAX movie again. From what I’ve observed, to truly enjoy the visual experience, you have to sit at the center topmost area. In my case, I was in a 45 degree angle from the center of the screen and I think the image is a bit distorted from there. Another thing that they brag about is the sound. The sound quality of IMAX at MOA is the biggest letdown of all that’s why I think it should have been priced at P300. The sound here is no different from other cinemas and I personally think THX is better. I don’t even remember the experience of “vibrations” coming from the floor crawling up to your knees. There’s nothing like that in IMAX. I watched Harry Potter the next day at Gateway Cineplex (another company-sponsored event) and I believe that the sound there is better so I cannot blame it on the movie itself.

So how about the 3D scenes? I think this is the reason behind the P400 price tag. It’s 20 minutes long and it began when the Dumbledore’s Army (DA) flies to London using Thestrals and ended up just before the Harry-Dumbledore usual dialogue scene at the end, The 3D effects are great when there isn’t too much action going on the screen. The flying scene is the best scene in 3D since they really popped up from the screen. The added depth of the Hall of Prophecy is also a great sight. But when the battle comes in, it’s hard to comprehend on what’s goin on. I actually enjoy the battle scene more in Gateway than in IMAX…Hehe…

Of course, you have to wear this huge 3D glasses to see the 3D effects. But people who already have glasses will have a difficult time. They either have to put those 3D glasses while wearing their regular glasses or remove their glasses and then put the 3D ones. Of course, there are some trade-offs. Luckily for me, I was wearing contacts…Hehe.

All in all, I don’t have a single regret in paying Php400 for IMAX. I just think it’s too pricey. I just bought a ticket just to have that “IMAX experience”. And surely, when Half Blood Prince is released, I’m gonna watch it first in IMAX if only if I can reserve the best seat.

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 19th, 2007 at 7:09 pm and is filed under Entertainment, Complaints, Movies. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.