Review: Cinetopia

I finally made it to Cinetopia for a movie viewing. Cinetopia is a new luxury theatre in Vancouver that opened up a while back. They have luxury seating, a 5 star restaurant, art viewing, live music, etc. It's supposed to be a great deal better then the traditional style theatre. I watched a movie in one of Cinetopia's Living Room Theaters. For about $1.00 more per ticket then a viewing at Regal Cinemas you get a 21+ environment (no kiddies, no disrespecting teens, or loud families), a nice high back leather seat (leather arm rests, and optional leather ataman), and an option for in theatre dinner/alcohol (additional charge). I showed up a bit late (20 mins before showing) and ended up having to sit in the front row, which really wasn't too bad. However I think I would have enjoy sitting a bit further back from the screen. Turns out you really need to get there about 45 mins early to get a select seat, as many people get there early to eat dinner in their seat before the show. While this is nice, I really think the cinema should handle it differently. Sell reserved seats for the middle 3 rows during dinner time showings (6pm or later) and sell the rest as general admission. That way you can eat dinner in the restaurant and then walk in 5-10 mins before the show starts and sit in your reserved seat. The only other issue was the lighting, they had little lights illuminating the armrests so you can see your food while the show is playing. It wasn't too annoying, I just like it perfectly dark when I'm watching a movie in the theatre. One thing I didn't really understand was the "pillow pit". There is a one foot deep rectangle hole cut out of the cement floor at the bottom of the screen. It's carpeted and lined with pillows. It's advertised as an alternative seat for movie viewing. While the idea is good, the pits are just too close to the screen. Even lying on your back I don't think you could see the movie correctly due to the severe angle. Overall it was a great experience, I'm glad to see someone else respects the theatre experience and wants to offer a bit more luxury. I'll likely start seeing a lot more movies there. Next time I think I'll try their grand auditoriums and see how that is. More to come ...