Monday, 6/23/97 Best little movie houses in Westwood What the
village has to offer in the way of cupholders, leg room and student
discounts
By Aimee Phan Daily Bruin Staff Westwood is something of a mecca
for moviegoers. UCLA students have a giant selection of theaters to
choose from on Friday and Saturday nights, from multiplexes to
classy, old-fashioned single-screen movie houses. A new freshman or
transfer student may be overwhelmed by the many cinematic choices
in Westwood. Here is a comprehensive (though somewhat subjective)
review of most of the theaters within walking distance of UCLA.
First, here are a few tips for the novice moviegoers, who have yet
to encounter the uglier aspects of seeing a movie here. If you have
done your fair share of Westwood cinema viewing, then skip this
section. You already know this stuff. 1. Always, always, always
bring your student ID. I learned the hard way that no matter how
much begging, cajoling and threatening you do, the ticket seller
will make you pay the full price of a ticket. Even if you show them
your schoolbooks in your backpack, unless you have that damn ID,
you will pay full price. And $8 is ridiculous for a movie,
especially when you know that others are paying only $5 or $6 . 2.
If the movie is coming out that weekend, you must go at least an
hour early. Buy the tickets and then go hang out at the Coffee Bean
or wherever until the movie starts. 3. Keep your ticket stub. The
ushers mean it when they tell you this. Especially in Westwood. The
moment you throw that stub on the floor or in the trash, the ushers
will hunt you down. Even if they saw you only five minutes before,
they will conveniently suffer from amnesia. Don’t give them the
satisfaction. Hold on to that stub! 4. If you can, on the weekends,
try to go to the latest showing of the movie. It’s filled with more
students and much more fun. I saw "Scream" in this type of
environment. And a movie as scary as "Scream" is much more exciting
when you’re not the only one hiding under your seat. Fear is always
better with company. 5. You probably know this from any movie
experience, but I will tell you anyway: Bring a sweatshirt.
Theaters like to freeze their customers and not everyone you sit
next to is willing to snuggle with you for warmth. So those were my
tips on avoiding an unfortunate movie experience. Now, on to the
best (and worst) theaters. And there are so many to cover! What I
consider to be the best movie theater must fulfill the following
criteria: 1. Cupholders. They are essential. I don’t understand why
some theaters still haven’t upgraded. Where are we supposed to put
our drinks? In our laps? We are not animals. 2. Sound system. The
sound should be everywhere. When there is a loud boom or crash in
the film, the audience will be able to hear it ringing in their
ears five minutes later. 3. Seats. New seats are good! They are so
wide and soft. High seats with a little cushion-pillow thingy that
lets you lean your head back are a plus. Ahh. Very nice for a tired
neck. Some feel more comfortable than my bed. 4. Leg room. There is
nothing worse than a person trying to squeeze by while you’re
sitting and enjoying the movie 5. The size of the movie screen. The
bigger the better. 6. Customer service. The ticket takers,
concession people and ushers do affect the theater experience. Rude
people will inevitably taint the experience and leave you bitter.
7. Parking. This doesn’t affect most of the sorry freshmen without
cars. For those lucky and spoiled enough to own a vehicle, some
theaters do offer parking validations which otherwise runs to about
$3. Now that you know the criteria for choosing a theater, we can
pass out awards. But before continuing there must be a reminder.
The most important factor is the movie itself – rules really don’t
apply if you’re intent on seeing a certain movie. Even though the
theater is beautiful and luxurious and offers excellent service
(like the Pacific Crest), if they’re showing a crappy movie (like
Pacific Crest unfortunately does), there’s no way you’ll go just
for the cool interior. With that out of the way, here are the
awards: Best theater all-around: Mann National. It’s freakin’ huge.
And you get to go up this really cool staircase to get to it. The
service is always excellent when I go and the sound and screen are
top-notch. Prettiest interior: Pacific Crest. For those of you who
like cool visuals before the movie starts, the Crest offers a
black-light mural of Hollywood and glow-in-the-dark stars that
shoot across the ceiling. Best place to spot a movie star: Mann
Bruin and Mann Village. A lot of glam movie premieres happen in
these beautiful, old-fashioned single screen theaters (like
"Ransom," "Sleepers" and "Batman and Robin.") These two are also
very close to Diddy Reise cookies, a delicious post-movie treat.
Most cramped movie theater: Mann Regent. Sitting in one of their
seats I noticed that it fit my legs perfectly. But I am only 5 feet
tall, which means most of you will find these seats quite
unsuitable for leg-stretching. Worst customer service: Mann
Westwood. The ticket taker was very rude and condescending to me.
But the fact that this theater has seven screens redeems it.
Hopefully, that certain ticket taker has learned to leave her
bitterness and resentment against life elsewhere. Best customer
service: UA Westwood. The concession workers were very nice and
helpful when I was there. Since I used to work in a movie theater,
I know how annoying customers can get and these concession people
treated everyone with respect and sincerity. And their student
discount is one of the cheapest in Westwood, $5.25. Most nostalgic
theater: Mann Plaza. This recently remodeled theater offers late
night showings of old, classic films on weekends at 12:30 a.m.
Great for insomniacs and old movie buffs. PATRICK LAM/Daily Bruin
The Fox Theater in Westwood lures audiences to "Batman and Robin."
Previous Daily Bruin Story Finding the next Tarantino at Laemmlie’s
Sunset 5 theater, October 11, 1996