This was supposed to be a review of the new Pixar/Disney feature Brave. I’d missed the press screenings here in Portland, but that was fine — we have a new theater in the area with the fancy-schmancy 28-channel Dolby Atmos sound system (one of 14 in the country), so I figured I’d get a chance to enjoy both. A fine plan, but one that really didn’t pan out.
Let me start with this: I really, really admire Cinetopia. Starting with the first complex in Vancouver (WA) and continuing with the Beaverton location, they offer “living room theaters” featuring big, comfy recliners and ottomans, ginormous “grand auditoriums” with massive screens and top-of-the-line sound systems, and they’re as good as theaters get. The concession stand offers fresh baked goods, and there’s a butter bar so you can choose from a variety of flavors for your popcorn. They have restaurants (called Vinotopia) that serve a staggering number of excellent wines by the glass, and there’s service in the living room theaters at your seat, should you choose to order from the menu. On weekends, they offer live music before shows.
As of this writing, tickets are priced similarly to most chains, although prices for what they call the “Movie Parlor Experience” are outlandish at $18.50. The experience is described thusly: 21+ age requirement, beer & wine available, ultra luxurious seating, unique suite-level amenities, in-theater restaurant service available, Digital 7.1 sound, super HD 30 foot screen with an additional 18 LED screens creating an immersive movie environment., All of which sounds lovely but … $18.50? Per ticket? Before I’ve even ordered a beer?
A few months ago, Cinetopia offered up one of the most effective Groupon campaigns I’ve seen — a deal offering two movie tickets and a large popcorn at their Beaverton location for $17. The tickets were good in any of the auditoriums, and when you used the Groupon you received a coupon for another free popcorn or beverage on your next visit. But what really made the promotion clever was that, on the handout with the coupon, Cinetopia offered a price comparison between their theaters and Regal Cinemas, showing that their prices were the same or lower than Regal, for a much, much better cinema-going experience. It was a smart bit of marketing, given that the perception of Cinetopia is that it’s a lot more expensive than going to your local megaplex.
So yes, I’m a fan. The Beaverton Progress Ridge location is a gorgeous theater, free-standing like the original Vancouver Cinetopia, although it is part of a small upscale shopping center. The parking is excellent. You walk in past bubbling fountains, and there’s comfy seating just inside, if you need to wait for someone. Plus, it’s just a few minutes from my home in SW Portland. The place is a win all the way around.
Which brings us to the grand opening of their new location at the Vancouver/Westfield Mall. As mentioned before, it’s one of the first theaters in the country to install the super-deluxe new Dolby Atmos sound system. 128 channels, speakers installed throughout the theater, including in the ceiling! And they’re premiering it with Brave, which I really wanted to see! So … off to the Vancouver Mall, 15 miles away.
The first problem arose when we got to the mall and had no idea where the damn theater was actually situated. Cinetopia’s website lists the address as 8500 NE Vancouver Mall Drive, but doesn’t specify whether it’s a free-standing building or within the mall itself. A website called movietickets.com lists the address as 8700, not 8500, and says that the theater’s outside the mall in the northeast corner of the parking lot. There’s no signage anywhere outside the mall to direct people to the theater, and we eventually found it by a) deciding that the huge, ugly blocky addition on the northeast chunk of the mall where the Mervyn’s used to be was probably the place, then B) going inside the mall and asking someone where the theater was. Again: No signage on the outside of the building.
Parking was terrible, and this was early afternoon on a weekday. Since the entrance to Cinetopia is, yes, inside the mall, there’s no parking just for the theater. Plus, the closest mall entrance is the one right next to the stop for all the city buses, so parking’s limited even further. Entering the mall, you’re on the upper level, and we were told that the theater as located on the lower level. No, there’s no escalator anywhere around.
Side note of generalized bitching: As you may or may not know, I have a severely crippled-up arthritic knee. This is one reason I don’t go to malls. I’m simply not capable of long treks down endless linoleum pathways. Also, and you probably don’t know this, malls give me mild panic attacks. Too many people, too many weird smells and things to look at and just too much crap for my brain to process, plus the pain of endless walking, plus the general annoyance of being surrounded by other humans. So the absolute worst place to put a movie theater — for me, anyway — is inside a goddamned mall.
Anyway. We walked through the mall. I hyperventilated a bit, then we found the place by wandering in the general direction of the giant, ugly box that we’d seen attached to the outside of the mall. The entrance was on the upper level, where we were, not the lower level, like the mall employee said. We got in line to buy tickets.
I was prepared to be patient, because this was the second showing on their first day of business. Opening days are always buggy, and problems pop up. So, hey. I can roll. But still — only one person manning the ticket window? And then we asked for two tickets, and she only rang us up for one. Then, rather than just sell us a second ticket, we had to wait while she called a manager, canceled out the debit card order, and then sold us a pair of tickets. The manager responded to the problem, by the way, by yelling at the ticket-seller, “You did NOT just tell me that!”
Oh, and those two tickets were $30. And because of all the delays, it was now about two minutes before the movie was about to start. At this point, I was still willing to suck it up, pay too much for movie tickets, and experience this new-fangled sound system and see the new Pixar movie. We were having this adventure, even if it wasn’t fun anymore, dammit.
Entering Cinetopia, there’s a gift shop on the left, hawking Avengers T-shirts and other merchandise. Tacky, but hey, we’re in a mall. Feeling the walk in my bad knee, I noticed there was nowhere to sit, nowhere to wait for a friend or gather yourself together unless you went into the Beertopia restaurant (yes, the other locations are called Vinotopia. They seem to realize that Vancouver Mall patrons are more likely to drink a beer than a fine wine, which makes sense. But with the other two locations proudly pimping their extensive wine lists, they might as well have just called this one Joe Six-Pack’s Cheap-ass Swill Factory.)
When we handed our tickets to the ticket-taker, she smiled brightly and said, “This is for Theater Four. It’s downstairs.”
ME: Okay. How do we get there?
TICKET CHICK: You have to go downstairs.
ME: (patiently) This is opening day. No one knows where anything is. How. Do. I. Get. There.
TICKET CHICK: Oh, just go back out those doors and take the elevator down.
ME: So there’s two entrances? On two levels?
TICKET CHICK: Yes. These are the living room theaters and the parlor theaters up here. The grand auditoriums are downstairs.
ME: I have to go back out into the mall, and take an elevator down?
TICKET CHICK: (Huge smile) Yes!
ME: (to Patrick) That’s it. I’m getting our money back.
And yeah, that was it. I’m no diva. I’m incredibly patient, non-confrontational, and able to take retail hassles in stride, which I know doesn’t sound at all like me, but trust me, it’s true. I’ve worked retail. Hell, I worked at Starbucks. I have sympathy. This was just one thing too many. There was no way I was going to give them my money, and no way I could relax and enjoy the movie even if I did. I was done.
I want to reiterate that all my previous experiences with Cinetopia have been great. But visiting this new location, even without seeing the damn movie, it looks like they’ve made a lot of bad, bad choices. The mall location itself, to start with — Vancouver Mall isn’t a fancy, upscale mall with Kate Spade and Bose and The Body Shop and L’Occitane. Vancouver Mall is a lower-to-middle working-class mall, a Panda Express/Hot Topic/JC Penney mall. The owners of the mall may believe that having the theater entrance inside the mall itself will increase foot traffic and sales, but it’s doubtful that it’ll be significant — the majority of the Vancouver denizens shopping at Old Navy and Payless aren’t the type to spend that kind of money for a movie ticket, and the Cinetopia patrons are going to find it inconvenient that they have to be bombarded with Yankee Candle smells and people in ill-fitting sweatpants on their way to what’s supposed to be a luxe theater experience.
And while the two-level thing works for Cinetopia’s staff (restaurant and theaters that get restaurant service on one level, grand auditoriums with concession stands on another) it’s definitely not convenient for customers. See also: No signage on the outside of the mall to tell people where to enter to get to the theater. See also: Not making it clear at the ticket counter that there are two levels/two ticket booths/two entrances. See also: Making your customers take an elevator outside, in the mall, to get down to your other level.
For the first time, it looks like Cinetopia may have made a serious, serious misstep. I have no doubt that, once inside, the theaters themselves are beautifully appointed, comfortable, and provide a state-of-the-art viewing experience. Unfortunately, what you have to go through to get to that point is ridiculous.
By the way, the Roseway Theater has an amazing sound system, is super comfy, has reasonably priced concessions, and is showing Brave for $9. I believe I’ll be giving them my money on Saturday.
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
It gets worse, believe it or not. My wife and I went to the Vancouver Mall Cinetopia to see Prometheus. We wanted to watch it in the kid-free (over 21) Living Room Theatre. We had the same trouble with the two levels, and the exterior elevator, and all that.
Then we got into the theatre, and discovered that the “living room theatre” isn’t a separate theatre. It’s a balcony of the Grand Auditorium, two rows of seats neither as plentiful or comfortable as the seats in the original Cinetopia. And it’s a BALCONY in the kids-allowed Grand Auditorium. A huge, echo-y room where kids can talk or yell or cry. We didn’t pay extra for wine or beer, we paid extra for an adults-only experience at the movies.
We felt cheated. We didn’t demand our money back, but we won’t ever go back there.
I went Cinetopia last night. The best movie theater I have been to. I did not have problems but I am not simple minded. Brave was great. The sound is so real. Their food is the best food any theater in Portland offers.
I just wanna make sure I’m not misunderstanding you: Did you mean for “I didn’t have problems but I am not simple minded” to sound like you were implying Dawn IS simple minded?
Let me preface this reply by saying I enjoy your podcast and usually agree with you. I hope this can be kept civil…
I have some issues with this blog post, because I think that you have a decent sized following and I feel that this puts a bad light on what I consider to be a very nice theater. While you have some valid points (they need better signs, the ticket booth person should have told you the theater was on the bottom floor), the rest of the post really bothers me.
Firstly, as a Vancouver resident, I am used to the constant bashing we get from Portland. However, it doesn’t make it right. Just because the other 2 locations (One of which is also in Vancouver, and was the first location) have wine bars, doesn’t mean this one has to have one also. Perhaps the fact that there is already a location in Vancouver with a wine bar was part of the reason they decided to try something different with this branch. And, the Portland area is also known for it’s beers, so I don’t see why having a location with a beertopia should be looked down on. Most Portlanders love their beer, and their beer theaters. I would think most people would see this as a good thing.
Secondly, it’s a theater attached to a Mall. I am aware of two other theaters in Portland that are attached to malls. The Lloyd Center Mall theaters has no outside presence at all. No signs, nothing. If you had never been there before how would you know where it is? The other theater, at Clackamas Town Center, can been seen from the outside of the mall. However, you also have to go in to the mall to get to the ticket box. The new Cinetopia is no different than any of the other mall theaters, so I wonder why you would expect anything different when going to a Mall theater.
Thirdly, did you even look at the website before going to the theater? It says right there on the website that there is an extra charge for 3D and an extra charge for ATMOS sound. And, it has the different prices for all the different theater types. The prices should not have been a surprise, they are very upfront about the pricing. You want to see a new movie in 3D, on the 80 foot screen, and in ATMOS, you’re going to have to pay more. (The regular screens with 3D are still cheaper than Regal 2D showings)
Fourth, you say that after the hassle with the tickets it was 2 minutes to showtime. Unless that hassle took 25 minutes, then it sounds like you were cutting it too close with the time. (Once again, on their website) They say to get there a minimum of 30 minutes before your movie starts, and they suggest 45. On the opening day of a new Pixar movie I would get there early even if it was a theater I had been to hundreds of times. If it is a new theater (opening weekend, too) in a location I had never been to, I would get there even earlier to make sure I got parking and could find my way.
So, while I agree there were some issues with the theater and the staff, it is nothing that a few signs and some better training can’t resolve. The only thing that can’t be easily fixed is the lack of elevator/escalator inside the theater proper. However, there is an elevator 50 feet from the ticket booth. Had you been told by the person in the ticket booth that your theater was on the other floor, you would have been able to very quickly gotten on the elevator before ever going in the theater.
However, I feel that several of the problems you had were self imposed. It doesn’t sound like you gave yourself enough wiggle room in going to a theater you had never been to before in a location you had not been to before. A quick call to the theater would have answered your question as to where it was located, where to park, and that there were theaters on both floors. (I went there Friday night with my kids. I called beforehand and was told how early to get there, what floor my theater was on, where to park, etc…)
Lastly, I just need to say that I do not work for Cinetopia. I do not know anyone who does. I just really like them and feel that this blog post paints their new location in a bad light, and I feel a little unfairly. As I mentioned above, I went there with my kids last night to see Brave and had a great time. It was a very positive experience. I really liked the theater, and as a Vancouver resident, I am happy to have two Cinetopia theaters here now.
P.S. – I also enjoy the Roseway theater. However, it only has one screen. If they aren’t playing what you want to see, you are out of luck.
What you describe as “unfairly” treating Cinetopia I would describe as “accurately” describing them. My wife has mobility issues (but I’m the one who hates malls) and Dawn’s post made it clear that this new location is not suitable for our needs.
We will continue to visit the other two locations, the staff in both have been very responsive to our needs and we’ve enjoyed ourselves immensely. The adults only theaters have been a big part of that experience so I’m glad I found out that the new location is only segregated and not separate before driving up there.
Hey, I’m a huge fan of yours and endured listening to Rick just to hear you. Thought i should say that before I go on because, it pains me to say that you may have been predisposed to not having a good time that day. As you said yourself, the mall is not the place for you. Knowing that, why go to this particular location when there are two other branches that you have enjoyed not attached to the labyrinthine shopping center? Variable amounts of signage outside, being forced down endless corridors of sensory overload, and limited floor transitions are all part of modern mall shopping experience.
It does sound like Cinetopia has made some bad choices. Not having been to that mall I’m not going to comment on whether or not it meshes with the image the theater is trying to put forward. Letting people know there are two entrances, and elevators or escalators within would definitely help. When going to a theater I shouldn’t have to research whether or not I’m entering the right door. I shouldn’t have to visit the website to find out if I’ll be charged more for certain amenities. (By the way, it sounds like you were directed to the main entrance by the mall employee.) Certain information should be presented plain as day when purchasing the ticket at the box office. Take it for what it’s worth, that’s just my thoughts.
Well, the other Cinetopia theaters charge different prices for the different types of screens they have. Since they have another type of screen at this new theater, it makes sense that it would also have it’s own price. And they charge extra for 3D, I guess it makes sense that they also charge for ATMOS. (Which was the whole reason Dawn decided to brave the mall to go to this new theater.)
The biggest issue is that the person selling the ticket should have said that the theater was downstairs. That’s a training issue. And, what they should probably do is make a map to place next to each of the ticket booths (on both floors) that show which theaters are on which floor so that when you get your ticket and it says “Theater 4″, you can look at the map and see instantly that it is on the bottom floor.
We went to VanMall Cinetopia last weekend. The issues are still the same. No signage outside, we drove around looking for an entrance, nothing. We found a parking space near the ctran office and headed inside.
Once inside, on the top floor, we found signage to Cinetopia which by that time was obviously, turn left. We made it inside and went to the “online tickets” booth/desk and no one was there. We could see a girl in a booth area and she saw us but didnt come to the desk. So, we proceeded back out into the mall, further left, and gave her my cell with our fandango confirmation. This is one thing they did right, use Fandango. She quickly got us our tickets and we headed in.
We expected a bigger concession stand but there were plenty of workers to take our order, however, they advertise pizza but have none there, so we waited for them to hale a girl down to go get us our slice. 10 minutes later, a girl comes running back with our pizza, I was curious where it had come from?
We headed to our theatre, 17, but there was only one row of seating? We looked all around for a stairwell to no avail. There were a couple of seats open but right on top of other people. We went back out to see what Twilight Zone we’d just entered and a worker informed us that was it, the “living room” which implies similarity to the other locations, was a single row of seats? Really? At best they shouldnt have done such a thing, but at least call it what it is, a skybox maybe? That is not rocket science.
We wont be back. It was too awkward and felt unplanned. Im not even willing to try the snuggle room aka parlor as I understand there isnt an age limit? I guess Id have loved that when I was 16 and maybe this is who they are catering to; big auditorium and tiny “skybox.”
Mill Plain, I’m sorry I even attempted a change, but I am a big fandango fan. But I wont stray again. Ever.
I would just like to say that a) there’s a map of the mall by every door b) your bad attitude was probably showing so you likely bothered some new staff. Who doesn’t understand that grouchy people see movies too c) part of all the confusion could have been resolved if you had just asked. The ticket seller isn’t the one to tell you where the booth is. Halfthe time they don’t know because they aren’t working that position. I’m usually entertained by what you have to say but this particular podcast I found distasteful.
A lot of you are complaining about there being no sign…well, you are entering where the c tran station is which is the back of the mall. If you were to drive to the front (where most people do) there is a giant sign overlooking the highway. I also don’t understand how it was so difficult to find, it’s located directly in the center of the mall, its not off in some corner. You went in there with a bad attitude and you already made up your mind that you weren’t going to have a pleasant experience. I do agree that the ticket seller should’ve told you that theatre 4 was downstairs but there is an elevator right next to the doors. It’s really not that difficult to navigate yourself around, you make it seem like it’s some sort of maze.
I generally make it a point to not reply to negative comments, but I feel I need to say one thing.
I definitely did not go “in there with a bad attitude,” nor had I “already made up [my] mind that [I wasn't] going to have a pleasant experience.” In fact, if you scroll up and take a look at what I actually wrote, I spend the first several paragraphs praising Cinetopia all over the place, and then talk about how I drove well out of my way to visit the new location.
I’m not sure what dog you have in this fight, and you’re certainly free to disagree with my opinion. But it would carry more weight if it appeared that you processed what I wrote before you dug in.