Fox Theater in Atlanta to show 2001: A Space Odyssey in 70mm! (1 Viewer)

[Patrick Sun]

Family first, film second. There, I said it.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Peter: Some people don't get their priorities straight. JB

 

[Patrick Sun]

I will not apologize for my priorities.

 

[Peter Apruzzese]

Just ribbin' ya...

 

[Jack Briggs]

I'm not!

 

[Mark Olson]

I haven't seen anyone mention this yet, but I thought I would in case anyone lives close by.
2001: A Space Odyssey (in 70mm) will be at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor, MI on August 25,26,27. Here is a link to the web page: Michigan Theater
Mark

 

[Jack Briggs]

Mark: Why don't you post this news separately, so your fellow/sister 2001 fans in Michigan, who might also be HTF members, will be sure to get the news? You have my complete support. JB

 

[Christ Reynolds]

I did make it from here to Washington DC last year in ~20 hours though

gotcha beat on that one, made it from orlando to cape cod in a little under 21 hours. haulin ass!

CK

 

[Christ Reynolds]

and would anyone know where else 2001 will be showing in 70mm? i'd love to see it, but im not sure i could make the drive to GA from mass.

CJ

 

[Patrick Sun]

Last bump for the Atlanta showing of 2001 at the Fox tonight!

 

[Brook K]

I'll be there with an HTF t-shirt and khaki shorts. Hopefully some of us can meet.

 

[Mark Pfeiffer]

I considered coming to this tonight, but I'm going to Athens to see a concert instead. (It's not like I don't see enough movies as is. ) I saw 2001 in 70mm last year at Ebert's festival, and it was definitely a highlight of my moviegoing experiences.

 

[Jack Briggs]

And wouldn't you know it but we lucky Angelenos get our second dose of 2001 in 70mm at Hollywood's refurbished Cinerama Dome next month! And we had a 35mm print here last month, which, of course, followed a 70mm presentation of 2001 at The Egyptian last December.

Oh to be a 2001 fan and Los Angeles resident. Lucky us!

 

[Patrick Sun]

Jack, which day next month? Wink wink nudge nudge.

 

[Jack Briggs]

That's right, Pat! That would be amazing! I don't think the specific dates have been announced yet. Robert, where should I look?

 

[Patrick Sun]

Sheesh, what I endured to get to the Fox theater tonight:

1. Pouring rain during the drive in town to the Fox.
2. Looking for parking in a humongous downpour, the streets were flooded at the turns. Finally found a free parking spot, but at the cost of 2.5 blocks away and flood-soaked shoes and socks.
3. Sitting in the Fox theater with wet shoes and socks and shirt. Brrr....

The place was pretty packed, Kubrick can still pack them in (on the bottom seats, and the balcony seat - went up during intermission to see how the turnout was for the balcony seats).

The last 10 minutes of this film still boggles my feeble little mind. Seeing it on the big screen in 70mm boggled it even further. But seeing it on the big screen was a treat, the sense of space you get from such a viewing experience can't be easily duplicated at home.

The mix of the audio was good enough that voices seem to actually come from the actors' mouths on screen at their location (on screen), pretty nifty mixing. The 1st reel was a bit scratchy, and I was dreading seeing the rest of the film if it had continued in that condition, but I'm happy to report that the rest of the film looked pretty decent for such an old film.

I can now say that I've been able to watch a sci-fi classic in its big screen glory.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Bravo, Pat!

I wonder about that print, though. Conceivably, if it's one of the new prints from last year's limited release, the thing might have been played enough to be scratchy by now. (I've seen some really scratchy prints in 35mm and 70mm.)

The Cinerama Dome is completely refurbished, by the way. (Check out RobertR's thread.) It may, in fact, be one of the finest commercial cinema houses in the world now. The place was still a dazzler when I saw 2001 there in 1996. Going to the Dome is always fun.

 

[Mark Pfeiffer]

But seeing it on the big screen was a treat, the sense of space you get from such a viewing experience can't be easily duplicated at home.

A point that often gets lost here at HTF. As good as home theater is, the theatrical experience can't be totally duplicated.
Sorry the film wasn't less boggling. I found seeing it theatrically in 70mm made it much clearer.
BTW, I enjoyed the Laura Minor concert tonight in Athens (my choice for the evening over 2001. Nothing like seeing an artist you like perform from five feet away in a small club.

 

[Patrick Sun]

I did notice bottom halos on light colored objects in the projection of this print. I don't know if I'm coming down with astigmatism, or it was the projection that was causing this form of halos.

The laughs from the audience for the 2nd act (Bowman, Poole, and Hal) was a nice part of the ambience of a 70mm screening. Other than that, the theater was pretty much quiet except for 2 cell phone rings (one had the theme of The Simpsons for their ring tone) and the occasional cough.

Bowman's trip into the Infinite is also much more impactful on the big screen.

 

[AndrewD]

The only time I saw '2001' was a 7omm print about 10 years ago. I saw the movie mainly because of its reputation and the big-screen treatment, but to be honest, I didn't 'get it' then.

Being 10 years older, I have to say that movie last night sucked me in from the beginning and never let go. What a wonderful experience!

I expressed my concerns with the sound system earlier in this thread. I shouldn't have. We were about 20 rows from the front and were very pleased with how it all sounded. It made us even more anxious to see 'The Last Waltz' and 'Ladies and Gentlemen...the Rolling Stones' on Thursday.