Not All Screens Are Made Equal: Local Film Critic’s Go-To Screens (Grand Rapids, Michigan)

We’ve all felt that “indescribable feeling” at the movies that Nicole Kidman won’t shut up about. It’s a lot easier to feel the immersion necessary for that magical experience when the screen we see it on is a fitting conveyor of magic. Gandalf needed his fancy staff too. That’s why, when all else is equal, the TV is better than the cellphone and the local multiplex is almost always superior to any home set-up. 

Many of my all-time theater-going memories took place before truly astonishing silver screens. Every year I see around 250 new releases. Many of these I catch in Grand Rapids theaters. To my own shame, I am aware of only a few single theatrical screens in Grand Rapids that I am yet to see a film on. 

These are the best screens to watch a new film on in Grand Rapids.

But first, a few notes on what this list is not: this is not a ranking of my favorite theaters in Grand Rapids. Programming, the actual selection of films shown on these screens, would play a much heavier role in that ranking and would be an altogether different process. It is also not a ranking of the overall theatrical experience from concessions to chair comfort, though it’s also, admittedly, difficult to fully divorce these from the viewing experience. Nor is it a ranking of the theaters I pilgrimage to most often.

I’ve tried my best to keep this highly speculative endeavor to the individual and actual screens (and speakers) the films are shown on. 

8. Celebration Cinema North: Second Screen 

North’s second screen is one of the only suitable options for 3D in the city. While none of Celebration’s C-Premiums in Grand Rapids are 3D-capable (the Lansing one is), the 4K Christie digital projector, even in the relatively more cozy auditorium, is one of the better options for 3D viewing. 

Technology nerds, like myself, might care to know that Celebration uses MasterImage 3D equipment, a company bought by RealD in 2017 after a patent battle, and thus is RealD 3D compatible, according to Kevin Wolters, Presentation Technology Manager. As the city’s dominant chain, that makes this North’s second screen pretty important whenever a new James Cameron film comes around. That said, few filmmakers not named James Cameron still prioritize 3D.

7. Calvin University: CFAC Auditorium

Calvin’s biggest screen is the most underrated in town. With 991 seats, it’s the single biggest auditorium that regularly (depending on one’s interpretation and time of year) shows movies in Grand Rapids, and it’s not particularly close. Seeing “Crazy Rich Asians” with around 700 emotional and invested attendees in 2018 was the kind of theatrical experience that would normally require a bigger city and a signature multiplex—and a smattering of luck too. For me, it was just another Saturday in Kentwood. 

5. Celebration Cinema North: IMAX

At 69.9 × 52.8 ft, Celebration North’s IMAX is the largest screen in the city. It is also one of the only screens in the city with the capability of showing films on actual film. This summer, it was famously one of 40 theaters in the entire world capable of showing “The Odyssey” in 70 mm IMAX. This alone makes it an indelible part of cinephilia in Grand Rapids.

That’s what North’s IMAX is to me, though: an event screen for Christopher Nolan’s films. 70 mm is not a regular occurrence—Celebration even imports a technician from IMAX for these event films—and they are few and far between. 

When it’s not 70 mm, I prefer a variety of the city’s large formats when opportunity aligns. 

The 5.1 audio suffices, but there are always better auditory options. The curve of the IMAX screen makes it feel smaller than its flat-screen, non-IMAX competitors. The auditorium pushes close enough up to the picture that you can almost smell the breath of the actors, and a rail separating the seats from the screen even blocks a very small section near the bottom for many seats. The closeness of the picture to the audience means that from many seats the image often feels warped. The back three rows deliver the optimal vantage point. 

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