Ziegfeld Theatre
141 W. 54th Street,
New York,
NY
10019
141 W. 54th Street,
New York,
NY
10019
131 people
favorited this theater
Showing 1,551 - 1,575 of 4,511 comments
I don’t understand it. Why don’t they just automate the curtain?
And even as such, how hard is it to press an “open” and “close” button which you can be sure is right next to the projector motor switch.
Wow, it’s so hard. Power projector motor, open douser, push curtain open button, press changeover button to open the light to the screen.
And if it is digital, there’s even less of an excuse because the curtain could be integrated into the DP automation. You can be sure that’s a one button start sequence.
One of the nicest theaters left and they don’t care about their showmanship.
Many of these films, such as “Benjamin Button” & “Defiance” are digital projections. What’s the resolution? 2 k? 4 k? I understand there’s a 3 k, too.
Yesterday’s 1 PM of “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” was well attended with at least a few hundred moviegoers. I asked the Box Office attendent if the curtain was being used, and she replied no. Indeed, NO effort was made to use the curtain. Perhaps it is only used for premieres & special presentations? People who attend the Ziegfeld like the curtain and it should be used more!
Though “Benjamin Button” only arrived on Christmas Day, “Defiance” begins on December 31. Defiance will be an exclusive, and should do very well as such.
Regal Theaters had a program where card members can hold a beeper (and receive an extra 100 points) to alert management of rude and/or otherwise bad behavior. Not sure if they have it in your market, or at any Clearview venue, but if they do, or could start, this could be a good way of getting a manager or someone with authority to kick out the offending patrons in a quiet way.
Since I live in the suburbs and rarely go to the downtown theaters, I rarely encounter people such as the ones you’ve mentioned, Bill. Yes, once in awhile, there’s an immature person who reacts inappropriately but its not enough to detract my enjoyment of a movie.
As I’ve said before on this thread, the Ziegfeld has one of the best DP presentations I can recall..from Revenge of the Sith to last year’s Blade Runner. It was worth the drive up :)
This was almost a replay of 1993 when Schindler’s List was released. Misguided school teachers, trying to teach children about dehumanization, when outside the classroom in the 90’s was a steady diet of “hood movies” and violent video games. Patrons at the Schindler sceening were also outraged, and keep in mind that was 15 years ago! Most of the films I attend are art films, so I avoid kids, babies, and igorant patrons that you can’t reason with. Only two things bother me even when I attend those films, creatins that feel the need to drape their nasty, filthy feet on the seat in front of them, and whem I attend a “classic film” at the Film Forum, young hipster doofuses show up and ruin the movie by laughing at everything in it. Last winter at the Film Forum, I saw the movie “Violent Saturday”, as soon as the title appeared, laughter broke out. I always felt that I would be the last one that they would have to drag out of the theater, but as I said earlier, some of these people you cannot reason with, and going to movie could cost you your life. The 65 inch plasma screen is looking better and better. A report came out last summer, about what is on the soles of peoples' shoes, so only the Quad Cinema has a no tolerance about feet on chairs.
In the lobby after the show, there were a number of teens from the class who looked terribly embarrassed and upset by what some of the others had done. It’s good to know that the bad behavior was not running rampant through the whole group.
Sorry about the experience that you had with annoying kids during the movie, Bill Huelbig. It’s pretty disgusting—the way so many kids behave. I know that when we were kids growing up and seeing the movies in a real movie theatre that any kid(s) who were rude, disrespectful or loud during a movie were promptly shut up by their friends, and/or threatened with expulsion by the usher if they kept up that kind of behaviour. Now, since so many parents of today indulge their kids and let them do what they want, and a lot of child advocacy groups take on this sort of a “spare the rod and spoil the child” attitude, which has backfired pretty horrendously.
The movie portrays him as practically a saint. The director chose not to dramatize the dark side of Che.
“He was screaming at them, that they disrespected the real Che…”
Somebody still thought Che Guevara earned respect after the movie was over?
Unless they just put it in, then no. Only a few locations in the city have the Sony 4K projector (2 screening rooms and the Sunshine Theatre)
Can anyone confirm whether “Che” was shown on a Sony 4K projector? Thanks.
Another tactic the annoying kids pulled: whenever somebody shushed them they’d all shush back, in unison. They seemed very hard to get through to. No wonder that guy was so angry on the way out. He was screaming at them, that they disrespected the real Che and everybody who made the movie.
I almost said something to one of the ushers who are constantly checking the thermostats near the front of the Ziegfeld, but those kids seemed to be spread out evenly all around the theater, so I doubt she could’ve done anything about it. I’m with you, saps – this is a job for a matron with a flashlight.
Bring back matrons! With flashlights!
What a drag! The usher should get tough on rude patrons who behave inappropriately, regardless of their age, and tell them to either be quiet or leave. If I were an usher at a movie theatre, especially a movie palace like the Ziegfeld or any other movie palace, that’s what I’d do.
Another unusual thing about “Che”: it was shot in two different aspect ratios, very wide 2.35:1 for the first part and regular widescreen 1.85:1 for the second. The second part was pretty much a downer all the way, so maybe the director felt the expansive full wide screen wasn’t appropriate for that part of the story.
Just got back from “Che”. Let’s get the bad stuff out of the way first: it was way too long, especially Part Two which was basically the same scene over and over again, until finally giving way to a very affecting finale. It could easily have been cut by an hour.
Now for the good: the film was filled with beautiful images. It looks like the most impressive digitally-shot movie yet (maybe they invented a new and better digital camera?) Benicio Del Toro was very good in the title role. The film had no on-screen credits, but everyone got a free program with all credits listed, just like “Apocalypse Now” at the Ziegfeld in 1979. And it was a real thrill just to see an “Intermission” title card again, after all these years. And to hear an overture and exit music.
They used the curtains, and there were no commercials or previews. In fact, I missed a few minutes of the overture because it started at 1 PM on the dot. There were some rowdy schoolkids in the crowd (quite a big crowd for a 1 PM show on a Thursday, by the way) who were talking out loud, laughing hysterically when people on the screen were getting shot, etc. There was almost a fistfight in the lobby when an angry patron confronted them about it on the way out.
I think it was a good thing that the Ziegfeld showed Che the way it did. I attended the Friday screening. I loved the first part since it was the rise of Che. the second being his down fall. Love it or not, it was real cinema something this country rarely produces anymore. The ziegfeld’s massive screen, was a great frame for it. Comments about it’s running time are disturbing given that this is a website for those who love cinema or is it cinemas? Pay no attention to film critics, one has to look far and wide for a good one. The New York Post and the Metro being the worst reviewers on the face of the planet! And they get paid, go figure. There is a film reviewer in Philadelphia named Matt Prige, who gave Casablanca an A-, and thinks Citizen Kane is overrated. But, I believe these 60 plus year old films should not be subjected to assinine letter grades. Looking forward to Ziegfeld Classics 2009, Metropolis and the Searchers, are among my choices.
Oh by the way, for any one that’s interested. If you were planning on attending “It’s a Wonderful Life” next Saturday at the Lafayette in Suffern NY, you should know the show is already ½ sold out from online & box office pre-sales. If you want to go, either get there real early, or go to the bigscreenclassic.com page for order instructions. Merry Xmas!
“One good thing about the remakes: they make you appreciate the quality of the originals more than you ever thought possible.”
How true!
There were no kind words for this film at the Lafayette this morning.
One good thing about the remakes: they make you appreciate the quality of the originals more than you ever thought possible.
I hear they’re also remaking “The Birds”. There should be an unwritten law in Hollywood: Don’t Remake Hitchcock.
The key is “will the film pay for itself”. They usually do, especially given the home after market.
So they will keep making these films as long as there is money to be made.
It’s always about the money. Not the quality. You can be sure all involved though it was a good project and a great film, but I said it earlier. You can’t remake classic.
No spoilers, just major disappointment. How do we get Hollywood to call off the planned remake of “Forbidden Planet”? Based on the sci-fi remake track record, they should just not bother.
Bill: Spoilers at that link? I don’t want to read it if there are spoilers.
Hi Vito, nice to hear from you again. Ross is a great guy. I know a few months ago he helped when I could not log onto CT. On a seperate note, if todays business where I work is any indication, TDTESS is not long for the theatres.