A review of Villagio's IMAX Theater

We went to see "Disney's A Christmas Carol 3D" in Villagio's Imax this afternoon. We were supposed to watch it this weekend but I decided to do it this afternoon as I was assuming that many would be watching on the weekend. We caught the 4:15 showing.

Villagio was showing on 2 screens; the IMAX version in 3D and the Digital 3D. The Digital 3D would cost 45 each while tickets to IMAX would be 55. We choose the IMAX though comparing it to the prices in Bangkok and the Philippines, the IMAX here in Qatar is waaaay expensive. It's close to Christmas anyway so it's ok to "splurge" a bit. The difference between the 2 is simple. Your Digital 3D would require you to wear polarized glasses as with the IMAX (though glasses in IMAX are bigger than being given to those going to Digital 3D cinemas in Villagio) but the main difference would be the size and curvature of the screen. Digital 3D is projected in your typical standard-size flat cinema while the IMAX shows the movie in a much bigger and curved canvass. A standard IMAX screen is 22 metres (72 ft) wide and 16.1 metres (53 ft) high, but can vary.

Comparing Villagio's IMAX and Bangkok's Krungsri IMAX theater, Villagio's seems much like a smaller version and a B-class theater. Bangkok's Krungsri IMAX is much bigger/larger and the sound is truly incredible. Here lies the issues with IMAX Corporation.IMAX Corporation doesn't really implement very detailed standards when it comes to the sizes of an IMAX theater nor the viewing and other technical aspects in building an IMAX cinema. From what I saw in Villagio's IMAX, their screen in smaller than Bangkok's and the I only saw 2 back speakers unlike in Bangkok where the place is surrounded by speakers. Thus, when watching the movie, the audio seems bland and flat to me. The quality of the movie is good though. I didn't see any artifacts and images look sharp and crisp...in the middle. Since, the size of the screen in Villagio is smaller than Bangkok's, it seems that the quality diminishes sharply on the edges. For bigger screens, it is harder to notice as your field of view is covered by the projected image and more.

To state it bluntly, watching IMAX in Villagio for 55QR is a rip off. But this is Qatar and it's the only IMAX theater available so it's either you go and watch or not. Well, almost everything you pay in Qatar is a rip off anyway.

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