Less than ten blocks north of John Jay’s New Building sits a massive, uniquely themed theater. Famous among cinephiles for having one of the largest IMAX screens in the country, the theater enjoyed massive crowds on Friday, November 22nd primarily due to the IMAX release of Gladiator II.

Swarms of people surrounded the theater to take pictures with the massive poster of Wicked that covered most of the building’s glass façade. Inside was even more energetic, with palpable excitement for the dual release of Gladiator II and Wicked along with a massive line at the box office even in the era of purchasing tickets online.

Reaching the largest IMAX screen in the city requires a ride up what was once the world’s largest freestanding escalator, which is surrounded by brightly colored murals celebrating old Hollywood.

Todd Hofacker, experienced in the film industry, spoke about the IMAX screen, “I’ve been to a few others, but this is amazing. Everything else just pales in comparison to its size.”

Like many others, Hofacker arrived at the theater at 12:30 p.m. on a Friday, as it was the only IMAX showing with available seats for Gladiator II, a blockbuster that touts the importance of the IMAX viewing experience.

Javier Tejeda, who frequents the Lincoln Square theater for films that release in the premium IMAX format, said, “This is easily the best theater in the city, especially for IMAX.” However, Tejeda lives in lower Manhattan, and said he doesn’t make the trip for non-IMAX films, choosing to go to his local AMC in Union Square instead.

But for some, AMC Lincoln Square 13 is their go-to for any films, such as former John Jay student Isabelle Ocampo.

“This was my go-to theater when I was in John Jay…still my go-to theater,” said Ocampo, who explained she had been frequenting the Lincoln Square AMC for roughly ten years.

Generally, those who attended the screening were familiar with how unique the IMAX theater housed at the Lincoln Square AMC was. Additionally, some, such as Tejeda and Ocampo, were AMC Stubs A-List members due to how often they frequented the theater.

Nevertheless, there were some enthusiastic first-timers present, such as Rick Mizer, who said,“It [the IMAX] was recommended by my daughter, and I’m really excited for the movie.”

While Mizer had been to the Lincoln Square theater prior and frequently while living in Manhattan, he never made his way up the escalator until Gladiator II. When asked for a comment after the movie, he briefly replied that he enjoyed the movie and the premium experience, despite the escalated price.

At $28 for non-matinee showings, the price for an IMAX ticket at AMC Lincoln Square 13 can be a bit steep, even with the slight student discount. At other AMC theaters, tickets for the lower-quality IMAX are slightly lower, ranging from $22 to $25 per ticket, depending on where in New York the theater is.

Nevertheless, many made a  point to emphasize, whether they had an AMC membership or not, IMAX at Lincoln Square was worth the price.

However, a unique IMAX auditorium isn’t the only draw to the Lincoln Square AMC. The theater opened in November 1994 as a Loews Theater and was rethemed as an AMC in the 2000s when the chain was bought out.

Yet, after thirty years, the theater has still kept its theming meant as a tribute to its former operator. Five of the multiplex’s auditoriums are themed after the five former Loews Wonder Theatres and scattered around New York (with one in New Jersey). 

Continuing this tribute to early Hollywood is the concession area adorned with fake palm trees in gaudy colors and the names of movie stars from the era, as well as the aforementioned escalator murals.

Additionally, the theater goes to great lengths to create promotional displays unlike those found in many other theaters. Sometimes, theaters set up cardboard displays to promote big budget movies, encouraging guests to take pictures. 

The Lincoln Square AMC takes this much further  with an entire corner themed and dedicated to taking pictures with cardboard standees from Wicked, an enormous stone coffin to promote Nosferatu (one of only ten on display nationwide), and the retheming of an arcade game to promote Sonic 3. For Gladiator II, the theater acquired costumes from the movie to display in a glass case near

the IMAX escalator.

Regarding the novelty of the Lincoln Center Theater and IMAX screen, Morgan Bissegger said, “I would come quite a ways…It’s definitely a different experience.”