November 15th, 2021
Imagine Cinemas is a small theatre company with a few locations across Canada. The cinema company is famously known for their reclining faux-leather chairs. The primary reason people enjoy going to see a film at Imagine Cinemas are the comfortable reclining chairs. Imagine Cinemas is my favourite movie theatre out of all the ones I've reviewed so far. I reviewed the Elgin Mills location, located in Richmond Hill, Ontario. This location in particular, is a little small and features 10 auditoriums of different sizes.
When you walk in, you're greeted with a lot of warm tones, those tones make me feel a little more comfortable and at home in the theatre. The wall to your left features posters of what's playing, along with their showtimes and what's coming soon. Right in front of you, you'll see four ticket purchasing stations that are now closed. With Covid in the picture, all tickets must be purchased online. First thing that happens when you walk in the theatre now, you will be required to show vaccination receipts, along with a form of identification before you get any further into the movie-watching process. After they check our vaccination receipts, I walk over to one of the three ticket scanner machines to get my physical ticket printed.
Then, I head downstairs to see a huge concession stand that used to have all 5 station open. With Covid, only a few stations are open at a time. This is kind of a nuissance for movie-goers because ever since the theatres opened back up, a lot of people have been coming, especially on weekends. Now, there are long waits that usually take 10 -15 minutes depending on the day.
Most people, myself included, usually find that movie theatres sell their snacks at high costs. Imagine Cinemas have actually raised their prices since they reopened. It's become a little more pricey, but I still choose to buy my food from them since movie theatres only make their revenue from their concession stands. In my opinion, their food is far better than what Cineplex has to offer. Imagine Cinemas offers a humble selection of food and packages. With that, they do make better quality of popcorn compared to bigger theatre companies. Their popcorn tastes fresh and offers a decent ratio of salt to butter. The food overall is pretty good.
I think the greatest thing about Imagine Cinemas is their customer service. Employees are really kind and patient with their customers and were all very open to me interviewing them. At one point, some of the employees began to recognize me and would always make small talk or say hi to me. I had a very good experience with them and was able to form a small relationship with some of them. I definitely think that employees at Imagine Cinemas offer great customer service, compared to other employees I've met in other companies.
My absolute favourite thing about Imagine Cinemas is it's small environment. Because Imagine Cinemas is a relatively new company, they offer smaller auditoriums with lesser people. Many people would argue that the small auditoriums are not to their liking because the screens are a little too small and auditoriums aren't as big as Cineplex's (probably due to the space the recliners take up). Personally, I like that puniness, it makes me feel more relaxed and comfortable. There's a crowd big enough where people can laugh together and respect each other, but not so big where you'll often see people having disputes or direspecting the theatre (and employees). With the small amount of people in each auditorium, everyone is always super respectful of each other and of the theatre.
In my opinion, Imagine Cinemas is the best place to go to watch a movie. The atmosphere there is so chill and comfortable. People who struggle with anxiety in crowds, like myself, won't feel so anxious or worried of judgement. Everyone feels respected and comfortable. It's a great place to go to enjoy a film, whether that viewing be with your friends or by yourself.
Check out the Imagine Cinemas website to see showtimings and different theatres in your area. Write down your favourite theatres in the comments below!
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