So when does Johnson City get a new movie Theatre? (Knoxville: sales, tenant)

[Green Arrow]

So it looks like Kingsport is getting at least two new movie theaters....Bristol has Tinsletown...even Greeneville has a relatively new movie theater. So why are the movie theaters in Johnson City so horrible? You'd think that being located in a college town with a large young population we'd have the best movie theaters in the area...instead we have Reel to Real which is barely one-step above a porno theater(which is appropriate since thats what Paul Wiley ran before he opened Real to Reel)and we also have Carmike 14 which...is just dreadful. Went there today for a matinee(which was almost $8) then passed on the $5 dollar watered-down soda only to receive a massive headache before the movie even started thanks to the super-loud previews that went on for 25 minutes(I know...I checked my phone. Several times). Whats it gonna take to get a Regal Cinemas in JC? Or Tinsletown? Or ANYTHING other than what we have?? Its time for a change!!!!!

[jchometeam]

While I tend to agree with you on the theatre in JC, most of the problems you described are descriptive of most theatres. They are all overprices both on ticket sales and food, and the previews are insane wherever you go. And again while I agree with you that the current one is no good- it is always busy, and most people are completely fine paying the overpriced concessions. So if you are them and it is working well, why are you going to change?

I always went to Reel to Reel before they quit showing the current movies. I always liked the less crowd and they have better seats. But not enough people did go. If you are a theatre owner, and JC could not support 2 theatres not long ago and the current one is doing well, why would you make the substantial risk to open another one? Another food place is a much better risk- as people around here (including myself) are obviously too lazy to cook

[BP72]

Netflix = $7.95 a month... through Computer and Wii. That's my story.

[Green Arrow]

The thing that kills me is,theres no reason for the theaters in JC to be as bad as they are. Look at Tinsletown over in Bristol...great prices,on the tickets and the food. Its clean. You get,at most,10 minutes of trailers before the movie....Carmike and Real to Reel COULD be a lot nicer than they are,if someone would just put some effort into running them right,instead of just letting them rot.

[jabogitlu]

I don't think Real to Reel is bad at all. Their concessions are cheaper and their seats are MUCH nicer. Plus I get to see a movie that sounded interesting but I didn't want to pay $7 or $8 just to see it.

There are a few movies (Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Star Wars) that I want to see right when they're released. Carmike's not the greatest theater, but I don't mind it when I do go.

Usually when there's a very exciting movie coming out, we go to Turkey Creek and make an evening of it, anyway. So I guess there's the case to be made that JC is losing out on our dollars there, and probably some other peoples', too.

[rccrain]

JCHT is correct that Carmike has no reason to upgrade because their shows are selling.

However, if Regal or someone else were to come in an open a much nicer theater, Carmike would quickly become a ghost town. It's only a matter of time.

[jabogitlu]

I always thought Regal would be a great tenant at the old Model Mill site. It's one of the last large parcels in South JC (in any desirable area, anyway) and what a built-in customer base!

[Green Arrow]

I LOVE the Regal Cinema at Turkey Creek in Knoxville...its just hard to get the time to drive 2 hours,see a 2 hour movie,and then spend 2 hours driving back. Heck,I try to go to Tinsletown whenever I can,but even that can be a long drive from JC depending on the time and the gas prices. I still cant believe that Kingsport is getting a new theater and a full remodel of the mall theaters....theres SO MUCH $$$ to be made by a nice,new theater in Johnson City....every college student at ETSU would go to it every weekend. I can only assume that theres some small town politics at work keeping the big boys out.

[tonypitt]

Bumping an old thread to lament that we still don't have any really good theaters in the tricities area. I'm in Milwaukee visiting for a bit and had the opportunity to visit an iPics theater. Incredible. Big screens, active 3D (batteries in the glasses), nice big chairs, restaurant and small bowling alley, bar area. Really fun place. Paid $14 for a 3D film with VIP seating (larger, really nice chairs) and "free popcorn". Felt like it was a much better value than paying half that to see a film in any of the local theaters. This location was in a mall, so it wasn't like the facility was huge. Wish we'd see something like this in our area. It put the nicer, newer theaters in Knoxville and Asheville to shame.

[Ted Bear]

What's a movie theater?