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Angelika Film Center closed

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marmer

marmer

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Posted

The Rice Village had a great movie theater. Then, it was torn down to add shopping and parking... Oh, but they left part of the marque as a nod to history!

Yes, it was a Mackie and Kamrath, though not particualarly spectacular. and next to it was an amazing old-timey toy store in the mold of Variety Fair (World Toy and Gift.) There was a fairly significant effort to turn it into a live-performance venue but nothing worked out. David Welling's book _Cinema Houston_ says that the property belonged to Rice University and they waited for the expiration of a "moratorium on the demolition of historic structures" placed during the Jim McConn administration and promptly leveled it in January 1991. This was, I believe, the beginning of national chain retail in a significant way in the Village. (I guess you could count Eckerd's.)

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JJVilla

JJVilla

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Exactly the kind of area that has tourists and visitors. No one stays in a hotel downtown when they come here, and very few people live downtown. That's why it's dead at night. You can't just build things downtown and expect people to journey to them. First you need to get people staying/living down there - more conventions, more hotels, more lofts/apartments.

Agreed with your points.

Where do most big name/high profile visitors stay when they visit or tour Houston? Like it or not it's the Galleria/Uptown area because of the hotels and shopping mostly.

So back to topic, a smaller theater/film center like this would be welcome here. Maybe BLVD development?

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brian0123

brian0123

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Those touting the Galleria are missing what the point of the Angelika is. My wife and I loved the Angelika and spent a lot of money there... but we rarely go to the Galleria. A movie theater in Galleria would have to have a lot of mainstream movies to survive... something like an AMC, etc.

The Angelika was about revitalization and pulling in people that seek out the type of movies they show. There were people from Beaumont, Cypress, Sugarland, Lufkin, etc. who would come from all directions... so being centralized is key. Getting around the Galleria is a nightmare enough. My vote for a new spot would be just south of Downtown, near the light rail in Midtown. Tons of apartments and townhouses around, easy to get to, between Downtown and the Museums, and some big empty warehouses just waiting for something like this.

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DrLan34

DrLan34

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i think the pavilions would be a cool venue if there is space

Those touting the Galleria are missing what the point of the Angelika is. My wife and I loved the Angelika and spent a lot of money there... but we rarely go to the Galleria. A movie theater in Galleria would have to have a lot of mainstream movies to survive... something like an AMC, etc.

The Angelika was about revitalization and pulling in people that seek out the type of movies they show. There were people from Beaumont, Cypress, Sugarland, Lufkin, etc. who would come from all directions... so being centralized is key. Getting around the Galleria is a nightmare enough. My vote for a new spot would be just south of Downtown, near the light rail in Midtown. Tons of apartments and townhouses around, easy to get to, between Downtown and the Museums, and some big empty warehouses just waiting for something like this.

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RedScare

RedScare

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What happened was that Metro, with the pushing of Lee Brown, tore up every damn street at the same time, making it impossible to go to the places we liked. We lived in Midtown from 1998-2004, and went Downtown all the time - until the streets were destroyed.

What is most interesting about this tired cliche is that the streets were torn up from 2001 up until Jan.1, 2004 (Remember when the Super Bowl was here?)...EXACTLY the years that you say Downtown was hopping. All street work on Main was completed by 2004, which is when you claim downtown died. By your logic, Lee Brown and METRO should be thanked for tearing up the streets, as they are the ones that made Downtown exciting.

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NenaE

NenaE

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I saw a film at the Greenway once, had subtitles, was many years ago. Was a very quiet, hidden place.

I go to that other one, near Richmond, occasionally, but don't like having to pay to park. As for the Galleria, I've avoided it for years. I think of traffic and crowds when I hear the name.

I like going downtown, sorry to hear about the Angelika closing. Thought it was a good idea. Been to the Italian restaurant & Vorizon theater (next to it) a few times.

Does the Galleria still have a theater?

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Ross

Ross

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What is most interesting about this tired cliche is that the streets were torn up from 2001 up until Jan.1, 2004 (Remember when the Super Bowl was here?)...EXACTLY the years that you say Downtown was hopping. All street work on Main was completed by 2004, which is when you claim downtown died. By your logic, Lee Brown and METRO should be thanked for tearing up the streets, as they are the ones that made Downtown exciting.

Downtown was dead well before 2004. From 1998 to 2000 it was a lot of fun. We tried just about every new restaurant that opened, and walked around looking at all the activity. When more streets were torn up, getting around became a big enough pain that we quit going. This piece in the Houston Press http://www.houstonpress.com/2002-01-17/news/brown-wins-historical-award/ came after we started spending more time in Montrose/Upper Kirby and other areas because Downtown was a mess. The reconstruction of Jones Plaza that started in 2001 also hurt - we went to a lot of events there.

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HarryMoto

HarryMoto

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From what I've read on some Houston sites (like the Chronicle's), some seem to be blaming Houston itself for the failure of the Angelika, as if the audience for what they were doing didn't exist. But if either of the North Texas Angelikas had been located in downtown Dallas, they probably wouldn't have survived either. It just so happened that the locations in Dallas and Plano are: in highly-trafficked malls (Mockingbird Station, The Shops at Legacy) that are right off either Central Expressway or the Tollway; have plenty of parking, and are near the yupscale demographic such an enterprise requires. (Mockingbird Station is also a light-rail stop.) If Angelika can find a similar location in Houston -- Rice Village, Midtown, and Montrose are obvious choices; what about the Heights or is that considered off the beaten path? -- I'm sure it would be similarly successful. I went to the Greenway Plaza theater once and found it hard to find and was disheartened but not surprised when it closed.

FWIW, Dallas might find itself with too much of a good thing shortly. Landmark bought and is rehabbing the Highland Park Regent Theater for re-opening sometime this fall and the old Texas Theater, of Lee Harvey Oswald fame, is being turned into an arthouse/repertory theater that will open by year's end.

http://oakcliffblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/09/local-filmmakers-to-take-oak-c.html

We'll see if there's enough of an audience for these plus the Inwood (which has been showing more mainstream movies as of late), Magnolia, and two Angelikas.

Back on point: Someone's going to figure out how to serve this audience in Houston and whoever does it, I think, will find themselves tapping into a comparatively small (comparing to AMC megaplexes) but possibly profitable niche.

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editor

editor

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Posted

I hate the damn Galleria area. Over rated and over priced.

I can say this much for it -- The Galleria has better people-watching than downtown.

I didn't like the Galleria all that much when I lived in Houston for many of the same reasons expressed here. Now that I come to Houston as a visitor, I like it much better.

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Houston19514

Houston19514

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Posted

Cute. I'm sure you'll be pleased to demonstrate how your posted list is easily 4 times as long as this list (which incidentally uses a relatively narrow definition of "downtown" compared to the Galleria area list's very broad definition of "Galleria area":

http://www.urbanspoon.com/n/8/711/Houston/Downtown-Houston-restaurants

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houstonartstudent

houstonartstudent

Posted
Posted

It looks official now! Opening in November...hopefully ;)

http://blogs.chron.com/primeproperty/2011/03/sundance_cinemas_to_move_into.html

Looks like we might be getting a Sundance Cinema. I never knew such a (micro-)chain existed, but from their website it looks similar to the Angelika without the one or two major releases that used played along side the indie and foreign stuff.

My link

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gene

gene

Posted
Posted

Robert Redford Sundance Cinema Coming To Houston

Cinema To Open In Old Angelika Theater's Spot

POSTED: Thursday, March 31, 2011UPDATED: 12:51 pm CDT March 31, 2011

HOUSTON -- A new cinema will soon open in downtown Houston.

Sundance Cinemas

Robert Redford's Sundance Cinema will move into the spot previously held by the Angelika Theater.

Sundance Cinemas Houston will feature specialized film programming pulled from film festivals and general release films.

"Houston is very lucky to be chosen by one of the most sought-after theater operators in the country," Mayor Annise Parker said.

The cinema will offer drinking and dining choices, all reserved seating, digital stereo sound and presentation, filmmaker screenings and exclusive events, plus free parking for patrons and community events.

The cinema is scheduled to open in Bayou Place in November.

http://www.click2houston.com/news/27386755/detail.html

I think this is great news as this location atttracts few kids and teens and caters to the real movie buff...and this sounds to be wanting to keep that same feel...

= awesome!

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gene

gene

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Posted

Note combined related topics

thank you for combining my post with this topic! and yes so excited about this as it sounds like we may have alot of cool events coming to this theater!

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  • 2 weeks later...
trymahjong

trymahjong

Posted
Posted

Robert Redford Sundance Cinema Coming To Houston

Cinema To Open In Old Angelika Theater's Spot

POSTED: Thursday, March 31, 2011UPDATED: 12:51 pm CDT March 31, 2011

HOUSTON -- A new cinema will soon open in downtown Houston.

Sundance Cinemas

Robert Redford's Sundance Cinema will move into the spot previously held by the Angelika Theater.

Sundance Cinemas Houston will feature specialized film programming pulled from film festivals and general release films.

"Houston is very lucky to be chosen by one of the most sought-after theater operators in the country," Mayor Annise Parker said.

The cinema will offer drinking and dining choices, all reserved seating, digital stereo sound and presentation, filmmaker screenings and exclusive events, plus free parking for patrons and community events.

The cinema is scheduled to open in Bayou Place in November.

http://www.click2hou...755/detail.html

I think this is great news as this location atttracts few kids and teens and caters to the real movie buff...and this sounds to be wanting to keep that same feel...

= awesome!

I noticed the "Irked by reserved seating" in the Letters to Editor section in Thursday's chronicle---------

". . . the theater will only have reserved seats. . . . ticket buyers will have to pay $1 to $1.50 "amenity" fee. . . "

what's up with that?

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