Spider-Man Across The Spider-Verse peeps where you at XD. I just watched the film a few hours ago in IOI City Mall 2 GSC IMAX Laser and it was spectacular. The film is... God man, we Spidey fans eating good!

It is recommended to watch this film in halls specialized with great surround speakers, as the sound direction of this film is phenomenal. This means Dolby Atmos (preferably the ones with THX certification) or IMAX. For a large screen experience, there are 3 options: IMAX, Big and MAXX

While yes, IMAX Laser is dope for this film, it won't use all of the 1.91:1 aspect ratio of the screens, as the film is 2.35:1, which means it is wider and there will be letterboxing (black bars at the top and bottom of the screen). While you will benefit from the IMAX surround speakers, RM35.50 doesn't really feel justified as you can get an equally great viewing experience in other specialized cinema halls.

Best value large screen Spider-Verse 2: BIG DA > IMAX Laser > IMAX > MAXX DA.

I said in my previous post but BIG DA is the best value choice for big budget films whose aspect ratio is wide. Unless the film is stated to be filmed in IMAX, you'll lose very little going for BIG DA vs IMAX, even IOI's Laser IMAX as BIG uses 4K Laser tech too. A ticket in this hall cost around RM 25-27, but you can get a good discount (RM17-18) if you are an early bird (before 12pm) or visit during Wednesdays.

Unfortunately, out of the 3 GSC chains that hosts BIG DA as of right now, only one is airing Spider-Verse 2 in BIG DA: Starling Mall. This is due to Polis Evo 3 taking up those BIG air times at Tropicana Gardens and MyTown.

If you can't find a GSC chain that has BIG DA but you still want a large screen, then by all means go for IMAX, especially IOI's Laser IMAX for that crisp 4k and brighter image. IMAX will still be a fantastic experience, but the cost of RM35 per ticket is way too expensive especially when the screen isn't fully utilized. There is no discount btw, only the Maybank RM5 off at TGV which limits a lot of people. However if you can swallow that price, then it's a guaranteed great time.

I would only visit MAXX DA if that is your only option. The projector is really outdated as the last time I viewed MAXX DA was back in April for John Wick 4 and D&D. The image looked blurry and unclear. The DA speakers still are top notch though. They are THX certified, an audio quality certification and they are a banger. The price of this hall is similar to Big's around RM 25-27ish, but does go down in Wednesday or early bird.

There is ONYX too. The biggest screen belongs to the ONYX DA at Tropicana Gardens. While the image is superior to projectors, the screen size is smaller. However, considering Spider-Verse 2 is an animated film, the film will look way sharper and brighter in this hall. The downsides are the screen is small, though Tropicana's is actually quite large in size, and the audio isn't as good as DA or IMAX. While yes, Tropicana Gardens has Dolby Atmos, I feel it isn't well optimized as the last time I was there for John Wick 4, the audio was quite subdued and I barely noticed the surround imaging that DA is known for. Maybe this is fixed, I am not sure, but yeah, don't expect to go into Onyx halls and be amazed by audio; it is purely an visual fidelity experience.

Overall... Yeah, just screens aside, this past few years have been great for films. from No Way Home to Spider-Verse 2 and all the other blockbuster film in-between. Hope you guys have a good one!

Velocity should be better for Oppenheimer cause of the taller screen. For Mission Impossible, IOI or I-City. I remembered you said you prefer bigger screens so I-City suits you best.

Pokai lo boss haha. Rm 35 per ticket and travel cost (petrol, tolls etc.)

According to IMDB, MI7's tallest aspect ratio scenes are 1.9:1 aspect ratio, which majority of the IMAX halls in Malaysia mostly follows in dimension (IOI City Mall Laser IMAX is exactly 1.9:1, I-City is super close at 1.77:1, slightly taller so will have some letterboxing), no taller scenes ala 1.43:1 like Oppenheimer and Dune 2.

The only 2 very tall IMAX screens in Malaysia (that supports 1:43 films very well) are TGV Sunway Velocity in KL and TGV Vivacity Mall in Kuching. These are the two locations I would visit for Oppenheimer.

Screen size and dimensions can be found in LFExaminer (though ceased operations, haven't updated since late 2021).

Hey man. Back early 2022, I'd watched Dune 1 (which had 1.43:1 scenes) in Velocity IMAX and I distinctly remembered few scenes of the film stretched taller, using almost the entire screen. Velocity's aspect ratio is taller than 1.43:1 at 1.33:1. Velocity uses dual 2k Xenon projectors which help compensate for the higher aspect ratio (there were older posts here that mentioned Velocity's IMAX uses dual 2k Xenon projectors, which should help achieve that 1.43:1 size. This is also why I saw Dune 1 stretch as tall as it did). I could be wrong but it wouldn't hurt to try. Also if I'm right, I'm be so sad cause I usually watch movies at cinema alone and I can't find a partner to justify for that stupid couple seat which are also the best positioned seats there.

Also an update, a few days ago, news broke out that Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1 will only be 2.39:1. Chilaka, I booked IMAX tickets already before hearing this news. Anyway, upon doing a bit of research and reading articles, IMDB's info can be edited by anyone, so previously, it mentioned 1.9:1 alsong with the usual 2.39:1. I assume this was written as speculation as there wasn't any concrete info about MI7's aspect ratio. However, the film heavily marketed to be an IMAX film so the expectation for tall height was promised. Anyway, pretty bumped out right now as I could have saved money opting for BIG DA instead. Maybe the MI7 vs Oppenheimer IMAX screening slots and having Oppenheimer won out in the end may have influenced this change, I'm not sure. Anyway ooof.

Only go Maxx DA as a last resort for a Premium Large Format (PLF) screen hall and only during discounted hours (RM18 usually). If you can't go during discounted hours, then just spend the extra for IMAX at IOI. If you want better quality than Maxx but cheaper than IMAX, check out the BIG DA halls in KL (biggest screen to smallest: Starling, MyTown then Tropicana Gardens). They are further from Putrajaya but definitely better value for visual quality while having equally great audio set-ups. Maxx screen projectors are outdated as the image is blurry and looks low res. I watched D&D there a few months back and it was not a great visually. Re-watched the film at MyTown Big and the clarity was a big difference. Shame cause the speakers are THX certified and audio there is fantastic. Hope they refurbish the hall to Big but then again, the new wing/mall 2 will be opening a Big hall later this year.

Next up, got an update on a hall I posted here about last year.

Starling GSC Big DA - Spider-Man: Across The Spiderverse

This update has been late as the hall screening for this film ended for a few weeks now but man, during the launch of this film, I really needed to re-watch this on a PLF and did not want to pay IMAX price again for it. Unfortunately, only Starling out of the 3 Big DAs was screening Spiderverse 2 as at the other malls screened Polis Evo 3 instead in their Big halls. I thought this would be a good opportunity to re-visit this hall to give an updated review... so I did. I prefer to travel ala public transport but to get here, driving was the best option and man... that day's trip was something (KL traffic jams are the worse). Anyway, here are some photos of the hall and the aesthetics:



Image below was taken from the top edge of the hall. May not look big but when you actually sit down, the size will show.


Even though I visited this hall once before, that was quite some time back and as a recent refresher... this screen is huge. At that time, I was impressed with how big this screen was but re-visiting it made me understand why this thread's OP considered this hall as the best alternative to IMAX in Malaysia. The only downside before was the DA speakers weren't optimized right, and were underwhelming in bass, surround imaging and surprisingly low in volume (softer than THX certified DA halls). However, with the Hong Leong Bank partnership, these Big halls got a needed upgrade on the audio side. The surround imaging is there and the volume was just right at comfortably loud and... yes, the "oomphs" from the bass do be hitting, especially during the building falling scene where the crash sound effect was impactful.

Well... that wraps up my re-visits of the Selangor GSC Big halls in 2023. They are now with recent first hand experience, all fantastic and great IMAX alternatives for PLFs.

Here's a quick round-up of their ups and downs:

Starling: Largest screen of the 3 and with the speaker improvements over last year, not much or if any downsides honestly. My only gripe is inconvenient transportation to get there but hey, that's a me problem.

Mytown: Second largest, the only THX certified DA speakers of the 3 Selangor Big halls but back speakers audibly rumbles during high octane movie sequences (THX certified means it is quality assured by a high audio standard company ala THX. This however shouldn't really matter anymore since the other 2 Big DA halls upped their game, but still worth noting).

Tropicana Gardens: Smallest of the 3 but the cinema chain is the newest and is very well maintained. Like Starling's Big DA, its audio optimization improved and it is great. Seats are leathered and comfy with good leg space.

Bruh, these Oppenheimer IMAX tickets selling out so fast. Yesterday night I checked IOI City IMAX and premiere day fully booked. Oooof.

Sunway Velocity IMAX is the largest in Malaysia, while also being the tallest at 1.33:1 aspect ratio (the screen however should only display at 1.9:1 as the Xenon projector can't do 1.43:1). It's a good hall but the AC is slightly audible, so it can be softly heard during quiet scenes in a film. It also uses the old dual xenon projector and not laser, so the image clarity is questionable especially since it is projecting on that very large screen, though honestly, it's not going to be that noticeable for casual viewers and you will still have a great viewing experience.

The biggest negative is definitely the seating arrangement (image can be found in post #279) where the good, center seats are indulge couple/twin seats which are also priced very expensively (RM 40 per person, total RM 80). I only recommend Velocity IMAX for people with movie partners and Maybank cards as Fridays and weekends usually have discounts (Should be RM60 but currently checking the Oppenheimer seats there and there's no promotion/discounts likely cause it's premier week).

If you do want to go there, you should bring a partner and be able to swallow that indulge tag-on price, but other than that, it's a great hall.

Laser will look better no matter what, hence GSC Big is better image wise than majority of Malaysia's IMAX right now aside from screen size because of the Barca 4k laser. However, I will say I-City's IMAX although Xenon projector is still a fantastic experience because it is the largest 1.9:1 (it's slightly taller but very close enough) screen in Malaysia. It's the 2nd behind Velocity in size, but the seats are comfy, the hall and the cinema chain itself looks very cantik/high class. The IMAX hall itself is very dark so there won't be any distracting lights (1U's keluar sign for example lol).

Honestly, it comes down to what you want. You want large screens? Then from biggest to smallest, Velocity, I-City then 1U IMAX. Honestly, imo Xenon 2k still looks fine to me, the screen size overtakes the slight negativity in image quality.

I recommend seats above row F as you will need to uncomfortably lean your head backwards to properly encompass the movie's image in your peripheral view. The downsides of the sides of row G and above, especially if you sit near to the middle of the hall is that the seat indicator lights on the floor steps which can be distracting when viewing the screen/film. However, this is less distracting and uncomfortable than row F. I recommend row H, J and above as G has those fences/half walls in front of them, which may block some portion of the screen.

Lol. I think animated films still look good in normal halls (watched Across The Spider-verse and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish at GSC and TGV). Live-action movies though, yeah kinda ooof.

IOI City Mall Wing 2 GSC will open a Big hall with DA soon. Great alternative to IMAX Laser honestly mainly for pricing.

Lol I booked an Onyx DA session in Tropicana Gardens GSC today. However, the hall had audio issues where the dialogue audio was absent around 10 minutes through the film. After a long wait, they decided to refund everyone there. Anyway, a lot of halls screening Barbie were fully booked today so I'm gonna follow the memes: Barbenheimer in 1 day; will be watching Barbie after my IMAX Oppenheim viewing.

Here's a better image of the Onyx screen size for yall (the grayish rectangle is the onyx screen)

I have never tried Indulge before since my purpose of going to the cinema is to watch films and not dine, but from what I have read...

Indulge is a TGV trademark luxury hall typically targeted towards couples where you not only watch a film, but also dine in a high class manner. The indulge seats are twin seats that has more cushion for extra comfort, has a flat surface in-between seats to place and dine your meals on, and apparently has built-in buttons to notify staffs to come service you with high-end meals, drinks and other items to your indulgence. Other than that perk, the hall's speakers and screen size are the same from the normal halls, so your only reason for visiting this hall is to have an exquisite movie date with your partner.

In terms of the Indulge twin seats in Sunway Velocity's IMAX hall, they are similar to the ones in the Indulge hall but minus the service buttons as there isn't catering services in the hall. They are also as you will notice, placed in the middle and to the top of the hall where that location is generally considered the best spots to watch a film at in the cinema. Again, I think the Velocity's TGV chain intended for couples to book these seats (they have an extra RM 5 mark-up per person, so the tickets (IMAX RM35 + Indulge RM5) x 2 price is oooofed), however for many of us solo or odd numbered movie-goers, this decision is ass and specifically for me, push me away from going to this IMAX hall (before IOI City Mall's IMAX opened, I had to travel twice as far to 1U just to get a normal IMAX experience).

I believe my recommended seat rows for Sunway Velocity IMAX were H, J and above, not Central I-City's. For I-City, I would say J, then L and above. I sat at H the last time I was there and it was the borderline max for my peripheral vision to comfortably view the entire screen. I would prefer to seat a few rows back. Again, this is my personal seating preference, it can differ for people.

Ps. I would consider avoiding row K since there's a safety fence/half-wall in front which may block some portion of the screen below. I could be wrong but that's my recommendation.

I saw a few tweets and news articles on Lalaport GSC and that they are prioritizing BIG as their flagship while no signs of IMAX discussion except for the Wikipedia page. It could be that there will eventually be an IMAX hall there since IOI City Mall 2 also promised BIG, 4DX along with IMAX on Wikipedia but only launched with IMAX Laser, then only many months later, they finally announced plans for BIG to arrive.

It's likely just a business and resource management thing, like if they launch BIG and IMAX simultaneously, the upkeep cost on launch would be astronomical while the halls will compete with each other initially, leaving a weaker booking rate for one or the other. These premium halls are giant marketing tools for your cinema chain and you want to wisely benefit from them while minimizing losses.

I say give it time, since honestly, even TGV Pavilion Bukit Jalil said nothing about IMAX and launched with Atmos only first until you and few others mentioned that there will be an IMAX screen there, that and the Wiki page mentions it too.

Oh btw, the Wikipedia page said Q4 of 2023 (usually October onwards) despite GSC's Twitter page announcing opending date for their Lalaport chain to be in 1st August, so maybe IMAX and more are arriving later down the line.

Ps. Don't diss Big halls xd. First 4k laser projector tech with Dolby Atmos in Malaysia cinema courtesy of MBO whom really upped the PLF game here (until GSC cannibalized them by buying majority stakes during Covid). Without Big, we likely wouldn't have gotten IMAX Laser and be stuck with Xenons and Maxx.

Brother converted XD. Yea, imo Dolby Atmos is better than IMAX for sound, mainly because IMAX can be uncomfortably loud and Atmos has slightly better surround imaging IMAX has 12 audio channels vs Dolby's 64, meaning more direction where sound can be played from meaning better directional sound (honestly, not many people will be able to tell the difference anyway in terms of the surround imaging unless you're an audiophile).

I'm curious about the screen size of Lalaport's Big. Been looking for a better Big hall in KL other than GSC MyTown cause the latter's speakers shakes audibly. I will likely check this hall out soon, maybe for Blue Beetle and Grand Turismo but honestly, not keen on watching these films.

I would recommend IMAX for Oppenheimer mainly because only IMAX will display those tall and different aspect ratios of the movie. Big and other halls will only display the film in 2.39:1, a wide aspect ratio. Audio-wise, you will get the same experience of IMAX with Dolby with Oppenheimer's case because Nolan's audio choice of this film is IMAX 5.1 instead of 7.1, basically won't have full 360 degree surround imaging so Dolby won't offer a better audio experience.

Tldr, you will get the same audio experience in Dolby vs IMAX for Oppenheimer, that and IMAX will have taller aspect ratio movie shown.

THX is a quality assurance certification, not a speaker/audio system. Most of the current and newer speakers cam easily meet those certification, thus manufacturers and I guess in our topic's case, save coats by not getting that qualification from THX.

However, having that THX certification is still nice to give us consumers a peace of mind and assurance that the audio quality of that hall will be high quality.

Correction: "Most of the current and newer speakers can easily meet those certification, thus manufactureres and I guess in our topic's case, cinema chains, save costs by not getting that qualification from THX.

Haha that's my sentiment in my previous posts when comparing IMAX vs other PLFs here in Malaysia. It all depends on the film's technical specs. If the film is only 2.39:1 aspect ratio and is mostly audio mixed for Dolby, best to watch is Dolby halls. If there's a film specifically made for IMAX, and IMAX holds exclusivity for taller aspect ratios scenes of the film, then IMAX is the go-to la.

My advice like in my previous posts is to check the imdb and other source outlets to decide whether you would prefer Big/Dolby or IMAX. I mean, IMAX is awesome no matter what, but the price is hard to justify at times.

Ah that's cool, I remembered back when MyTown GSC finally renovated and opened their Big hall, they would play like 4 commercials/demos of their DA prowess before the film. That and many years back, the Maxx DA halls in IOI City Mall would also highlight their speakers, behind the screen and on the ceiling. It was a fun flex haha.

Oh, you don't need to worry about whether the missing "DA" when booking Big/Maxx halls. Honestly, you actually save RM1 Xd. Those movies will still use those speakers and have audio enhancements compared to non-DA halls. I know this because I booked John Wick 4 in MyTown Big DA and they didn't advertise the DA to be there, and yet the speakers were blasting like no man's tomorrow from all direction haha.

Brooo I would kill to have Dolby cinema in Malaysia (Dolby Vision and Atmos) the things I read about those halls makes me super envious to the Western movie goers. Unfortunately, the closest to that experience we have in Malaysia is Tropicana Gardens' GSC Onyx DA. I will have to visit this hall in the near future to judge the speaker quality (last time I was there was for Barbie and the screening had errors so bad, the chain needed to refund all of us ooof. It's an isolated incident so no fret). You can check post #507 for an image of this hall's screen size.

I was going to say Dune 2 but just found out it got delayed to 2024 cause of the writers and actors strikes (can the greedy fucks at Hollywood pay these amazing and talented people man, God damn). My recommendation for an authentic IMAX experience is Oppenheimer. It was the premier IMAX film to be recently released, and you can still watch it at IMAX though on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday midnight, 12am at TGV 1Utama or Sunway Pyramid (though I recommend 1Utama more). You could check out Gran Turismo and Blue Beetle in IMAX right now too, as both films are 1.9:1 in aspect ratio (this means the movie's image is taller/bigger), which is typically the main reason to visit IMAX halls in the first place.

Anyone here watched Malbatt: Misi Bakara in IMAX? What is the aspect ratio (does it occupy majority of the screen) and do you guys recommend it in IMAX? Otherwise, I will be visiting Lalaport BBCC Big DA for the film, mainly to assess the new Big hall.

Nice to see Dai Goh back after so long haha. Is Lalaport's Big screen bigger than Starling's and Mytown? I'm interested in Bukit Jalil as well, but saving my first visit there for the IMAX hall release.

Big for big screen, image quality and sound. 4dx for seat motion (basically a roller-coaster ride). I recommend trying both, Big or cinematic immersion, 4dx for physical thrill ride.

Haha, maybe when TGV Bukit Jalil's IMAX opens up, both of us, if not active members of this thread could meet up at Bukit Jalil Pavilion for a film together. I'm a bit sad that I will likely not be able to experience 70mm IMAX since films using that format is pretty rare nowadays, let alone expensive to upkeep that type of hall. I think the best us Malaysians could get is IMAX GT Laser for a 1.43:1 experience, but doubt it will happen because:

1. I guess the more expensive investment for a IMAX GT laser projector and hall upkeep deters GSC/TGV

2. Most IMAX films are 1.9:1, so having a 1.43:1 screen is not worth it (even the largest IMAX screen in the world located in Germany is 1.9:1)

That said, Sunway Velocity's TGV IMAX is the only hall in Malaysia to have a 1.43:1 screen (1.33:1 to be exact), yet it still uses the Xenon lamp projector, so the screen will never be fully filled. I mean if you already have that screen aspect ratio, why not just upgrade it to IMAX Laser GT? (oh right, money :\)

I hope Bukit Jalil's screen, even if they go with a 1.9:1 screen is equivalent or bigger than I-City. It just better be laser since the standard has increased with GSC introducing IMAX Laser.