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Navy Pier: Navy Pier IMAX Theater

Author: Molly Ryan

Categories: Navy Pier



The IMAX Theater at Navy Pier is colossal. Located in the Family Pavilion, this monster of a movie theater takes guests on a wild adventure into a completely different world. Grab some popcorn and dive into an entire 6-story performance that will have viewers glued to their seats.


As Chicago’s largest movie theater, the IMAX seats 440 people and has a 60 by 80 foot screen. Overall, the monumental screen is 6 stories high, but from one of the seats in the audience, it appears to be almost endless.

During an IMAX performance, sound erupts from the booming surround-sound speakers and the audience feels like they are physically moving in their seats along with the movie camera. Watch a 3-D IMAX show to see characters and objects jump off of the screen and into the theater. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself feeling the urge to reach out your hands to touch these objects—they are unbelievably realistic!

Kids will love the wide variety of shows geared towards their interests. Throughout the year, cartoon characters and super heroes soar onto the screen and delight youngsters as they reach out and try to interact with the 3-D objects. For a more educational, kid-friendly performance, almost every morning the theater has shows that explore the ocean, outer space, the desert, and areas, animals and cultures around the universe. Through the IMAX, the whole family is able to take a whirlwind adventure to areas of the world rarely seen by other human beings. Swim with sharks, take a flight to Mars and hunt with lions without ever leaving your seat.


Just because kids will be captivated by the IMAX shows does not mean that adults will enjoy them any less. From the afternoon until late into the night, more mature performances are screened for an older audience. Action films are always popular at the IMAX because the audience feels like they are actually in the middle of the excitement. Nowadays, many large-budget films are using specialty IMAX cameras to shoot their action scenes to give audiences a more intimate viewing. Seeing your favorite movie star standing six stories high will give you a whole new perspective on watching films.

The film Batman: The Dark Knight has changed IMAX viewing forever. Since the movie opened on July 18, 2008, audiences have been literally running to IMAX theaters. Over $2 million worth of tickets were sold for showings of the film at IMAX theaters over a week before it even opened. Since the movie was shot in Chicago, the film ran continuously for the first 72 hours after its opening at none other than the Navy Pier IMAX Theater.

A handful of the action scenes were shot using specialty IMAX cameras, which give the audience a superior viewing experience. It is expected that directors will use the IMAX scenes in Batman as a model for future action films, which will give audiences more reasons to frequent IMAX theaters!

It's not all big-budget explosions, though, as the newest offering, Dolphins and Whales 3D: Tribes of the Ocean, follows Jean-Michel Cousteau from the Caribbean coral reef to Tonga tracking the roaming bands of ocean-dwelling mammals.

For more information on the Navy Pier IMAX Theater, performances, and show times visit the Navy Pier IMAX website.

 

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family friendlyclassic ChicagoConcierge Favorites

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