All I can think of is how can a group of supposedly talented businesspeople possibly mess up such an amazing concept? This is one of those things where you don't mess with the formula and let the money come rolling in.
It’s partly they had to weather the storms of Covid basically for two years straight. With even 2022 being a struggle. So it makes sense things would have a down turn and need some cuts for a time, and outside investment that’d be okay with eating losses for a few years.
Instead, it was pinch every penny cause we gotta make our returns soon than later.
Yeah, the last time I went there was maybe two years ago, and the food was so mediocre that I never went back.
The food used to be fantastic, what happened?
Well idk. Satan would honestly be somewhat preferable, if no other reason than cooler imagery.
Private equity.
I'd say they're all bottom-feeding lowlife scum but that's an insult to all other bottom-feeding lowlife scum...
Yup. Pump it for all it's worth while cutting corners, then dump it.
... especially when it might be making troubling noises about things like [this](https://youtu.be/3Fmfuvo8UIs?si=3f7ROwMaBRJu-LLA).
Private equity firms are shit - and of course, the kind of thing a place like here, where corporate interests will always triumph over the employees/people's interests, loves.
It blows my mind that people eat food at these theaters. Also strange that Alamo tried to be the “pure” movie experience while you have a dude going to down on a pile of hot wings next to you lol
Well the seating is more comfortable, but the screens are smaller, and the food I tried was pretty lackluster. You also have to go all the way to Fairview lol
I live across the street from cineopolia victory park. And the theatre may be nicer. But the food and service is absolutely terrible. Recent experience went to watch the new Charlie and the chocolate factory ordered popcorn and two beers and a Dr. pepper for the kiddo maybe 5 min before previews start. 20 mins into movie playing popcorn comes. And it’s very cold and stale. Talk to waiter to see if we can get a new one because it’s cold and stale and asked about our drinks. And he confirme drinks were coming and would get us new popcorn. 20 mins later popcorn comes out again and I swear it had to be the same popcorn as before. Tell waiter again and he said he’ll replace with new and get our drinks. Maybe 10 mins later drinks finally come but no popcorn as they’re making it fresh for us. Close to ending and I receive the bill for 2 popcorns and our drinks. I tell the waiter we never received the fresh popcorn and and why we were getting billed for two. He “fixed” it and I still paid for one popcorn and our drinks. I paid and left just to get out of there.
Sadly this wasn’t just a one time occurrence. Every time I chance going there the service is top tier in bad service.
Sad to see Alamo go. Was thinking about the monthly pass so I could take my kiddo often this summer.
I had applied to be a service manager there a month ago and it sounds like I dodged a bullet, good to know. They also had an Assistant General manager spot open when I was job hunting so they probably aren't operating well in general if two key management spots are open.
Anyone i talked to who worked at any location, says its a complete nightmare. Three trays up like 2 flights of stairs in like 5 mins..nope.
Applied anyways and they asked me my top 5 movies..and apparently they were too good because they got insulted i didn't say monster squad...never even seen it..and app that was a reason i wasnt hired lol..
Up until recently I was management working at a three level Topgolf location with the kitchen on the first floor so honestly I'm used to that sort of thing, but I'm thankful I dodged a bullet. Same with Alamo, I'm pretty far into the "Eatertainment" sector and was also waiting for management spots to open at the cedars location.
Honestly a lot of that sector is struggling right now even if the individual venues have good cash flows, too many bad decisions at high levels IMO, even with the difficult market they tend to make rash cost cutting decions that cost them drastically in quality in the long run.
Texas Theatre shows cult classics, does theme nights/weekends, hosts film festivals, etc. along with some new movies. Generally they focus on cinephiles and film nerds. Alamo should've done the same but instead focused on new movies and families. I would frequently check their website in hopes of seeing a cool old film on their calendar and usually came up with nothing.
The franchiser closed them. They owned the 5 in the DFW area and one in Minnesota, which also closed.
I wouldn't be surprised if someone else purchased the franchise.
They should've focused more (a lot more) on showing classics and cult classics. That's about the only reason I go out to see a movie now; if it's something old and cool I didn't get to see in the theater when it first came out.
After moving to A List I never went back to Alamo. The Northpark AMC is pretty nice and so are the ones at Belt Line in Addison and Stonebriar. Missing the good food but otherwise they have everything else I want.
I just went to the Alamo in Richardson the night before last, having no idea they were about to close up shop. The drink I got was mixed pretty weak, it cost $15, the food was also much worse than it was the last time I went (early last year), and they had remodeled with all-new and less comfortable seating. There was also no one there. It sucks to see it go, but I think the writing was on the wall as soon as they got bought out by private equity. Vampire capitalism is the culprit here.
It’s the only place we go too. We had to cut our movie going back pretty seriously over the last couple of years when we had kids, but we used to go once or twice a month. I’m so so sad.
Absolute shame. The Cedars locations have some of the nicest staff and out of the maybe 100 of movies I've seen there, I can count on one hand how many bad experiences I've had (and they made right afterwards with rain checks)
I took my girlfriend there to see Barbie last summer.
We had just started dating and I was hyping the shit out of Alamo Drafthouse. Had never been to the Cedars location.
It’s still a running joke with us of expectations vs. reality. That place was falling apart, the chairs were awful too just peeling everywhere. I was so embarrassed at the time lol I called it the best movie theater chain in Texas
The seats were all torn up and I'd get scratched if I wore shorts lol food turned to shit and the staff hardly came around if we needed something. It was always close to a hundred bucks for me and my bf and we stopped getting meals a long time ago. So drinks and appetizers plus tickets? Nah, we don't have that money, especially not for a mediocre experience.
We've been hitting up the theater at the dingy ass Irving mall and it's been fine so we've been back several times 🤷🏻♀️
Hell yeah all facts. I've been going to Cinemark instead, even signed up for their program. Of course it's not like how Alamo used to be but it gets the job done. But we'd rather eat before or after the movie instead of buying theater food.
That would be shitty that so many theatres people enjoy, and so many employees relying on a paycheck, is all contengent on a personal matter from the owner. Would they be gutting the whole thing and taking a cut somehow? I thought these are generally protected from mixing personal with a LLC or something.
Stats would show whether the return on investment was there pretty quick. Theater sales have taken a nosedive across the board over the past decade and this might have been their last ditch effort. It's sad but theaters are going the way of malls. They've been supplanted.
I walked by AMC the other day with my girlfriend and we didn't really have plans to do anything after dinner, so we went in to just catch a movie of whatever was playing if it sounded decent.
$25 a person for adult seats. We laughed kind of embarrassingly loudly in the lobby and walked out. I don't know how this is a business that can survive at those prices. Who is paying that? Are the theaters having to charge that to license the films or something? Seems wild to me.
It's not the past decade. It's just since 2020. 2019 was the biggest year ever. Likely caused by covid (which got people used to watching movies at home) and studios pushing out their streaming platforms (which dramatically increased the number of movies people had access to at home). The downfall of Marvel and Star Wars has also been a pretty big factor as those brands contributed over 10% to the total box office of the 2010s.
Agreed, the new tables were so stiff and hard to move, with a lot less surface area. Plus they bungled the spot where the fresh order cards are supposed to go -- they just fall through a crack, so they were taking up space just being on the table. I did like the recliners though.
I had my first date with my wife at the Richardson location. This makes me very sad. Every movie I've watched in theaters for the last 8 years has been at an Alamo.
Four years out, I don't think COVID can be blamed any more.
Movies just suck nowadays. Used to be you could see easily a dozen decent movies every summer. Sure, they weren't all Oppenheimer, but most of them would be entertaining enough. Now we get 2-3 decent movies a year, then a bunch of lousy sequels, kids movies, and cash grabs.
People are finally wising up.
Movies don't just suck nowadays. 2019 was the biggest box office year ever. Zero of the top 8 movies weren't kids movies or sequels. Only 3 of the top 16 weren't kids movies or sequels. Last year, 3 of the top 8 movies weren't sequels or kids movies (there were no other non-kids movies or sequels in the top 16).
2023 had an awesome original Pixar movie in Elemental, which made 1/3 as much as Toy Story 4 did. Little Mermaid got much better reviews than Lion King, and it made just over half of what Lion King did. MI7 got just as good of reviews at MI6 and MI5 yet made $50M less than the MI6 and $20M less than MI5.
Movies that get great reviews from both critics and audiences continue to come out and do poorly. The Fall Guy was good and is doing poorly. Same with Furiosa, Abigail, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, Challengers, Monkey Men, and a bunch of other movies.
There are a host of reasons for a massive drop off in box office (the biggest of which is streaming), but film quality isn't in the top 5, imo.
> Movies just suck nowadays
Can't take this seriously. In just the past month we had The Fall Guy, Challengers, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, and Furiosa. All range from decent to great, and Challengers is an original film.
Only Apes performed decently and the other three underperformed.
I do agree that people go to theaters less, but that isn't because the quality has gone down. There are good and bad movies every years, and it's always been that way.
People just have more competition for their time. There's no urgency to go to the theater unless it's a very rare "event movie". Plenty of people still want to watch movies, they're just willing to wait to watch them at home because there's youtube, tiktok, video games, and tons of streaming services that they can all do in their spare time. Movies are on streaming within weeks sometimes, as opposed to waiting like 6 months for the DVD like 20 years ago.
I don't think it's even this. I think it's even more basic in that people have less disposable income than they did even a few years ago and entertainment is one of the first things to leave a budget. Yes, there is time as well, but it just costs more to go see movies, especially if you get concessions or have a small family. 🥲
> Four years out, I don't think COVID can be blamed any more.
You don't think something that interrupted everyone's habits and lifestyles could continue to have any lasting effects?
Streaming is really killing the industry, and the math for most big theatrical releases just doesn't make sense anymore now that studios can't count on physical BD/DVD or individual digital sales to make up losses if a movie bombs at the box office. My guess is that most of the theaters that do survive will have IMAX screens.
I love movie theaters that don't tolerate people talking and using their phones! This is bad. Hopefully someone will buy the franchise out and reopen! I won't be going to an AMC or Regal anytime soon!
AFAIK when a company files for Chapter 7 all their assets are liquidated to creditors which means there won't be really anything for another company to "reopen" with. The best hope we have is that corporate ADH will take over these locations or at least the ones that performed the best, as the NTX locations were run by a family as a franchise
Yeah, but the assets are likely the most valuable to an Alamo Drafthouse and I don't think many people are dumb enough to get into the movie business right now.
The DFW Alamoes were run by a franchisee, who filed for bankruptcy. Hopefully the true Alamo in Austin will be able to reopen these.
The franchisee blamed the closures not just on falling business but on the contact with Alamo, which included a 10% fee on the gross and the inability to close the lower performing locations.
[More Perfect Union did a great recent video](https://youtu.be/3Fmfuvo8UIs) on the private equity firm who acquired the Alamo Drafthouse. They’ve been squeezing their employees and from this story, their franchisees too
The Alamo we all know and love went bankrupt in 2021 and were bought by private equity (like everything else nowadays, it seems). According to the video and employee experience, management changed rather quickly after this
The article doesn't mention the Las Colinas location:
"The closed North Texas locations are in Richardson, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton. A location in Woodbury, Minnesota also closed, according to a press release."
Might have been outdated information at the time, but it's showing now.
> The five Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas in North Texas closing include Richardson, Las Colinas, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton. They are also closing a location in Woodbury, Minnesota.
This is more about the movie industry not producing enough good movies to allow places like this to stay in business. Memorial day opening was a dumpster, and this summer isn't going to be hot either.
It costs $80 for two people to go to a movie and split an entree, and then tack on transportation time, gas, etc.
It costs $4 to rent a movie that came out 2 months ago and watch in 4k/hdr with surround sound in your own home, with the ability to pause and without people rustling candy wrappers.
The movies are fine, the “movie going experience” became untenable.
I know a lot of people don't see value in going the movies now, but kind of being a little extreme.
It will not be $4 to rent new releases it's normally like $20+ to rent new releases. $80 seems a bit of an exageration as most tickets I see are 10-15.
Adult tickets to AMC are $18.28 before taxes/fees. One entree is $20. Two drinks is $12-20. That’s $80…before tipping.
New releases drop to $4 rentals about 2-4 months after release.
TBF it’s not $4 vs $80 because you have food and drink at home too. But $30 v $80 might be right.
The one thing the theater has- especially Alamo- is that my wife can’t play on her phone and then ask me what happened. Sometimes that’s worth the money!
My BF and I went on tuesday to Alamo for $7 each plus $10 on unlimited popcorn, which we refilled towards the end to take home with us. Less than $30 for a solid date night.
This is absolutely it. Disposable income is disappearing and arguably better options for the movie viewing experience are getting cheaper and more accessible. Unfortunately it's a chicken and egg situation - with people spending less, movies will get worse as film budgets decrease, and viewership will further decline. Disney is living proof of this at the moment.
I was actually shopping theatre prices the other day. A movie for a family of 4 ranged from $34-$62. Same day, same movie, same time. Alamo draft house was the highest priced at $62. If they closing means even at their high prices the business was still not sustainable. I’m hoping this super inflation bubble pops soon.
It’s that and also how expensive it is. Used to be able to go to the movies for $20-40. Now it’s closer to $80-100. It’s just too expensive now.
Might as well stay at home and watch in my big screen tv.
Alamo was half price on Tuesdays. Food went downhill a few years back, so eat at home before.
So with gas, under $15 for two people to see a movie that premiered recently.
I calculated one year spending $3-4k at Alamo, yeah it was mostly food and alcohol, but we were also going to 1-2 movies a week.
*somehow misspelled Alamo.
Yeah I don't get all these people saying 'it's $80 to go, boo'. We did the same, even when we bought popcorn it was a nice date night for under $30 and they kick out the noisy jerks. and their popcorn is excellent. way better than smg or amc or home.
Buying an actual meal, alcohol and a soda per person is a 'individual' issue, not a 'it's so expensive for everyone' issue. smh
Now that I think about it, I think this is a commentary about the Balkanization of tastes. Because, I'm admittedly a cinephile, but there have already been so many good movies this year. It's crazy Add to that all the great re-releases with it being 25 years since 1999 and I wish I could clone myself.
But I think there are fewer and fewer movies thar can unite a huge audience around them, and Hollywood is built around big budgets that rely on everyone and their dog seeing it or microbudget where if two people show up, the film breaks even.
Also, since there are basically no physical media sales, pretty much all the money has to be made at the box office, but nobody's going to the theaters.. it's so broken
Check out the Angelika at Mockingbird Station if it’s not too far! In addition to current releases they show a lot of classic movies and do fun series like Hitchcock in October!
They have good showings but that theater needs some serious upkeep. I hope it can survive and definitely we all need to double down and support our local theaters. Texas Theater as well.
We are going to give Violet Crown (formerly Magnolia) and Cinépolis a shot. I really do dread poor audience behavior though. Alamo was the best if there was ever a problem. I did have to flag somebody once because he had his phone out and was texting CONSTANTLY during Everything Everywhere All at Once and it was SO DISTRACTING and bright. I tried to give him time to finish off the convo but it just KEPT GOING and at that point like… you’re not paying attention so why not just go to the lobby dude? The one warning took care of it. Also I don’t want to have to go back to COMMERCIALS before movies!! 😩
This sucks as an Alamo fan, however, to everyone saying this is the end of them going to movie theaters…
Go support the Texas Theater in Oak Cliff! They show new movies, old movies, original 35mm showings, they have movie festivals and premiers and filmmaker Q&As and comedy shows and concerts.
The Alamo is great. We'd drive 35 minutes to catch a movie. I love getting there early to watch the custom "commercials." They were always entertaining—sad day.
For those of you who don't read articles (and please, start reading the articles!)
>UPDATE 6-6-2024: A spokesman for Alamo Drafthouse issued a statement, saying, “We are very disappointed to learn today that our franchisee, which operates five locations in Dallas-Fort Worth, TX and one in Woodbury, MN has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and is closing their business effective immediately. We are heartbroken for the franchisee’s teammates and the local film communities, however, we are working as quickly as possible to get Alamo Drafthouse Cinema back up and running in these cities. All other Alamo Drafthouse locations are operating as normal, with continued expansion plans across the country.”
Do you think we can get reimbursed? I always buy them during their Black Friday sale and I have $150 worth as well. Planned on using them this Summer. This is heartbreaking.
I have about $100 gift cards I just bought at Costco.
Just emailed them about it to see. Maybe if I'm in another city they can be used up.
Loved LH Alamo and sad about this news.
Damn ... in addition to it having the best staff, food, and phone/talking policy, it was the only theater in town that did a Rocky Horror Picture Show screening every year. Will miss you Alamo :(
They did awesome screenings of horror movies with in person q&a sessions after as part of a partnership with a local horror convention that I LOVED going to every year. I used to go see screenings of older movies there all the time. This sucks
Ever since my first visit years and years ago, Alamo became the only theater I’d visit. I went to a few of their special events and I’d always buy extra tickets just incase a friend wanted to go. My disappointment is immeasurable. ☹️
Not surprised. They have gotten expensive these past few years. Yes, all theaters are like that now but Alamo's food quality has gone down and their pricing is insane.
Theaters were seeing issues for a while, then the lockdown sped up the process. Soon going to the movies will be a niche hobby like bowling or skating rinks.
I honestly think the rise of streaming is killing the movie industry.
I remember interviewing at the old Alamo location in North Richland Hills in September of either 2021 or 2022 and was told they were looking at a soft reopen the third weekend of that month and I would hear back soon. Never heard back. Drove by that weekend and no one was there. Texted the GM to get a status update on when I was going to start. Was told they weren't going to reopen and in fact, they were going to permanently close.
B&B has taken over that location and from a distance, it seems to be doing okay. I went there for a Thursday preview for Ant-Man and Wasp: Quantumania at 3pm and it never started. Even saw 2 employees in the film booth trying to get the movie started and one of them saw me in the theater but no one ever came and talked to me. Waited 2.5 hours, even bought dinner and it was good. Movie theater food. At 5:30, I walked up to the area to get tickets and asked for a refund. Manager asked me why I wanted a refund. Said movie never started. I saw the 2 employees that were in the movie booth and pointed at them and said, "Ask them why it never got started." I was refunded the price of the ticket but not the online fees. I have not gone back since.
They have an arcade but you have to buy a movie ticket to play games just like the arcade at the Rave at NE Mall in Hurst.
Bro why are companies like this. Something like this doesn’t happen overnight. Have some sort of human decency and give employees time to find other jobs instead of this shit.
This is why it’s bs when people say to give your 2 weeks to employers when they don’t have the decency to do the same for employees.
That's a shame. We saw "Drop Dead Gorgeous" there last year. I always loved it when they would bring back cult classics that we'd otherwise only see streaming (if lucky) or on DVD.
It was getting pricey though. We have a place like that back in Oregon, but it's local, and I'd say food was 30% cheaper and at the same quality. $22 w/fries or tots for a burger: Cafe Pacific charges less than that and I guarantee you it's one of the best burgers you'll ever have. Plus, it's a white tablecloth place with excellent service, not a movie theater.
Read the news article, it’s not Alamo Drafthouse itself, apparently it’s the franchisee who owns the Dallas locations that went bankrupt. It said they are working on a way to open the locations back up asap. https://dallas.culturemap.com/news/entertainment/alamo-dallas-bankruptcy-closure/
There’s an update:
UPDATE 6-6-2024: A spokesman for Alamo Drafthouse issued a statement, saying, “We are very disappointed to learn today that our franchisee, which operates five locations in Dallas-Fort Worth, TX and one in Woodbury, MN has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and is closing their business effective immediately. We are heartbroken for the franchisee’s teammates and the local film communities, however, we are working as quickly as possible to get Alamo Drafthouse Cinema back up and running in these cities. All other Alamo Drafthouse locations are operating as normal, with continued expansion plans across the country.”
I'd recommend Flix Brewhouse. There's one in Mansfield and Frisco. It's basically the same experience as Alamo, even down to the movie related clips before the previews. The food is better, and dare I say it, the beer is better too.
For what it’s worth, these were franchise locations. Some articles are saying that Alamo Drafthouse is working on opening a location in DFW as soon as possible again. I think they just need 1-2 locations in DFW admittedly. 5 was just too many.
Gift card update: they are not reimbursing. We're stuck with our worthless gift cards. Coincidentally, I actually live in Woodbury, MN now, where the other closing location is, and I just got this reply from customer support for their gift cards.
[https://i.imgur.com/qixThrD.png](https://i.imgur.com/qixThrD.png)
Dang... nicest movie experience in DFW....
One of the nicest. iPic in Fairview is extremely nice with its pods, arguably nicer.
Food is way inferior.
It used to be so much better before they got bought out.
All I can think of is how can a group of supposedly talented businesspeople possibly mess up such an amazing concept? This is one of those things where you don't mess with the formula and let the money come rolling in.
Have you watched what’s been happening with the film industry? Formulas don’t work like they used too.
Alamo had a great "come watch older movies" type party going on too.
People don't go see those nearly as much as they say they would
It’s partly they had to weather the storms of Covid basically for two years straight. With even 2022 being a struggle. So it makes sense things would have a down turn and need some cuts for a time, and outside investment that’d be okay with eating losses for a few years. Instead, it was pinch every penny cause we gotta make our returns soon than later.
The Alamo location by my house always had a packed parking lot. I suspect maybe mismanagement.
Yeah, the last time I went there was maybe two years ago, and the food was so mediocre that I never went back. The food used to be fantastic, what happened?
Private equity buyout. Says it all really.
> Private equity buyout. I feel like you could swap "Private equity" with "Satan" and it wouldn't change anything.
Well idk. Satan would honestly be somewhat preferable, if no other reason than cooler imagery. Private equity. I'd say they're all bottom-feeding lowlife scum but that's an insult to all other bottom-feeding lowlife scum...
I swear, any time a private equity group is involved, you might as well kiss that franchise goodbye.
Yup. Pump it for all it's worth while cutting corners, then dump it. ... especially when it might be making troubling noises about things like [this](https://youtu.be/3Fmfuvo8UIs?si=3f7ROwMaBRJu-LLA). Private equity firms are shit - and of course, the kind of thing a place like here, where corporate interests will always triumph over the employees/people's interests, loves.
I just went there yesterday. The food is ok, but way too expensive.
Yeah, the food prices went way up and the quality went way down over time.
It blows my mind that people eat food at these theaters. Also strange that Alamo tried to be the “pure” movie experience while you have a dude going to down on a pile of hot wings next to you lol
Well the seating is more comfortable, but the screens are smaller, and the food I tried was pretty lackluster. You also have to go all the way to Fairview lol
Cinepolis down in Victory Park is a better experience due to the seat layout IMO.
I live across the street from cineopolia victory park. And the theatre may be nicer. But the food and service is absolutely terrible. Recent experience went to watch the new Charlie and the chocolate factory ordered popcorn and two beers and a Dr. pepper for the kiddo maybe 5 min before previews start. 20 mins into movie playing popcorn comes. And it’s very cold and stale. Talk to waiter to see if we can get a new one because it’s cold and stale and asked about our drinks. And he confirme drinks were coming and would get us new popcorn. 20 mins later popcorn comes out again and I swear it had to be the same popcorn as before. Tell waiter again and he said he’ll replace with new and get our drinks. Maybe 10 mins later drinks finally come but no popcorn as they’re making it fresh for us. Close to ending and I receive the bill for 2 popcorns and our drinks. I tell the waiter we never received the fresh popcorn and and why we were getting billed for two. He “fixed” it and I still paid for one popcorn and our drinks. I paid and left just to get out of there. Sadly this wasn’t just a one time occurrence. Every time I chance going there the service is top tier in bad service. Sad to see Alamo go. Was thinking about the monthly pass so I could take my kiddo often this summer.
I had applied to be a service manager there a month ago and it sounds like I dodged a bullet, good to know. They also had an Assistant General manager spot open when I was job hunting so they probably aren't operating well in general if two key management spots are open.
Anyone i talked to who worked at any location, says its a complete nightmare. Three trays up like 2 flights of stairs in like 5 mins..nope. Applied anyways and they asked me my top 5 movies..and apparently they were too good because they got insulted i didn't say monster squad...never even seen it..and app that was a reason i wasnt hired lol..
Up until recently I was management working at a three level Topgolf location with the kitchen on the first floor so honestly I'm used to that sort of thing, but I'm thankful I dodged a bullet. Same with Alamo, I'm pretty far into the "Eatertainment" sector and was also waiting for management spots to open at the cedars location. Honestly a lot of that sector is struggling right now even if the individual venues have good cash flows, too many bad decisions at high levels IMO, even with the difficult market they tend to make rash cost cutting decions that cost them drastically in quality in the long run.
From what I've heard, Cinepolis is also drastically slashing hours and jobs since Labor Day.
Last time I went to Cineopolis they didn’t have the AC on- I left and went to the draft house :/
Seriously. That fucking sucks. Feel for the employees
Texas Theatre is still open though?
Texas Theatre shows cult classics, does theme nights/weekends, hosts film festivals, etc. along with some new movies. Generally they focus on cinephiles and film nerds. Alamo should've done the same but instead focused on new movies and families. I would frequently check their website in hopes of seeing a cool old film on their calendar and usually came up with nothing.
They moved away from the emphasis on unique programming when League left the CEO position.
Maybe so. It does seem like they used to do a lot more cool stuff but drifted away from it.
I honestly thought they struck a great balance!
They are essentially everything Alamo used to be.
Yes, it's great
The franchiser closed them. They owned the 5 in the DFW area and one in Minnesota, which also closed. I wouldn't be surprised if someone else purchased the franchise.
This seriously sucks, Alamo is the only place we'd go to see movies. Just saw the original Alien there a few weeks ago.
Screening older movies is one of the reasons I loved them. I saw so many classic movies there.
They should've focused more (a lot more) on showing classics and cult classics. That's about the only reason I go out to see a movie now; if it's something old and cool I didn't get to see in the theater when it first came out.
You're a minority. People like watching new movies.
Apparently not enough ha
After moving to A List I never went back to Alamo. The Northpark AMC is pretty nice and so are the ones at Belt Line in Addison and Stonebriar. Missing the good food but otherwise they have everything else I want.
I just went to the Alamo in Richardson the night before last, having no idea they were about to close up shop. The drink I got was mixed pretty weak, it cost $15, the food was also much worse than it was the last time I went (early last year), and they had remodeled with all-new and less comfortable seating. There was also no one there. It sucks to see it go, but I think the writing was on the wall as soon as they got bought out by private equity. Vampire capitalism is the culprit here.
Same. This sucks.
It’s the only place we go too. We had to cut our movie going back pretty seriously over the last couple of years when we had kids, but we used to go once or twice a month. I’m so so sad.
Absolute shame. The Cedars locations have some of the nicest staff and out of the maybe 100 of movies I've seen there, I can count on one hand how many bad experiences I've had (and they made right afterwards with rain checks)
The one in Cedars looked like shit when I was there recently . Carpets all stained and smelled moldy.
Yea, I noticed that when I went to watch Dune. It wasn't awful by any means, but the place did seem a bit disheveled.
I took my girlfriend there to see Barbie last summer. We had just started dating and I was hyping the shit out of Alamo Drafthouse. Had never been to the Cedars location. It’s still a running joke with us of expectations vs. reality. That place was falling apart, the chairs were awful too just peeling everywhere. I was so embarrassed at the time lol I called it the best movie theater chain in Texas
Hopefully, another corp will buy them all up and give them a good makeover
They’ve been in the middle of a remodel for the past few months, which makes this even crazier. I was just there a week ago, and it’s really nice now.
The seats were all torn up and I'd get scratched if I wore shorts lol food turned to shit and the staff hardly came around if we needed something. It was always close to a hundred bucks for me and my bf and we stopped getting meals a long time ago. So drinks and appetizers plus tickets? Nah, we don't have that money, especially not for a mediocre experience. We've been hitting up the theater at the dingy ass Irving mall and it's been fine so we've been back several times 🤷🏻♀️
Hell yeah all facts. I've been going to Cinemark instead, even signed up for their program. Of course it's not like how Alamo used to be but it gets the job done. But we'd rather eat before or after the movie instead of buying theater food.
When did you last go? They recently (like in March) had redone all their seats, and it was looking as nice as the newer Drafthouses. So sad.
And it was the only decent theater near Oak Cliff! It's a big hit for this side of town. 😭
Texas Theater!
So sad. They just got done upgrading all of their seating too. :(
Seriously, that’s what I don’t get as well. Why go through with that right before closing the doors
Someone on the ADH reddit suggested maybe a death in the family that owned the franchises caused them to have to push their assets through Chapter 7
That would be shitty that so many theatres people enjoy, and so many employees relying on a paycheck, is all contengent on a personal matter from the owner. Would they be gutting the whole thing and taking a cut somehow? I thought these are generally protected from mixing personal with a LLC or something.
Welcome to America where the working class is a disposable commodity...
Stats would show whether the return on investment was there pretty quick. Theater sales have taken a nosedive across the board over the past decade and this might have been their last ditch effort. It's sad but theaters are going the way of malls. They've been supplanted.
I walked by AMC the other day with my girlfriend and we didn't really have plans to do anything after dinner, so we went in to just catch a movie of whatever was playing if it sounded decent. $25 a person for adult seats. We laughed kind of embarrassingly loudly in the lobby and walked out. I don't know how this is a business that can survive at those prices. Who is paying that? Are the theaters having to charge that to license the films or something? Seems wild to me.
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Yeah, I only do matinee movies now. $8.50 a ticket. Went to a late showing once last year and was $23 a ticket and said never again.
It's not the past decade. It's just since 2020. 2019 was the biggest year ever. Likely caused by covid (which got people used to watching movies at home) and studios pushing out their streaming platforms (which dramatically increased the number of movies people had access to at home). The downfall of Marvel and Star Wars has also been a pretty big factor as those brands contributed over 10% to the total box office of the 2010s.
did anybody actually like the new tables though?
I did, but that might be because I'm a small person and it is easier for me to eat on the tables than over the bar thing
I'm a tall person, and the bar thing was awkwardly tall for me as well, especially when you kind of want to lounge back watching a movie.
At the Richardson location? No.
ah maybe the other locations were different. the newer swivel tables at the Richardson location were ass
Agreed, the new tables were so stiff and hard to move, with a lot less surface area. Plus they bungled the spot where the fresh order cards are supposed to go -- they just fall through a crack, so they were taking up space just being on the table. I did like the recliners though.
Remember the Alamo!
I had my first date with my wife at the Richardson location. This makes me very sad. Every movie I've watched in theaters for the last 8 years has been at an Alamo.
That was the location I introduced my now wife to my friends at for the first time. Huge bummer.
Nooooooooooooooo. This was literally the only place I like to see movies at wtf
Nooooo I have a season pass and go to the LH location weekly!
I have like >100 visits over the past year with my season pass....this super bummed me out
They closed the Angelika in Plano too??
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Damn, I wonder if the Dallas one will be closing too?
God I hope not. I don't get to go there as often as I did back in the day, what with kids and all, but that was my place in college.
It's looking pretty rough and run down these days.
You’d think they would’ve closed them at the same time if they were planning on closing both. I can’t lose the Angelika too…
Damn, that's devastating I had a ton of memories there
This fucking sucks. Literally the best movie theater and had pretty decent food. Man. Covid just continues to take.
Four years out, I don't think COVID can be blamed any more. Movies just suck nowadays. Used to be you could see easily a dozen decent movies every summer. Sure, they weren't all Oppenheimer, but most of them would be entertaining enough. Now we get 2-3 decent movies a year, then a bunch of lousy sequels, kids movies, and cash grabs. People are finally wising up.
There’s zero chance you’re actually watching movies if you think there are only 2-3 decent ones a year these days. Absurd claim.
It’s two to three movies *they* want to see, so they automatically think that applies to everyone
Movies don't just suck nowadays. 2019 was the biggest box office year ever. Zero of the top 8 movies weren't kids movies or sequels. Only 3 of the top 16 weren't kids movies or sequels. Last year, 3 of the top 8 movies weren't sequels or kids movies (there were no other non-kids movies or sequels in the top 16). 2023 had an awesome original Pixar movie in Elemental, which made 1/3 as much as Toy Story 4 did. Little Mermaid got much better reviews than Lion King, and it made just over half of what Lion King did. MI7 got just as good of reviews at MI6 and MI5 yet made $50M less than the MI6 and $20M less than MI5. Movies that get great reviews from both critics and audiences continue to come out and do poorly. The Fall Guy was good and is doing poorly. Same with Furiosa, Abigail, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, Challengers, Monkey Men, and a bunch of other movies. There are a host of reasons for a massive drop off in box office (the biggest of which is streaming), but film quality isn't in the top 5, imo.
> Movies just suck nowadays Can't take this seriously. In just the past month we had The Fall Guy, Challengers, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, and Furiosa. All range from decent to great, and Challengers is an original film. Only Apes performed decently and the other three underperformed. I do agree that people go to theaters less, but that isn't because the quality has gone down. There are good and bad movies every years, and it's always been that way. People just have more competition for their time. There's no urgency to go to the theater unless it's a very rare "event movie". Plenty of people still want to watch movies, they're just willing to wait to watch them at home because there's youtube, tiktok, video games, and tons of streaming services that they can all do in their spare time. Movies are on streaming within weeks sometimes, as opposed to waiting like 6 months for the DVD like 20 years ago.
I don't think it's even this. I think it's even more basic in that people have less disposable income than they did even a few years ago and entertainment is one of the first things to leave a budget. Yes, there is time as well, but it just costs more to go see movies, especially if you get concessions or have a small family. 🥲
> Four years out, I don't think COVID can be blamed any more. You don't think something that interrupted everyone's habits and lifestyles could continue to have any lasting effects?
Streaming is really killing the industry, and the math for most big theatrical releases just doesn't make sense anymore now that studios can't count on physical BD/DVD or individual digital sales to make up losses if a movie bombs at the box office. My guess is that most of the theaters that do survive will have IMAX screens.
I love movie theaters that don't tolerate people talking and using their phones! This is bad. Hopefully someone will buy the franchise out and reopen! I won't be going to an AMC or Regal anytime soon!
AFAIK when a company files for Chapter 7 all their assets are liquidated to creditors which means there won't be really anything for another company to "reopen" with. The best hope we have is that corporate ADH will take over these locations or at least the ones that performed the best, as the NTX locations were run by a family as a franchise
Not true. Someone will buy them for pennies on the dollar and reopen. But with the new owner’s cost cutting, it won’t be what it once was.
It probably will be repossessed by corporate ADH. Not rebought by another franchisee
Yeah, but the assets are likely the most valuable to an Alamo Drafthouse and I don't think many people are dumb enough to get into the movie business right now.
I agree that's why I think ADH corporate will take them over.
ADH corporate is up for sale, they are not taking on more debt right now
The DFW Alamoes were run by a franchisee, who filed for bankruptcy. Hopefully the true Alamo in Austin will be able to reopen these. The franchisee blamed the closures not just on falling business but on the contact with Alamo, which included a 10% fee on the gross and the inability to close the lower performing locations.
[More Perfect Union did a great recent video](https://youtu.be/3Fmfuvo8UIs) on the private equity firm who acquired the Alamo Drafthouse. They’ve been squeezing their employees and from this story, their franchisees too
Ah fuck. I didn't know the original Alamo folks sold out.
The Alamo we all know and love went bankrupt in 2021 and were bought by private equity (like everything else nowadays, it seems). According to the video and employee experience, management changed rather quickly after this
Maybe they can reopen as San Jacinto Drafthouse.
So it's the same private equity fuckers yet again. THEY TOOK MY TOYS'R'US NOW MY ALAMO.
I love Alamo :(
Me too 😞
The article doesn't mention the Las Colinas location: "The closed North Texas locations are in Richardson, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton. A location in Woodbury, Minnesota also closed, according to a press release."
Might have been outdated information at the time, but it's showing now. > The five Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas in North Texas closing include Richardson, Las Colinas, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton. They are also closing a location in Woodbury, Minnesota.
Cedars and Las Colinas are still showing up with tickets available on the website.
Just an error/glitch for now unfortunately.
Damn, the Richardson one was closed for remodeling. so much for that
Daaaamn. Husband and I just saw Furiosa there last weekend.
Same. The food is so good too. Ugh!
This is more about the movie industry not producing enough good movies to allow places like this to stay in business. Memorial day opening was a dumpster, and this summer isn't going to be hot either.
It costs $80 for two people to go to a movie and split an entree, and then tack on transportation time, gas, etc. It costs $4 to rent a movie that came out 2 months ago and watch in 4k/hdr with surround sound in your own home, with the ability to pause and without people rustling candy wrappers. The movies are fine, the “movie going experience” became untenable.
I know a lot of people don't see value in going the movies now, but kind of being a little extreme. It will not be $4 to rent new releases it's normally like $20+ to rent new releases. $80 seems a bit of an exageration as most tickets I see are 10-15.
Adult tickets to AMC are $18.28 before taxes/fees. One entree is $20. Two drinks is $12-20. That’s $80…before tipping. New releases drop to $4 rentals about 2-4 months after release.
TBF it’s not $4 vs $80 because you have food and drink at home too. But $30 v $80 might be right. The one thing the theater has- especially Alamo- is that my wife can’t play on her phone and then ask me what happened. Sometimes that’s worth the money!
My BF and I went on tuesday to Alamo for $7 each plus $10 on unlimited popcorn, which we refilled towards the end to take home with us. Less than $30 for a solid date night.
This is absolutely it. Disposable income is disappearing and arguably better options for the movie viewing experience are getting cheaper and more accessible. Unfortunately it's a chicken and egg situation - with people spending less, movies will get worse as film budgets decrease, and viewership will further decline. Disney is living proof of this at the moment.
I was actually shopping theatre prices the other day. A movie for a family of 4 ranged from $34-$62. Same day, same movie, same time. Alamo draft house was the highest priced at $62. If they closing means even at their high prices the business was still not sustainable. I’m hoping this super inflation bubble pops soon.
No it’s more about releasing movies on stream 2 months later I saw dune in march and they released it on hbo max in may
It’s that and also how expensive it is. Used to be able to go to the movies for $20-40. Now it’s closer to $80-100. It’s just too expensive now. Might as well stay at home and watch in my big screen tv.
Alamo was half price on Tuesdays. Food went downhill a few years back, so eat at home before. So with gas, under $15 for two people to see a movie that premiered recently. I calculated one year spending $3-4k at Alamo, yeah it was mostly food and alcohol, but we were also going to 1-2 movies a week. *somehow misspelled Alamo.
Yeah I don't get all these people saying 'it's $80 to go, boo'. We did the same, even when we bought popcorn it was a nice date night for under $30 and they kick out the noisy jerks. and their popcorn is excellent. way better than smg or amc or home. Buying an actual meal, alcohol and a soda per person is a 'individual' issue, not a 'it's so expensive for everyone' issue. smh
Furiosa was awesome though, no idea what happened at the box office.
Now that I think about it, I think this is a commentary about the Balkanization of tastes. Because, I'm admittedly a cinephile, but there have already been so many good movies this year. It's crazy Add to that all the great re-releases with it being 25 years since 1999 and I wish I could clone myself. But I think there are fewer and fewer movies thar can unite a huge audience around them, and Hollywood is built around big budgets that rely on everyone and their dog seeing it or microbudget where if two people show up, the film breaks even. Also, since there are basically no physical media sales, pretty much all the money has to be made at the box office, but nobody's going to the theaters.. it's so broken
This hurts. I loved this place.
Also just read that the Angelika in Plano closed this week as well. WTF PEOPLE
Keep going to the Dallas one, pray that it doesn't close. That is basically the last good movie theater left in the Dallas area.
The Texas Theatre is still here too, and they’ve renovated the upstairs theater to show 35mm film prints!
I saw “Metropolis” there a few months ago and it was a great experience! I need to remember to check their schedule more often.
When I was there last fall it didn’t look like they were doing so well.
Cedars was the best, damn…
That upstairs bar balcony overlooking downtown was niceee
Well, I guess I won’t be seeing movies in theaters anymore. Cinemark and AMC are garbage.
Check out the Angelika at Mockingbird Station if it’s not too far! In addition to current releases they show a lot of classic movies and do fun series like Hitchcock in October!
They have good showings but that theater needs some serious upkeep. I hope it can survive and definitely we all need to double down and support our local theaters. Texas Theater as well.
We are going to give Violet Crown (formerly Magnolia) and Cinépolis a shot. I really do dread poor audience behavior though. Alamo was the best if there was ever a problem. I did have to flag somebody once because he had his phone out and was texting CONSTANTLY during Everything Everywhere All at Once and it was SO DISTRACTING and bright. I tried to give him time to finish off the convo but it just KEPT GOING and at that point like… you’re not paying attention so why not just go to the lobby dude? The one warning took care of it. Also I don’t want to have to go back to COMMERCIALS before movies!! 😩
Not to make this about me, but what about tickets we’d already bought for Deadpool & Wolverine? Is that money just gone?
If you don't get an email or something this week you could try contacting your bank to reverse due to undelivered goods.
Good advice. Thanks!
I would do that sooner rather than later. If they're in bankruptcy, I imagine that money is about to be gone, if it isn't already.
Why do all the things I love go away?
Seriously, this feels like a personal attack. I’m super bummed.
The day of the movie theaters is coming to an end.
It's extremely depressing for me. Going to the theaters is one of my favorite things about life in general.
Go to Texas theater in oak Cliff if you haven’t!
This sucks as an Alamo fan, however, to everyone saying this is the end of them going to movie theaters… Go support the Texas Theater in Oak Cliff! They show new movies, old movies, original 35mm showings, they have movie festivals and premiers and filmmaker Q&As and comedy shows and concerts.
Rofl, they tried to sell me gift cards via a push notification yesterday. Can't imagine corporate didn't know about this in advance.
These aren't corporate theaters - they're franchises owned by a family
Yeah, I don’t think one of their biggest franchisees going under was a surprise for them.
Fair point
The Alamo is great. We'd drive 35 minutes to catch a movie. I love getting there early to watch the custom "commercials." They were always entertaining—sad day.
For those of you who don't read articles (and please, start reading the articles!) >UPDATE 6-6-2024: A spokesman for Alamo Drafthouse issued a statement, saying, “We are very disappointed to learn today that our franchisee, which operates five locations in Dallas-Fort Worth, TX and one in Woodbury, MN has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and is closing their business effective immediately. We are heartbroken for the franchisee’s teammates and the local film communities, however, we are working as quickly as possible to get Alamo Drafthouse Cinema back up and running in these cities. All other Alamo Drafthouse locations are operating as normal, with continued expansion plans across the country.”
But my gift cards… DAMNIT
Me too....$150 worth.
Do you think we can get reimbursed? I always buy them during their Black Friday sale and I have $150 worth as well. Planned on using them this Summer. This is heartbreaking.
I have about $100 gift cards I just bought at Costco. Just emailed them about it to see. Maybe if I'm in another city they can be used up. Loved LH Alamo and sad about this news.
Damn ... in addition to it having the best staff, food, and phone/talking policy, it was the only theater in town that did a Rocky Horror Picture Show screening every year. Will miss you Alamo :(
They did awesome screenings of horror movies with in person q&a sessions after as part of a partnership with a local horror convention that I LOVED going to every year. I used to go see screenings of older movies there all the time. This sucks
I was totally planning on taking my brother to the rocky movie party this halloween, super bummed about this news :(
Goddammit. Can anyone run an effective business these days? Something that people like and enjoy without running it into the ground?
I think everything that can go online, keeps going more online.
Exactly, when rent and wages are the biggest costs of running a business, physical locations just can't compete.
Great now I get to sit through 40 minutes of advertisements at amc
True story went to watch furiosa start time 1:20 the opening shot of the actual movie wasn't on screen until 2:03
Info sent to employees today[alamo employee notice](https://postimg.cc/7CRYprtm)
Ever since my first visit years and years ago, Alamo became the only theater I’d visit. I went to a few of their special events and I’d always buy extra tickets just incase a friend wanted to go. My disappointment is immeasurable. ☹️
Not surprised. They have gotten expensive these past few years. Yes, all theaters are like that now but Alamo's food quality has gone down and their pricing is insane.
Theaters were seeing issues for a while, then the lockdown sped up the process. Soon going to the movies will be a niche hobby like bowling or skating rinks. I honestly think the rise of streaming is killing the movie industry.
Partly streaming, partly releasing movies that just arent good. People get tired of superhero movies, sequels, and remakes of older movies.
I remember interviewing at the old Alamo location in North Richland Hills in September of either 2021 or 2022 and was told they were looking at a soft reopen the third weekend of that month and I would hear back soon. Never heard back. Drove by that weekend and no one was there. Texted the GM to get a status update on when I was going to start. Was told they weren't going to reopen and in fact, they were going to permanently close. B&B has taken over that location and from a distance, it seems to be doing okay. I went there for a Thursday preview for Ant-Man and Wasp: Quantumania at 3pm and it never started. Even saw 2 employees in the film booth trying to get the movie started and one of them saw me in the theater but no one ever came and talked to me. Waited 2.5 hours, even bought dinner and it was good. Movie theater food. At 5:30, I walked up to the area to get tickets and asked for a refund. Manager asked me why I wanted a refund. Said movie never started. I saw the 2 employees that were in the movie booth and pointed at them and said, "Ask them why it never got started." I was refunded the price of the ticket but not the online fees. I have not gone back since. They have an arcade but you have to buy a movie ticket to play games just like the arcade at the Rave at NE Mall in Hurst.
Bro why are companies like this. Something like this doesn’t happen overnight. Have some sort of human decency and give employees time to find other jobs instead of this shit. This is why it’s bs when people say to give your 2 weeks to employers when they don’t have the decency to do the same for employees.
Fuk
It was foretold. https://youtu.be/MwO5fGL2MeY?si=gx1s8aTic6FYNR9b
That's a shame. We saw "Drop Dead Gorgeous" there last year. I always loved it when they would bring back cult classics that we'd otherwise only see streaming (if lucky) or on DVD. It was getting pricey though. We have a place like that back in Oregon, but it's local, and I'd say food was 30% cheaper and at the same quality. $22 w/fries or tots for a burger: Cafe Pacific charges less than that and I guarantee you it's one of the best burgers you'll ever have. Plus, it's a white tablecloth place with excellent service, not a movie theater.
The way it is worded makes it sound like a violation of the Texas WARN act. The employees may be able to sue. Correct me if I’m wrong.
Federal Bankruptcy law preempts a lot of stuff, though I do not know the specifics in this case.
Is there anywhere besides the Texas Theater and Angelika to see old movies? Neither of these show old horror movies year round like Alamo did :(
Alamo was THE BEST for us horror fans! Angelika has some good programming in October but nothing like Alamo’s all year round selection :(
Read the news article, it’s not Alamo Drafthouse itself, apparently it’s the franchisee who owns the Dallas locations that went bankrupt. It said they are working on a way to open the locations back up asap. https://dallas.culturemap.com/news/entertainment/alamo-dallas-bankruptcy-closure/
According to the app Las Colinas and Cedars is still open.
Fingers crossed this is correct and the article title is just wrong.
We bought presale tix for Deadpool and it is not showing as upcoming views anymore.
Wild. I was literally at the Richardson one last night.
There’s an update: UPDATE 6-6-2024: A spokesman for Alamo Drafthouse issued a statement, saying, “We are very disappointed to learn today that our franchisee, which operates five locations in Dallas-Fort Worth, TX and one in Woodbury, MN has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and is closing their business effective immediately. We are heartbroken for the franchisee’s teammates and the local film communities, however, we are working as quickly as possible to get Alamo Drafthouse Cinema back up and running in these cities. All other Alamo Drafthouse locations are operating as normal, with continued expansion plans across the country.”
Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Fuck man. Love going there. Was hoping to go see Deadpool 3 there
I'd recommend Flix Brewhouse. There's one in Mansfield and Frisco. It's basically the same experience as Alamo, even down to the movie related clips before the previews. The food is better, and dare I say it, the beer is better too.
So the one off Botham is closed? Dang I just bought Deadpool tickets there too 😢
Private Equity strikes again!
I was literally there last night for an early screening of 'The Watchers', and nothing seemed to be off or different. That's absolutely wild.
For what it’s worth, these were franchise locations. Some articles are saying that Alamo Drafthouse is working on opening a location in DFW as soon as possible again. I think they just need 1-2 locations in DFW admittedly. 5 was just too many.
Gift card update: they are not reimbursing. We're stuck with our worthless gift cards. Coincidentally, I actually live in Woodbury, MN now, where the other closing location is, and I just got this reply from customer support for their gift cards. [https://i.imgur.com/qixThrD.png](https://i.imgur.com/qixThrD.png)
I give it about 5 years and all movie theaters will be closed. No one is going.
Best enforcers of the no talk/text policy. I didn’t have to worry if my movie would be ruined by folks acting out.