With traditional film stock now rendered obsolete by Hollywood’s new digital distribution scheme, Downtown Tampa’s landmark movie house was forced to make the switch to a new projection system or lose the ability to show first-run flicks. Fortunately for all of us, the theater not only upgraded its projection, but improved the sound as well. After years of missing dialogue at screenings, we were shocked (SHOCKED!) to realize that we could hear every nuance of the soundtrack. And the new digital picture is crisper than anything ever seen on the Tampa Theatre screen, making the historic venue the best place to see the movies of tomorrow in a setting more suited to yesteryear. 711 N. Franklin St., Tampa, 813-274-8981, tampatheatre.org.
This article appears in Sep 19-25, 2013.