The best movie theaters in Philadelphia

For the ultimate movie-seeing experience, head to East Market for some of the largest, immersive theater screenings. Tickets are more expensive but worth the price. Expect high-quality from sound and visual to seating and dining options: crystal-clear imagery, surround sound technology, mobile snack and drink ordering (and hand-delivery!) and reserved recliner seats. This is where to see that summer blockbuster in 3D.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ritz Five (@ritzmovietheatres)

This 50-year-old Ritz theater is home to five screens showcasing popular indie, foreign-language and documentary films from many eras. A movie day here grants you a selection of decent treats and comfy seats—plus it’s just down the hill from one of the best dining neighborhoods in Philadelphia: Old City. Plan the timing of your movie just right to stop by for an early meal or drink at a cozy bar.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Lightbox Film Center (@lightboxfilmcenter)

Lightbox Film Center was the city’s first cinema venue to focus exclusively on independent and international films. And while Lightbox has gone through several challenges in recent years, it still stands out beyond the traditional movie theater experience as an independent non-profit providing a cinema space for diverse, innovative, and sometimes overlooked films; even preserving movies of historical and contemporary significance.

The newest iteration of the Ritz in Old City is run by the Philadelphia Film Society. Its state-of-the-art facelift includes new 4K and 2K projectors, and 7.1 Dolby digital surround sound in all five theaters.

Don’t worry: the art-house cinema vibes are still there with a solid film curation of indie, foreign and documentary selections. Plus, there are new membership programs and an After Hours series featuring odd, eerie, thrilling, and downright weird cult classics.

Founded in 2002 as a means of preserving the Seville, a gorgeous, historic theater from the 1920s, Bryn Mawr Film Institute has become a cinematic institution. It offers a wide range of films, including first-run and repertory options, with special showcase series and fascinating lectures from leading film scholars on a vast array of topics.

The perfect blend of modern and classic, the BMFI is digital compatible, but also has projectors for precious 35mm prints to be shown in their full glory.

If being relaxed and pampered transatlantic-business-class-style is your thing, you’ll dig the AMC Deptford 8 experience. This theater plunges you into soft, well-cushioned seats that recline to near full prone, while a full menu of everything from sushi to Caprese flatbread can be delivered to your seat.

You can also watch your movie with a nice buzz thanks to a beer, wine and specialty cocktail menu. The only trick is staying awake in those comfy seats until the end credits roll.

Sometimes you have to accede to convention and go see something big and brassy on a large screen, maybe a summer tentpole, a disaster flick or something involving Michael Bay? For those times, it’s good to have a theater like this 24-screen megalith, easily accessed off of Route 38 across the Ben Franklin Bridge in the sultry burbs of New Jersey.

As these multiplexes go, this is well put together, with comfortable stadium seats, decent sound and projection and one of the area’s true IMAX screens.

Perfectly situated in University City across from a Metropolitan Bakery and a mere two blocks from delicious New Delhi, this six-screen miniplex offers the standard assortment of amenities (stadium seating, online purchasing, 3D capability) plus booze. The theater began as a more high-falutin’ place, with reserved seating and mad food options. It lost much of that after its recent takeover by Cinemark, but it still gets high marks for location, cheap ticket prices and a decent screen size for a relatively small architectural footprint.

This is what happens when you go to a movie in the second largest shopping mall in the country: You get big screens—including a sweet full IMAX experience—vast amounts of movie chow (nachos, pretzel bites, mini-pizzas), cavernous theaters and all the panache of a Wal-Mart superstore. At Regal UA King of Prussia, you get all this.

If you want the family to check out the latest in Hollywood summer slamjam, this’ll do ‘er. Let’s put it this way: It’s one of the more appropriate places to watch a movie involving capes, wands and/or Tom Cruise.

It has gone through many incarnations, but the Prince Theater, located in a prime spot near City Hall, has endured and remains a solid big-event setting in the heart of the city.

The amenities are standard—reasonably comfortable seats and, they claim, Philly’s largest movie screen—but the central locale and grand architecture give it luster. It also acts as hub for the Philadelphia Film Festival, which brings in a slew of activities such as quizzo nights and an intriguing monthly local film showcase.