A Landmark in My Backyard

Today's LA Times featured this article about the new 12-screen Landmark Theater that's being built at the intersection of Pico and Westwood, replacing the former "Westside Two" section of the Westside Pavillion. (Angelinos might recall that the Pickwood theater used to be approximately at that point.) The theater is not literally in my backyard, but it's close enough that I can see the parking lot from my front porch.

When I heard that it would be running "independent films" only, I wondered how it could possibly find enough current indies to fill 12 screens. (I thought that it might end up with "Umbrellas of Cherbourg" running on 4 screens every month.) Apparently, I'm not the only one wondering about the programming. "Exactly what kind of movies the Landmark will play is in dispute," the article notes. The Chief Operating Officer states that, were the venue open today, "Spider-Man 3" might be playing on as many as three Landmark screens. But as the article notes, the company has repeatedly told the theater's neighbors (i.e., us) that it would not run big, wide-distribution movies like that.

The article comments that the success of theaters in Century City has threatened those in Westwood, traditionally a mecca for those who want to see movies on big screens that dwarf those in multiplexes. (Of course, there's just one theater in Century City now, the AMC Century 15 -- the theater at the former ABC Entertainment Center died with the Entertainment Center a few years ago.) Now the Landmark will have to contend with the Century 15 for bookings in the area -- a daunting prospect, given that AMC is a national chain with tremendous clout; and given that the Century 15 has a screen set aside for independent movies.

I will welcome a luxury theater (with a lower ticket price than The Bridge and the Arclight, my current favorite movie venues) within walking distance of my house. But I will not welcome it so much if it draws loud, rowdy crowds. Or if it goes out of business, leaving a multi-story abandoned hulk a couple of blocks away.