I went on a pretty magical journey this weekend. It involved a long trek, hordes of obstacles and terrifying monsters all around. No, I’m not talking about Black Friday shopping, but everyone else in the world may’ve been doing that. Instead, I braved the crowds at the AMC Garden State 16 theater in Paramus, NJ to see Disney’s latest surefire hit Moana in a Dolby Cinema at AMC.
I left bright and early on Saturday morning for fear of not even getting a parking space on the busiest shopping weekend of the year. I was in luck and arrived early enough to watch the adorable puppies in the pet shop next door to the theater. As showtime neared, I drifted into the AMC theater and bumped into a few animated friends.
After grabbing my tickets from the friendly Dolby person inside the theater, I even received some Moana swag! A string backpack which’ll be great to take to the beach or pool, and a couple of Moana-themed pins! Yep, I was definitely ready to see what Disney’s animators have been up to of late.
To be honest, I wasn’t just excited to be seeing Moana. I was just as excited to be seeing it at a Dolby Cinema at AMC.
I’d only been to a Dolby Cinema at AMC once before, when I attended earlier this year to watch Zootopia. Let me tell you, if you’ve never watched any movie in a Dolby Cinema at AMC, you are in for an incredible treat. There’s just nothing like it. Everything from sound to picture to pure comfort are cranked up to the max.
Lets’ start with the most important part of a theater, shall we? Yes, comfort.
The first thing you notice about the theater is the sheer roominess. The theater is huge, but so are the seats. Each pair of super comfy recliner chairs are like sitting in first class on an airplane. Only better. With the stadium seating, there’s no worry of that super tall guy sitting in front of you to ruin your view.
What’s extra nice is that every pair of seats has a movable armrest in the middle. So if you’re with your kids or your sweetie, you can lift that armrest up and snuggle up in a love seat-sized pair of chairs.
The other end of the seats, each contain a cup holder and the magic controls! With the touch of a button, you can automatically adjust your head, legs or both. Just put your feet up. Angle your chair backwards. Or any combination in between.
Despite being totally spread out to watch the film, the Dolby Cinema at AMC theaters have plenty of legroom. People can even walk right by me while I’m fully reclined, which obviously, I was!
Extreme comfort achieved! But Dolby Cinema at AMC is so much more than just a relaxing experience. It immerses you right into the film itself. The picture quality is so crisp, I’d swear someone from Dolby built a time machine, shot forward a few hundred years and came back to work this future technology into their movie theaters. With a movie like Moana, full of so many bright colors of Hawaii, including the crystal blue ocean, the screen literally pops like you’ve never seen it before.
As for the sound, it’s also crisp and crystal clear. You not only can hear every single word spoken or even whispered, but you hear it all around you. The “moving sound” approach practically puts you right there in the middle of the ocean with Moana and Maui as you hear the waves crash down all around you. I’ll admit there were a few louder points of the film where my chair even shook!
You’d be hard-pressed to find yourself unhappy after watching even the dullest movie of all time in a Dolby Cinema at AMC. Luckily, Moana was anything but. I absolutely loved it!
Three thousand years ago, the greatest sailors in the world voyaged across the vast Pacific, discovering the many islands of Oceania. But then, for a millennium, their voyages stopped – and no one knows exactly why. From Walt Disney Animation Studios comes “Moana,” a sweeping, CG-animated feature film about an adventurous teenager who sails out on a daring mission to save her people. During her journey, Moana (voice of Auli‘i Cravalho) meets the mighty demigod Maui (voice of Dwayne Johnson), who guides her in her quest to become a master wayfinder. Together, they sail across the open ocean on an action-packed voyage, encountering enormous monsters and impossible odds, and along the way, Moana fulfills the ancient quest of her ancestors and discovers the one thing she’s always sought: her own identity.
Another incredibly powerful tale from Disney that goes straight to the heart of believing in yourself. There were so many pieces that I enjoyed, I’m not even quite sure where to start.
Auli’i Cravalho is amazing as the voice of the teenage Moana, especially during her big singing numbers. There are definitely a few catchy ones in here you can expect your kids to be repeating and repeating and repeating all winter long. She has a powerful voice wrapped around a kind, sensitive soul.
Dwyane “The Rock” Johnson is hilarious as the demigod Maui. The tribal tattoos all over his skin not only help tell the story, they provide some of the funniest laughs in the movie.
Of course I can’t forget one of my favorite characters, the ocean itself. Hoping to help heal the world, the ocean plays a major role in Moana and doesn’t just carry Moana on her voyage, it helps move the story along… well, swimmingly. (Sorry!)
A Disney film wouldn’t be a Disney film without some hilariously adorable sidekick animals. Pua and Hei Hei most definitely fit the bill. I think Hei Hei may be my new all-time favorite in fact. What he lacks in brains, he more than makes up for with loyalty. At least, that’s how I see it.
The best part of Moana though? To me, it was the breathtaking animation. Disney continues to outdo itself from film to film. Set in the lush world of Hawaii, the incredibly vibrant colors paint a true masterpiece on screen. And I still am absolutely clueless as to how they were able to animate hair. Yes, hair.
Maui’s long curly locks take on a life of their own and you’d swear they were real, not animated. (Total side note: During the credits, I noticed that retired Pittsburgh Steelers Troy Polamalu did the voice of one of the villagers! If you didn’t know Polamalu for his fierce attack on field, you’d probably recognize him from his super curly long hair. In fact, it’s pretty close to Maui’s hair.)
Due to scheduling conflicts, I had to catch Moana by myself this past weekend. But in a way, I’m happy. Because that means I now get to see it a second time when I bring Allie and the kids to watch it! If you’re planning on seeing Moana in theaters, do yourself and your family a huge favor: treat yourselves to a showing at a local Dolby Cinema at AMC if there’s one near you.
Kick off the holiday season in style by locating a Dolby Cinema at AMC theater near you! Scour the long list of locations on the Dolby Cinema at AMC website today and step up your movie going today.
Moana in theaters now!
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Don’t forget to print out your Free Moana Activity Pages!
This post was sponsored by Dolby. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this post are my own and in no way were influenced by the company.
Hi ,
Now watched this movie about 7 times, and always with the kids. They love it.
Cheers Sharon…
I saw this film with my son, I loved and so did my son, he actually sat down and watched it all the way through
I can’t wait to see this! I’m going without my daughter if she decides she’s “too old” for Disney movies.
Looks like a great place to watch a movie! I can’t wait to see this. I’ve heard great things about it.
Gosh I wish we had one of those theaters. Everything sounds like it would sound and look so much better. I love the swag- pretty cool pins to keep!
Oh wow that cinema looks awesome, I would love to go and see a movie with seats like that, this new movie looks as good as all the other Disney movies!!
I can’t wait to see this new movie. I have been seeing it advertised everywhere. Pua and Hei Hei are too adorable!!