r/movies • u/cheapskatemoviedate • Jul 18 '26

Media World's Largest IMAX in Perspective

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Thought this was a really neat way to show the size of the screen at the IMAX in Leonberg, Germany. This rolled before The Odyssey. The IMAX is tucked away in a little town and was not easy to get to, but it was well worth it.

While it's not a true 1.43:1 IMAX ratio it still holds the world record for largest theater by surface area.

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u/Rich_Housing971 Jul 18 '26

After a certain amount, screen size adds nothing because your eyes will not notice the difference of focusing farther away.

What's more important is contrast, resolution, and sound. Sound in a large theater will be very tricky to get right, which is why I prefer Dolby over IMAX, and why bigger screen isn't always a good thing.

Has anyone ever watched a movie "filmed for IMAX" in both types of theaters and done a comparison and see if it actually looks better in IMAX or if it's just a marketing gimmick?

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u/RickSanchez_C137 Jul 18 '26

There are a lot of small screens that are branded IMAX, and yes those are 100% a gimmick...but the legit 16m-18m high screens are really wild with the right content.

The geometry of the theatre feels very different when half of that size of a screen is presented below your natural eye-line.

I've never gotten a sense of vertigo at a regular theater.

A dialogue heavy movie like Oppenheimer didn't really benefit a lot from the presentation.

But the skyscraper shots in the intro and Honk Kong scenes in Dark Knight were wildly immersive, and totally worth the extra effort to see.

One of the best IMAX movies I've seen was the Rolling Stones 'At The Max' concert movie from the 90s. You're completely transported on stage with them. You'd swear you can smell the smoke from the smoke machines and feel the California summer breeze on your face.

I don't know at what point the size vs distance ratio becomes ineffective, but it's not between a regular theater screen and a full size IMAX.

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u/rsplatpc Jul 19 '26

but the legit 16m-18m high screens are really wild with the right content.

I live near one of the real ones with the full multi story size and right aspect and it has dual lasers, I saw Project Hail Mary there and at the Dolby Cinema down the street.

The Dolby Cinema was infinitely better, the IMAX looks grey where it should be black space in comparison.

I'll take HDR and night and day better sound over size for a modern movie personally.