Southpoint Cinema 16

Many people now choose to wait a few months and buy a movie to OWN on blu-ray. It's cheaper than the AMC Southpoint, and can often even look and sound better. $40 to take my wife and two kids to substandard movie theater is unacceptable. To make matters worse, the management recently made "bargain Tuesday" only applicable during matinee hours (which now end at 3pm!!), and got rid of "student discount tickets". And theater owners wonder why business is slow...? Sadly, Southpoint is one of the best quality theaters in the triangle, so maybe they're unaware of how to operate a quality cinema (or just don't care). Even though this theater has relatively new projection equipment, there are often focus and sound problems. Sometimes I can hear the movie next door better than the one right in front of me, the sound is so bad. Temperature control means nothing to the management. It's almost always freezing cold or boiling hot. The garbage bins are overflowing, the bathrooms are usually out of soap, and many of the seats squeak so loud it'll make your teeth rattle. The IMAX screen and sound is nice. It's about a year old, and many of the seats are already in need of repair, so select your chair carefully. The quality of their IMAX theater is about what you'd expect at the average non-IMAX cinema in LA or NY. Definitely worth the $10 or $13. Not the $15.50 this AMC likes to charge. It's just not good enough. If it was, I'd gladly spend the money. Unfortunately I just keep getting disappointed, looking forward to the day when a worthwhile theater may take it's place. more

Good: Varity.. Bad: Rough-looking types hanging around outside. Vert expensive refreshments.. Improvements: Can't do anything about the people hanging around outside. As for inside, get rid of the junk in the lobby and think about lowering price of refreshments.. more

I like this theater. There are great restaurants to pick from at the mall to enjoy after the show. I would recommend after the show so you can hit the movie before the rates go up after 6 pm. The seats are very comfortable - high backs and arm rests that lift up. There is a good selection of snacks - usual movie theater prices (high). The stadium seating is a big plus. more

Southpoint theatres are convenient because they are at the mall and near many different eating establishments. However, they are very expensive unless you go for their twilight showings (although the prices seem to increase everytime I go). The theatres themselves are nice, with my favorite feature being that the arm rests lift up so you can either spread out or snuggle up (hopefully with someone you know!). So go if you're out there, but there are plenty of cheaper alternatives if you're just looking for a place to go and see a movie. more

Since this movie theater has opened, I have not been back to the Wynnsong (MLK Blvd) Theater. Southpoint is obviously newer, so it is cleaner, larger and I love the stadium seating. You can make a whole day out of going to the movie, dinner, and walking around the mall. I recommend getting one of their free punch cards. After so many visits, you get free things (popcorn, drinks, even admissions). You also get free admission on your birthday. Be sure to bring your drivers license! more

What does every huge mall need? An even bigger movie theater. Since Southpont mall opened three years ago, it has become somewhat of a "hot spot" for the bored residents of Durham to flock to. On any given weekend night, you will be hard pressed to find a parking spot (hint, the closer you are to Sears Auto Care center, the more likely you'll find a spot). Once you're parked, meander over to the movie theatre entrance (you can't miss the neon, or the gigantic fountain) and stare at the herds of people who are staring at the movie listings. Southpoint. You'll find the usual assortment of current box office darlings playing on multiple screens. The price is decent compared to the city (New York, that is) but still rather high: $8 for an adult (cheaper for matinees, like $6 or $6.50), $6.25 for student (make SURE you bring your ID! The ticket sellers ask for these religiously. They want to milk you for all your worth), and $5.50 for kids. Oh, you can apparantly buy your tickets at this computer kiosk, too, but I'm not sure if it takes student IDs. But the line for that is usually as long as the line for regular window tix. One thing I've learned the hard way is to arrive early for opening night/weekend of the latest blockbuster flick. The tickets hardly ever sell out, but that's because the cinema sells EVERY SINGLE seat in the theatre. So if you're late, then you're forced to sit in the break-your-neck seats that are inches from the screen. The seats are pretty comfortable. I've fallen asleep rather easily on several occasions. Have never tried the concession stand goodies (those subliminal ads of dancing candy bars never worked on me) but I'm sure they're over priced and stale. Just buy your own from the supermarket and sneak it in. The bathrooms are rather large and pretty clean. You might be able to get away with hiding in one, and then sneaking out later for a "double feature"- but sshhh, you didn't hear it from me. Overall a decent cinema. Go there on a weeknight and avoid the crowds. more

Southpoint cinemas are me and all my friends number one choice if we choose to go see a movie. Southpoint is fun and clean and has very nice theaters. The seats are very comfortable and have moving arm rests and they move back in a reclining position. They also offer a wide variety of snacks for the movie. They also keep movies longer if they do better and shorter if they don't so there variety is always changing. I would definitely choose Southpoint Cinemas over any other movie place. more

This is possibly my favorite movie theater in the Triangle. They have almost all the big movies that are out at good showtimes. They have the usual concessions, and then some (like the Uno's pizza). The seats are good, and the theaters themselves aren't too huge. The sound quality is good too. The best thing about the cinema is that it's at Southpoint - you can have dinner, go to a movie, and then get ice cream at Marble Slab. Sometimes they even have entertainment in the lobby - we saw the White Tiger taekwondo group there one time, and that was really neat. I also love that you can get punches in a card and earn rewards for frequenting the theater. They also offer student discounts at night. more

Southpoint Cinema 16 if your typical movie theatre. The tickets cost too much unless you go to a matinee. The concessions cost too much. The stadium seating is always good. Being located near the mall is a plus. There are plenty of movie choices and theaters. Not really any better than the other movie theaters in the area. more

as this theater is only a few years old, it has a big advantage over the older wynnsong complex on MLK. it's seating is nicer (stadium), it's sound is better, it's prices are cheaper (for students at least), and the overall experience is more pleasant. there's quite a few screens here too, so you should have plenty of options for when you decide to go out. if you don't mind lots of teenagers hangin out in front of the movie theater, southpoint is the place to go in durham. more

Best theater for seeing blockbusters and big action films in Durham. Stadium seating, nice big screens, great sound. Also very clean. Dont go there looking for any art house films though, stick to the Carolina for that. I should also mention the Duke University theater has been known to show some rare gems as well (and at excellent prices!). more

As stated above, the stadium seating was a plus. I found there to be more than an adequate amount of theaters and movie choices at the facility. Very convenient as you can shop around at the mall while waiting for your movie to stop or dine at one of the restaurants afterward. The sound quality was great, the picture quality also was good. The concession stand, although, perhaps, a little overpriced, had enough variety. more

We find this to be one of the nicest theaters in the area. It has stadium seating and is extremely clean. Be sure to ask for one of their "frequent movie goers" card at the box office, it earns you free popcorn and movies on your 5th and 10th visits. more

With stadium seating it makes a Southpoint Cinemas a great place to go more