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Century Capitol 16 Theatres
Rating Details »
3690 Hillcap Ave
San Jose, CA 95136
(408) 972-9276
San Jose, CA 95136
(408) 972-9276
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
22 reviews for Century Capitol 16 Theatres
Before the Oakridge theater opened, I used to come here quite frequently with my family to see the newest movies. It was a relatively nice theater, and I enjoyed my visits up until a few years ago. Nowadays, however, this is undoubtedly one of the worst theaters around.
The entire establishment is run down and dark, even to the point where the lights in certain parts are burned out. These dimly lit hallways are quite similar to something out of some sort of horror flick about a haunted cinema. With the current movie-goer attendance rate of Century 16, it might as well be haunted.
Gone are the days of purchasing tickets at the box office, now the concessions stand is also the ticket counter, which is not only inconvenient, but just strange.
And finally, as mentioned by others, it does indeed smell funny inside. On the upside, this one still has a drive-in, which is kind of neat and fun for a Friday night movie.
This theater used to be quite a joy to visit, but sadly, now I would recommend everybody stay far away.
After reading the reviews, I was kind of scared to go to this place! They made it sound so ghetto and dirty/disgusting, but we had no choice, it was the only place still playing Inglorious Basterds. We showed up and the place was completely empty. In our theater, we were the only 4 people there, which was kind of cool :)
Yeah, there were some leftover bottles, cups, popcorn bags etc, but it was easy to ignore as our row was pretty clean. I didn't notice any sort of a smell, though I'm not known for having the keenest sense of smell, so I don't know. Also, a few minutes into the previews, the film started to turn off and the lights did start to come back up, but it returned pretty quickly. I remember I had read that in the reviews, so I kind of laughed when it happened.
I was dreading having to go to the bathrooms, based on what I'd read here, but it wasn't that bad. Kind of reminded me of Great America bathrooms. You can see why there's so many though, the first 2 or 3 stalls I looked in were recently used and, well, not ready to be used again, I'll just say that :)
Maybe it's because we went at 7pm on a Thursday, that we had good luck? I'm not sure, but I know that I'll be going back here to see movies a lot more. It wasn't nearly as bad as I expected it to be. I was going to see a played-out movie on a big screen (and it's the only 3 places in CA that still play it), not for a day of pampering at a spa. The theater served it's purpose well, so for that I give it 4 stars.
Oh, getting OUT of the parking lot back onto the streets was a b*tch, but maybe that's just cuz I don't know my way around there well enough.
very very close to my house...so....
I go to the first matinee show on a weekend - that way I get in for 6 bucks and the place is relatively clean, since no one has been there yet for the day ;)
Also, I've never been to a movie at this time/day with more than like 20 people in it.
Don't even think about going to the concession stand or the cesspool-ish restrooms.
Do think about stretching out over a whole row of seats and having no one around you.
Caught "Slumdog Millionaire" here.....
sometimes you just want a bit of peace and quiet to enjoy a movie, huh?
I can't believe I'm giving this dump 4 stars.
This used to be a solid movie theater. Unfortunately, this place is so run down now, there really is no reason to come here anymore. It smells weird and the cast of characters that you see at this place would be described by the young hipsters as "sketchy."
I'll add one extra star since I watched hundreds of movies here between 1995 and 2000.
Capitol 16 Theaters what is going on with all these Spanish subtitles???
At least warn us on the Internet (showing times) if they are going to be played with Spanish subtitles. Instead of the surprise of showing up and seeing all the movies you want to see are in subtitles and leaving mad, again because you forgot this dam place does this.
And don't get me started with the price movies & refreshments at this theater location.
------------------Not going back!!!--------------
The only reason it gets 2 stars is that from what I remember, the screens are bigger than some places.
Otherwise, I haven't been to this theater in 6 years--on purpose. The last time I was there (in high school), my friends and I were dropped off an hour early and spent the whole time hiding in the bathroom because weird guys were staring at us. My parents didn't like me going there anyway because there are "shady characters" that hang out there. The whole place is "meh" and the clientele doesn't make it better. It may have changed since then, but I'm gonna guess not based on everyone else's reviews. If you want to enjoy your movie-going experience, go elsewhere.
Ive been going to this theatre all my life and there has only been one problem but it was very little definetly go to this theatre on a date. The theatre always somewhat empty and its dark. Have Fun!
Ive been going to this theater since it opened and at first it was nice shiny and new but after the opening of Oakridge 20 this place went down hill. Im not surprised. usually come here when I want to avoid the crowds at the mall.
On my recent trip here I took my daughter to see the movie Twilight. We saw it on the bigger screen which was nice. The whole experience was okay. Im not really into movie theater food so I cant comment on it but to watch a movie its not a bad place.
with all the new and updated w/ contemporary design theaters out there, i am so surprise this theater is still around.
it's old, pretty run down w/ dark hall way.
the seats are comfy but too buncy.
i would have given it a 1 star but gave it an additional star because i can go here when i want to see a new movie and am able to sit in a good seat to see any movie out there. w/ popcorn and soda in hand, i can pretend that i am at the newer theater.
Watched "Angels & Demons" here last night and had to sit way at the end of the row because of the crowd. Good thing I used the FILTHY restroom first! The little gates were up so we couldn't go down the stairs in case we needed to get up - what's up with that? We had to scootchie our way past a dozen or so people, "excuse me, pardon me, I'm sorry, didn't meant to step on your purse". I had to keep my neck or eyes constantly shifted to the left and ended up with a sore neck and stiff shoulders. And I felt so costrophobic being at the end knowing I'd be doomed if I had to get up and use the ladies room! I was afraid of falling on someones lap! Before the movie started, they showed previews and one was about Julia Child which really caught my interest! I was fixated on it and some jerkoff that worked there started shouting at the top of his lungs for everyone to squeeze to the ends because the show was sold out. That ahole effed up my preview! I was so pissed that I almost went to management to complain but wait, I was stuck! I'm still going to complain because the place was NOT sold out - empty seats in the front- that was really jacked!
If you don't mind the gum on your feet, the leftover trash from the previous movie showing or people talking EXTREMELY loud during a movie...this is your place.
Its a bit cheaper then your more glamorous theaters, but like the saying goes you get what you paid for!
There's hardly anyone in the theater now a days because of the one in Eastridge or Oakridge...the seats are old fashioned...no cushion tall back seats so you cant see peoples heads...if your one of the less fortunate...you'll get stuck sitting right behind someone with a big head inhibiting your line of sight.
They seriously need to remodel the whole building...it looks so rundown that something is bound to break.
Alot of teenagers like to "hangout" here...who knows why but i guess its the place to be.
As i was watching Alien vs Predator (don't ask!) we had these obnoxious kids sitting in front of us making fun of the actors throughout the whole movie...while it was entertaining at times...it was distracting to the other people in the theater...no way of saying anything or else they'd come over there and beat me up!! hehe
For the price...its not too bad if your willing to put all of those things i mentioned aside. As long as your with good company...its shouldn't be THAT bad...
Chose this theater as a last resort because it was showing a movie we wanted to see at a decent time... inside the theater, it reeks of piss and burnt popcorn... the bathrooms are absolutely vile (and if thats how it is for the ladies restroom, I can only imagine how bad the mens room is). I don't normally wait through an entire movie without using the bathroom once, but for this theater I'll make an exception and wait till I get home next time.
Sick.
Oh and I sat in a seat, leaned back, and ended up practically on the persons lap behind me (unintentional of course!!)
Capitol 16 used to be an acceptable place to watch a movie. I have watched plenty of movies here through the years, mostly during high school. Lately it seems as if it is all going down hill for this theater. I have heard of a couple instances of shootings here which obviously makes me not want to come here. My last experience here was a couple years ago and I remember the seats being so worn that they were uncomfortable, sticky floors, and ants.
I like this place for several reasons:
1) Since the rennovations at Oakridge Mall, this place is pretty empty, which means easy parking and never turned away from a full movie
2) It plays all the top movies
3) I live 2 minutes from here
The seats aren't as comfy as the newer places and the theaters are small, but for the above reasons, I like it a lot.
I grew up going to this theater, it has turned 2 shit now, but i still like to slum it once in a while and keep this place in business or help support them so they can remodel or something. We went to see Step Brothers F*ing Hilarious I was crackin up hella loud there and nobody complained it was coo. The screen did cut out during the previews and took about 8 mins to come back on, other than that its still a cool ass ghetto ass spot to go to the movies.
I'm assuming this listing is for the indoor theater, as opposed to the Drive-In. Kind of strange that the drive-in doesn't have it's own listing. It's been far too long since I've been to this drive-in for me to review it so, yo, Yelpers -- get on the ball!
Anyways, about the indoor theater:
Crap-o-la!
Went here for the first (and LAST) time in a long while. It was very run down: from outside, through the lobby and concession stand, and into the theater itself. Terribly incompetent and inattentive staff. And, as others have mentioned, there were projector problems right during the action climax of the movie.
This place has seen better days.
The last few visits have all seen projector issues (starting late, no sound, etc.)
i think id rather go here than eastridge, eastridge gets really crowded and ghetto sometimes, not that this place doesnt get ghetto, its just less ghetto than eastridge. the bathrooms are kinda dirty and outdated, but thats expected because the theater is also dirty and outdated. parking is good tho, and its convenient.
i love that this ghetto ass little theater is practically empty. like someone said, it has seen better days. the fact that it's dirty as hell makes it lose stars. but, it's still a great place to catch a movie on the cheap.
These theaters will probably need a renovation within the next 5 years to be able to keep up with the new Oakridge theater and the cushier AMCs located throughout San Jose. The seats feel really old and have the look , as if you walked into a dirty movie. They just can't compare to the comfort level of other theaters. Also, the last time I was here, the grounds were littered with trash as it was clearly not cleaned after the last movie had ended. They didn't dim the lights either during the feature presentation which I found really annoying. Summing it up with one word: "Ghetto." Although, give it some credit; it does have a Drive-In. And this is probably where you'll want to watch a movie anyways as you won't feel the pressing urge to take a shower afterwards.
My friends and I fondly refer to this as the ghetto theater.
Although the seats are threadbare and there's almost always a problem with the position of the projector when the previews are playing, that later gets fixed for the movie, the tickets and concessions are cheaper than those at Oakridge. Often times For a budget mindful teenager, that's a plus.
Recently, they've been playing less and less of the movies you many find at Century 21 Oakridge or the AMC at Eastrige, but the movies they do have they tend to keep longer than both Oakridge and Eastride.
The theaters vary in size. For the most part, they are either very large or very small. It's almost always empty or near empty so parking isn't problem like it is at the larger theaters.
I live close to this theatre. I visit at least 3 times a month. Very friendly staff.
