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UA Berkeley 7
Rating Details »
Neighborhood: Downtown Berkeley
2274 Shattuck Ave
(between Allston Way & Kittredge St)
Berkeley, CA 94704
(510) 486-1852
2274 Shattuck Ave
(between Allston Way & Kittredge St)
Berkeley, CA 94704
(510) 486-1852
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
33 reviews for UA Berkeley 7
This review pertains mainly to UA 7's flashback series: they are bar none the most fun you can have at the movies (unless you're seeing a Sasha Baron Cohen flick).
You want classics? They've got those -- Psycho, Casablanca, Citizen Kane, ...
You want action? They've got those too -- Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, Top Gun ...
Comedy? Ghostbusters, The Breakfast Club, Top Gun, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park
You see, when everyone in a packed theater has previously seen the movie, you tend to watch it in a different way then when you're at home. Suddenly every bit of overacting, every bit of exaggerated tension, every unintentional/unidentified gaffe gets magnified by the audience--with hilarity the usual consequence. So even (& typically) if its an action flick, there is this other, hyper-critical level to experience it on. Its a great meta-viewing exercise.
In addition, the commercials/previews that precede the film correspond to the original release date, which can be similarly interesting/amusing.
I can't wait until they show The Rock.
Maybe I'm a disgusting human being but I like this theater even though I've only been here twice. If you don't want the high school crowd, go during the week before 5pm, you'll probably be one of five people in the theater. I like that they bring popular movies to a town where people hate that kinda shit. So what if I want to watch Jennifers Body? I don't have a car and this theater is right near BART. It's CONVENIENT and I don't have to go to a mall or the suburbs if I want to watch a box office hit. Yes, I said BOX OFFICE HIT!
And while I love Shattuck Cinema, UA's seats are way more cushiony.
This is how I ended up watching a movie at this theater.
My friend and I decided to go see transformers revenge of the fallen but we thought that century theater would be empty since you know its Richmond..Boy we were proven wrong. We walked up to the window to get our tickets and it was sold out all 5 showings.
SO my friend and I scrambled to find which theater isn't sold out near by.
and UA Berkeley 7 came up. we called and asked if they are sold out. they said "No we aren't we are only half way filled....but we close in 20 mins."
SO we ended driving out to berkeley and seeing that this place is empty was a great + lol.
Once you enter in this theaters the has this old feeling. which is nice. Brings back memories of the day when I saw Mouse trap in SF in one of those super old theaters. yeah the seats are old. floors is sticky but not all the time. but this place is just a good place to catch a flick in a hurry.
Over all I like this theater. the look and feel of a old school theater is nice.
Only complaint i have is finding parking. but I would come here again to see a moving that is new knowing the fact that it wont be as packed and filled with immature kids.
Well, UA has heard the call for a student discount because every time I've been to a show there you couldn't hear the soundtrack for the talking and squealing and laughing. Really, horror movies work better if you're quiet during the quiet and tense times, rather than screaming "OMIGIDOMIGODOMIGOD" the whole time. Just saying. Shouldn't you kids be texting each other or making out in the back row instead?
Not the place to actually watch a movie, though I haven't had the appalling experience other Yelpers write about so it's 2-stars for me.
I felt kinda bad for the homeless man sitting two rows behind us. He could have curled up with his eau de toilet de piss and his audible sinus infection and slept for the duration of the flick, but the sub-zero temperatures would have killed him faster than a polar bear on angel dust.
But let's not joke around. The icebox climate is the only thing keeping the stench at bay. That's why they haven't fixed the AC. Duh.
Oooh, oooh! Want a quick "meditation tour" of the UA experience?
Close your eyes and envision a craptastic handicam screener pulled from an underground torrent site in Korea. Envision yourself watching that screener and streaming the audio through a tinny set of laptop speakers you bought with fifty ticket stubs at Dave & Busters. Envision the film flickering at perfect migraine resonance while having your balls massaged by a commercial grade Singer sewing machine manned by Ed Gein. Envision being unable to reach the cyanide pill jammed in your molar because a stale popcorn kernel-shield has lodged directly over it.
Never again.
Never again.
NEVER AGAIN.
I will be bathing in bleach for the next million years if you need me to slap you for coming here. Please submit visitation requests via private message.
I am compelled to write an addendum. In a truly desperate move to see Punisher:War Zone, I returned to this war zone for more punishment.
It's still a filthy, decrepit shithole, so one star for consistency. Our theater was somewhere around 40 degrees - cold enough to numb all my extremities barring my nose which was delighted by the reeking stench of piss and shit-filled underwear coming from all around me. I asked the only person I saw working in the theater if something could be done about the arctic temperature. The response is as follows:
"Oh yeah, the air conditioning's been broken for some time now. Sorry, there's nothing we can do about it. Hey, maybe the excitement of the movie will keep you warm!"
Yes, that, or the furnace of my homicidal rage.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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7/30/2007
Stinking, sticky seats, with destroyed cushions that make the back of a gypsy cab seem like a luxury… Read more »
Took my kids to see Up. My major problem was the rodent under the seat in front of me, enjoying spilled popcorn without a care in the world. He was brazen to say the least.
I love the Thursday Night Flashbacks! I just saw Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark. It was amazing. The movie was awesome. The people in the theater were awesome. A great Thursday night all around!
I didn't notice the theater condition/ it didn't bother me at all.
Have seen as of 5/2/2008:
Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay
Iron Man
Lineup:
The Incredible Hulk
Indiana Jones or as Jimmy refers to it as "Indy 4"
The Chronicles of Narnia
The Dark Knight
So the lady and I had 2 free movie tickets as well as a $10.00 gift certificate for food and drinks. So we came here and watched "Taken". Upon arriving we get to the teller and the girl there messes up. She used one free movie pass and the gift certificate to pay for the other movie ticket. Then she gave us our other free movie pass back and $2. She then told us that she'll give us free popcorn. So she actually knew that we wanted popcorn?! We didn't! Anyways, this situation wasn't right and so we ask for the manager. The manager comes to help out and says there was nothing she could do anymore for us because they can't undo the transaction with the gift certificate. Okay?! Well I said "there must be something you can do?!" The teller then started to put her emotion and gripe with us... like " why won't you just accept it?" She started to get all worked up about it. Then the manager just took the movie pass and the $2 the teller gave to us and gave us $10 in cash. Problem solved!
Anyways, the movie was awesome! I just won't go back here to watch a movie. To think, if we would've been given the movie pass back, the lady and I were like "we wouldn't go here to watch a movie and why would we want to come back?!
So moral is, don't watch here! I wouldn't suggest it. Also, Taken was an awesome movie!
Who here sits at home Thursday night wondering what to do? It's not the weekend so you dont want to party hard, but you've had long week already and just need to do something leisure. What to do, what to do.. Well here it is!
Thursday Night Flashbacks!
Best idea for a movie theater in years. Every Thursday night at 8pm its only $5 to watch an old movie with your friends, mom, or lover. They have a fun cheesy prize give-away in the beginning and some trivia and then its on with the show! I saw Office Space there earlier this summer and I wish I could go back more often.
The theater is a good size, not huge, intimate, just the way I like to watch my favorite flicks, and for $5 how could you say no! Pretty soon a gallon of gas will cost more than that! I'd much rather watch Brave heart or Dr. Strangelove. Call me sentimental.
check it out!!!
If you can see your movie elsewhere I would suggest it. This theater (like most of downtown Berkeley) needs some serious updating.
A really great feature of this theater is that you get two movies for the price of one. Pay for one movie and while you are attempting to watch it, you can clearly hear every detail of the movie in the adjoining theatre. Isn't that awesome? It really makes for a lovely experience, especially if you are trying to watch a weepy little love story and Aliens vs. Predator is playing next door.
Add to that, the delightfully sticky floors to keep your feet firmly planted, lots and lots of leg room (if you are under 6), stale popcorn, flat soda, and the refreshingly brisk 56 degree air temperature, and you've got yourself one heck of a movie-going experience!! Wow.
Run down and outdated.
Head to Emeryville AMC or UA
Theaters are newer and better.
At least there you can get discount if you are a student/military.
With the expensive cost of seeing a movie now a days... any discount is appreciated.
I've seen some great movies here--way, way far back in the past. The last time I was at the UA (for Harry Potter 4), the projector BROKE 5 TIMES DURING THE MOVIE. After the 5th time (and mind you, we were only about a 1/2 hour into it!), I got up and left. The manager tried to give me some stupid vouchers, but there's no way I'm ever going back, so I asked for--and got--my money back instead.
Avoid, avoid, avoid at all costs. Go to the Shattuck, California, Grand Lake, ANYWHERE ELSE.
No student discount (wtf); extraordinarily small screens (majority); too many commercials (not just previews); terrible popcorn (perhaps true of all movie theaters)
I normally wouldn't return to places I give two stars, but since I still have two years left in Berkeley, my continued patronage of this place is something of an unfortunate inevitability. While I'm very fond of Shattuck Cinemas and its lovely selection of art house/independent films, sometimes I just need my romantic comedy/blockbuster/etc fix.
This is hands down the stinkiest movie theater in downtown Berkeley. The aroma of stale popcorn and yesteryear's spilled soda with a touch of BO hangs in every auditorium. The downstairs auditorium is big and cushy. The upstairs ones are ok-sized but the screens need to be replaced. Usually, Hollywood schlock lands here, but on occasion an artsy movie would play and the smelly environs diminishes the artsiness. They show commercials before the previews, so if you're used to skipping ads on your Tivo, you'll get plenty here.
While the UA 7 is not a remarkable theater by any means, you can sign up for a rewards card and rack up points for free tickets and popcorn. They probably sell your info to junkmailers, so just give them an old address. The UA 7 has matinee prices for all shows before 6pm, even on weekends.
this place is ok. the air conditioner breaks occasionally. i feel like the whole place could use a good cleaning. went to go see ice age and they have started doing things like coming in and walking around to sell food and drinks. no one says anything becuase i think we would have bought it as we passed the concession stand. then they stare at you and wait for you to buy it. oh yea and if you do you get a mini movie poster. so eight dollars for a soda and a free poster? really weird.
Has seen much better days. Am spooked by the presence of private security guards, there because of muggings and thefts. Don't feel safe sitting in the dark. Shame a grand old place like this has gone ghetto.
The good:
* There are good restaurants nearby.
* It's walking distance from BART.
* The ticket sales staff are friendly
The bad:
* Sticky floors
* Filthy seats
* Projectors that can't decide if they want to be too bright or too dim, so they alternate every 30 seconds.
* Screen that is so obviously broken that it distracts from the movie
* Commercials before every movie
But, hey, at least the prices are high and there isn't a student discount!
All the theaters in Berkeley kind of suck. No stadium seating, no reclining, no fake-leather... But even for Berkeley, this place is pretty run down. If you are going to watch a movie here, make sure its not in one of their mini-theaters (like 2 rows of 6 seats) because both the ones I've been in smelled funky. Stale air, mixed with something that hopefully wasn't urine, but I have a sneaking suspicion was. Like someone said in a previous post, homeless people come here to chill/sleep...
A cute older theater, six screens on two stories. It's well-maintained and attractive, with large murals on the walls. We went on a Saturday night and had no lines at all. It seems to show mostly big-name blockbusters, which is actually sort of unique for Berkeley.
Sometimes there's a movie I want to see at a UA and I hate parking at Emery Bay. So I ask the lady, "wanna go to a movie in Berkeley?" The response is always the same: "As long as it is not at the stinky theater." So I don't go here anymore.
Smaller theater that usually shows the mainstream types of movies. (Shattuck runs the independant/foreign genre more).
The thing that concerns me most about this place is that there is no parking. So if you arent a student or someone who lives in walking distance, come early to look for parking, or just drive your ass over to emeryville. The seats in front of you are painfully close together, but the stadium seating is excellent, so you'll never have to worry about some tall guy sitting in front of you. No student discounts.
$10 to watch 20 minutes of commercials (half not even movie-related) before a picture. No thanks....but I suppose it helps dumb-down the audience before they watch the idiotic blockbusters which play here.
The worst. The only reason to go here is that you have a kid who's just gotta see the latest Hollywood blockbuster and you don't wanna drive all the way to AMC and brave that mess. Crappy concessions, high prices, chemical oils on popcorn, the atmosphere of a massage parlor in the daytime, a couple of decent size screens, but that's about it. And then they have that flashlight nazi who walks around making sure you're not multiplexing, even if it's a goddamn weekday and you're the only 2 people in the place. Oh yeah, and there was that time the shift mgr wouldn't refund us even though the seats had just been cleaned and were still very wet, and instead brought us some Hefty Bags. Cheez. If I'm going to go to the effort of parking in downtown #$%^ing Berkeley, it's going to be for the Shattuck or California, not for this sleazehole. It's one of the only places I go where I almost always say "I HATE THIS PLACE" sometime before I leave. Get your candy at Long's beforehand.
While the theatre itself isn't bad, architecturaly and all, they seldom play movies i want to see. While a nice building is good, i have no reason to go there if i dont want to see the movies they play.
This is the typical neighborhood theatre. They don't have a lot of screens... they don't show anything super-interesting... but sometimes you want to watch whatevers out and you don't feel like going anywhere for it.
Seen one movie here. Student discount. Not a large theater. But decent. More screens = more movies.
Just saw a movie here the other day. It's a pretty neat theater. The screen was a lot bigger than I expected because it was a seeminly small place. Stadium style seating as well. There are some weird murals and many staircases here. I would come here again if there was a movie I wanted to see, overall a decent theater. The bathroom was pretty stinky though.
This place loses on several accounts:
1. No student discount. On a college campus, really?
2. NO LEG ROOM. My friends and I are not big people, we're actually smaller than average and none of us had any leg room. It's really designed to give you just enough room to get in the aisle and then sit. No moving otherwise.
3. Ugly and broken chandelier makes this place feel eerie. And it's just too damn big and rarely ever full.
I avoid this place - last time I went there were endless commercials to watch before the movie trailers - I felt that I was being held prisoner...if I have to see a movie in a multiplex I'd much rather go to the Bay Street complex where the seats are cushy - much better for lulling us into complacency before the endless commercials..
