Golden Ticket Cinemas Meridian 9 — Attraction in Meridian

I had to leave a review, just because the reviews are absolutely ridiculous! I go to the movie theatre a lot. I've been to the movie theatre in Tuscaloosa, AL as well as having gone to the movies in Orlando, FL at Universal Studios and also Kissimmee, FL at Downtown Disney. I have no problems whatsoever with this theatre. Some reviewers stated that there is no stadium seating. Yeah. So what! You also don't have a lot of people going to the movie theatre in Meridian, MS. We don't have the crowds. Therefore, we don't really need stadium seating! That would just be a waste of money! Someone suggested you drive an hour and a half to Tuscaloosa, AL or Jackson, MS to the movie theatre there! I would really like to know what idiot suggested that. The movie theatre at Bonita Lakes Mall is always clean and I don't really think stadium seating adds to the experience. That's just extra seating for a theatre that gets more traffic. They used to offer a free small popcorn on Tuesday's for customers with the Regal Card at this theatre. They have since done away with that, but you can't tell me that wasn't excellent customer service. It infuriates me that people are so negative. I'll tell you what! Some of the nicest theaters I've been to I had to spend an extra thirty minutes of stress to get there. It took an extra 30 minutes in stressful traffic to get to Downtown Disney in Kissimmee, FL. When I went to the theatre at Universal Studios... You have to walk 30 minutes after you park to get to the theatre. I think people should be more appreciative and thankful for what they have. Meridian doesn't have a lot of traffic. There's less stress here. If you want to spend the extra gas money to drive an hour and a half to Tuscaloosa, AL or Jackson, MS that's your business. That's 3 hours of extra driving time. I've never had any problems with the theatre in Meridian. There's usually never a line unless you go on the weekends. Cleanliness has never been a problem for me. I have never seen any problems. I just think some people are just unhappy and find something to complain about because they think the grass is greener on the other side. Well, it's not. Once you get to the other side, you will find more problems with that & find that you were actually more satisfied with what you had before, if you could only be...

I went to this theater the month it opened in the late 90s. The sound was incredible (custom design by Peavey if I'm not mistaken), and the screens were huge in comparison to the two theaters it phased out. It didn't have stadium seating, but that was just starting to catch on at the time.

Fast forward almost 20 years, and nothing has changed. That's great if we're talking about a hairline, but for a supposedly state-of-the-art theater? Nope.

It's way overdue for renovation. They added some 3D screens shortly after Avatar changed the game, which surprised me. With the price of tickets now, however that's not enough. I know that converting to stadium seating is a massive undertaking, but I fear that if they don't do that soon the theater just won't last. My family and several others already drive to Tuscaloosa or Mobile for those big summer tent pole movies simply because all the CGI and 3D and explosions in the world are rendered moot if you have Lurch from The Addams Family sitting in front of you.

Sometimes you can move. Quite often, though, especially with new films, the theater is packed. If you do manage to find another seat, you soon realize that the ghost of Wilt Chamberlain also decided to see the same film as the Lurch’s ghost, and he too is blocking out half the screen.

The sound has seen (heard?) better days as well. The greatest speakers in the world can only withstand triple digit decibels for so long. While they’re at it, they need to throw in some Atmos capability.

After all that, I still think this theater has the potential to be great again. Screening Room 1 has one of the biggest screens I’ve ever seen in a theater. Honestly, they went all out with the technology at hand when it was built. But technology—and customer expectations—have leapfrogged what Bonita Lakes 9 has to offer. Hopefully, they see this as well and will bring this theater back to its...

I have lived in Meridian for over 18 years and have enjoyed many movies every year at UA Bonita Lakes 9. I am reluctant to ever return to this theater. Tonight I took my wife, sister, and five grandchildren to see Wreck it Ralph Destroys the Internet. We spent over $140 on tickets and refreshments. The screen was black. We heard the song track of the preliminaries but had no images on the screen. Several people, including my wife, went out to inform them of the situation. Movie time was slated for 6 PM. At 6:08 an employee came and informed us they were having difficulty and were having to reboot the computer. It would take 25 minutes or longer. Since there were 25 minutes of previews, she promised to skip them and start with the movie so we would not be so late getting out. Nearly an hour later the movie finally started, but started with previews. After about 10 minutes someone made it skip to the start of the movie. About 10 minutes before the end of the movie the lights came on, the sound track was dropped, and elevator music came on. We missed the final dialogue of the film, which was an excellent movie to that point. Finally, after the credits were showing the sound was restored. My wife was told they had three managers, but no one cared enough or was smart enough to realize that the late start would cause us to miss the end of the movie when programing brought up the lights and killed the sound. The theater is dirty. The seats are old, worn out and uncomfortable, and compared to Pearl, the prices are too high. It is the only theater in the area. From now on I am inclined to drive to Pearl to see a film. After 18 years, I am done with UA Bonita Lakes 9 unless significant...