At the start of the last decade Kota Kinabalu was but a blip on the cinema entertainment map. Back then it featured the already old, but not so dilapidated 3 screens of the Golden Screen Cinema complex in the centre of town.

Today, as we enter the new decade, Kota Kinabalu has cinema screens galore. There’s the Cathay Cineplex in the town centre, Growball in Centrepoint and the newest of them all, the GSC in 1Borneo. Another GSC is taking shape in the freshly completed Suria KK Shopping Centre near Jessleton Point and will be coming online in a month or so.

With all this competition the old city GSC just couldn’t attract enough of a crowd with it’s run-down facilities to sustain it, and were closed down.

The fact that a cinema was closed down at all should really make operators of other cinema’s sit up and take notice. If there were no competition, that old GSC would have been able to do business in perpetuity.

Where’s the Movie Magic?

Growball’s no.8 theatre is arguably the best in Kota Kinabalu. Huge auditorium, big screen, every seat a winner and state-of-the-art sound.

However, the other Growball theatres are old and creaky with equipment that is starting to fail. Their only attraction seems to be the sheer volume of titles to chose from on any given night.

But more and more regularly a reminder to the projectionist (who switches on the film and goes outside) is required to either fine tune the focus, the aspect ratio or the sound.

Last night, during a showing of Tooth Fairy in Growballs theatre 3 it was obvious that a particular sound channel had something wrong with it. The actors’ voices were distant, shallow and tinny. A complaint to the projectionist uncovered an apology, but at the same time was added that it couldn’t be fix as a hardware part was being awaited from Singapore.

After a visit to the supervisor’s office a refund was offered, but some members of the author’s contingent didn’t mind the imperfect sound and so we all suffered the poor quality movie experience together.

It’s strange that, in light of the growing competition, Growball doesn’t mind running poor quality shows. The part responsible for the sound failure was on order and obviously it wasn’t just this one show that suffered as the problem was known and yet they ignored it.

To add insult to injury, the hammering outside on tiles being replaced could be felt though the whole show and heard during the quieter parts. Thumbs down for Growball on this occasion.

5 Senses

The reason people visit cinemas, as opposed to watching DVDs (pirated or otherwise) at home, is to experience a movie rather than just watch it. You smell the popcorn, you feel the vibrations of the sound in your feat, you see the larger-than-life actors on the big screen, and you taste the anticipation of a good thriller on your tongue.

If any of these senses are compromised, punters will first consider alternative cinemas and then wonder why they should pay RM7 per person to watch a movie instead of buying that pirate DVD with 4 movies for RM10.

Can you really afford for your theatres to smell like urine, Cathay, for your visuals and audio to be less than perfect Growball, or to freeze your customers in their seats, GSC?

Isn’t its time that customers get what they pay for and speak with their feet if businesses don’t deliver?

Join the discussion and share a bit about your highs and lows in the cinemas of Kota Kinabalu…

Amidst all the hype about 1Borneo and the spanking new cinemas of Golden Screen Cinemas, you may be forgiven for not realising that Growball Cinemas had an upgrade and they too have a new cinema.

Fun & Games

Fun Square, which is accessible from Centrepoint Shopping Centre’s Palm Square, is a recent addition to the plethora of entertainment options associated with the Groball name.  Spread over two levels, it includes an area with computers for Internet access and LAN games, a huge new arcade with a variety of games and a buffet restaurant and lounge.

The pride and joy of Fun Square however, is Growball’s new additional cinema number 8, which easily takes the crown as Kota Kinabalu’s top theater hall.  But let’s start on the outside.

As you walk up the stairs from Palm Square, you are greeted by the vibrant and colourful front of Fun Square.  A giant big-screen above the entrance shows trailers of current and upcoming movies to whet your appetite.  A new Box Office is off to the left (although this doesn’t seem to be in use yet) and a gleaming new confectionery counter is immediately adjacent.

A set of escalators will take you up to the next level and entrance to cinema 8.  You are greeted by another, smaller confectionery booth, which we guess are so that punters coming from the 8th floor needn’t walk all the way down.

Inside Growball’s Ciname 8

Growball’s cinema 8 itself is a contender for biggest cinema in Kota Kinabalu with over 300 seats (tbc).  The entrance is at the top and back of the stadium-seating and offers an oh-wow moment as you take in the view of the deep, wide theatre hall that swoops down to the stage below.

The stage area is big enough for a small performance and it’s clear that the theatre was designed with more than just movies in mind.  Indeed, Growball cinema 8 is available to rent for presentations, product launches and lectures.

A comfortable seat especially for long movies

The seats in the cinema are chunky and solid and the high seat-backs proves to be very comfortable.

All the arm-rests can lift up, ensuring that, like in GSC, every seat is a potential love seat.  With slightly different padding compared to the GSC line, the Growball seats feel a smidgen more comfortable as it gives more support.  This is good for those 130 minute blockbusters.

The beauty of cinema 8 is that every single seat in the house has a great experience of the screen.  The screen is big enough to be impressive from the very back row, yet not so big that viewers in the front row will have to crank their necks to catch the entire scene.  The same goes for seats on the extreme edges, even from there the picture looks great.

The theatre is equipped with all the state of the art surround sound you’d expect from a new installation, which nicely rounds off the experience.

The only bad thing to be said about Growball’s cinema 8 is that like every other cinema in KK, the aircon can get a bit cold.  So if you’re prone to shiver easily, do bring along a jumper.

Oh and remember, the big, new movies usually show in cinema 8, so catch them while they’re new.

Growball Cinemax is located on the 8th floor of Centrepoint Shopping Centre in the heart of Kota Kinabalu.

Growball shows a variety of Hollywood, Malay and Chinese movies. The screens are supported by confectionery counters selling soft-drinks, caramelised popcorn and hot-dog sausages.

Complementing the cinemas are an eatery, Internet cafe, pool hall, electronic video game arcade and the popular instant Karaoke machines, K-Box.

Co-located on the same level is KK’s current largest bowling centre, CPS Bowl.

A variety of show times feature at Growball Cinemax and depending on the day of the week, can start early morning until very late at night, with frequent midnight screenings of new releases.

Ticket prices very from RM5 on certain days with student discounts to RM17 for two on a couple seat, a couch-like seat with no armrests. Usual movie tickets are RM8.

For a listing of the latest movies and movie show times at Growball Cinemax, visit the Growball Cinemax page at cinema.com.my.