Korean Movie Theater CGV

We tried to live as the locals do during our stay here in South Korea, most of our activities leaned towards experiencing the historical, natural, and culinary aspects of the country. But we also partook in some of the modern aspects of Korean life as well. With the recent release of Star Wars, we decided to go to a Korean movie theater. This was partly motivated by the fact that I really wanted to see it, as well as the fact that we were feeling a little lazy and really just didn’t want to take a couple hour commute into Seoul and walk around.

Korean Movie Theater CGV

South Korea has a pretty good Cinema chain called CGV, we see them pretty frequently near many of the metro stations. The one that we visited was in the AK Plaza in Pyeongtaek. The theaters are situated on the 6th floor of the mall and are pretty easy to find and navigate.

Nice and Cheap

As is the case for most things here in Korea, the cost of movie tickets was much cheaper than in the US at 9000 Won for regular or 6000 Won for Military or Elderly discount (which we got because of Briana’s ID). It was about the equivalent of $10 for both of us.

Seating Charts, This Is What The US Needs

When you make your purchase, you are presented with a seating chart from which to choose your seat. We found this to be exceptionally convenient because we simply picked our seat and were then free to wander around the mall for a little while before the movie without having to worry about getting a horrible seat. So we spent our time visiting another area of the mall in the meantime.

Sorry, the photo is not great but the theater looks similar to the way it does in the states – and everywhere else as we would later find out (we watching Zootopia while in Kuala Lumpur). The seating chart comes up as a digital screen on the counter. There were only about ten seats left when we went to purchase our tickets. Once you are ready to go in, attendants check your ticket entering the main corridor and direct you towards your theater. On the outside of the door is a sign showing all the seats so that you can easily find your place.

Comfortable and Modern

The theater was moderately sized and had comfortable seats, which were also labeled to help you find your seat. Really not too much to comment on, as a theater is a theater. The screen was of good quality too.

We didn’t have a regular TV for our stay, so we didn’t get a look into the everyday “pop culture” you would normally get. So it was really entertaining and enlightening to see commercials before the movie began. They all seemed really zany, though it’s possible this was simply because we couldn’t understand the language.

I also noticed that they had a lot of Beatles music in their commercials. I don’t know if it was just a coincidence or if there is some wave of Beatles music going through Korean culture right now. Once the commercials ended, the movie began without any previews. This was certainly different from what we’ve come to expect in the states.

We enjoyed the movie pretty well, as it seems most everyone has as well. Luckily for us, we had it in English with Korean subtitles. When it finished, an exit door opened up and everyone left through there. The door dumps you into a back hallway near the restrooms, so it seems like it might be very difficult to try and watch multiple movies with one ticket (if you are one to try to do that).

The movies are certainly a familiar experience, but it has its own little Korean flavor. If you happen to be at the Pyeongtaek AK Plaza, we would recommend checking out the Sky Garden as well.