THE LOOP — Just like movie credits, AMC's new cinema at Block 37 comes with fine print.
Teenagers who hope to catch a flick at the Loop's newest, and only, movie theater will have to do so with an adult chaperone, a detail that escaped the media when the 11-screen theater featuring plush leather recliners and full menu opened last month at 108 N. State St.
To specify: anyone under the age of 18 needs to be accompanied by a parent or guardian over the age of 21 to gain admission to the theater. The age limit, an AMC Theatres spokeswoman says, was included in a news release when the theater opened and is standard across the chain's so-called "dine-in" theaters like the one at Block 37.
"Feedback from our guests indicate that many are looking for a more mature movie-going environment," said Erin Gregory, a spokeswoman for Leawood, Kan.-based AMC.
The rule was a surprise to Bill Schmidt, an Old Town resident whose 16-year-old daughter tried to watch a movie with a friend last weekend at the theater. He thought the theater's location above a Red Line station would be convenient for he and his daughter, but was annoyed when he learned of the theater's age limit, which was imposed after his daughter and her friend already bought movie tickets.
"It took a presidential order to get a refund," Schmidt said.
The theater at Block 37, a Downtown mall at roughly State and Washington streets, is AMC's first full-service dine-in Chicago theater, as well as the Loop's first cineplex in decades. Guests can order food and beverages from their seats and dine while watching a movie. Ticket prices range, but during peak evening hours can cost more than $20 for 3D showings like they did during the opening weekend of the new "Star Wars" movie.
Gregory said two other AMC theaters Downtown, including the one 600 N. Michigan Ave. and the AMC River East 21, 322 E. Illinois St., don't have age restrictions.
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