Honolulu Star-Advertiser from Honolulu, Hawaii • 62

D4 TODAY DIVERSIONS HONOLULU STAR-ADVERTISER FRIDAY 61810 Audiences prepare for splash of this Titan 4 1 '1 1 ra 1 3f Moviegoers get an immersive experience at Ward Stadium, but at a higher ticket price BY CHRISTIE WILSON cwilsonstaradvertiser.com Consolidated Theatres has upped the ante in more ways than one with its Titan XC "extreme cinema" experience featuring the largest commercial movie screen in the state. At 66 feet wide by 35 feet high, it towers above the audience. Consolidated installed the new screen and Dolby Surround 7.1 system in one of its larger Ward Stadium 16 auditoriums, which already had a 56-by-35-foot screen. "It was a pretty big screen already, but we just made it bigger and better," said Rachel Gibson, promotions and events manager for the theater chain. "It goes wall to wall and then from the top of the ceiling nearly to the floor.

You really notice it when you walk in." Moviegoers also will really notice the comfy, wider seats upholstered in leather. The 487 rocker seats are high enough to allow you to lean your head back with support. With such generous seating, moviegoers will no longer need feel claustrophobic when the house is packed, and there's no jostling for armrest domination with your neighbor because there is plenty of room to relax with your arms at your side. Consolidated also is offering, for the first time, the option of purchasing reserved seating in advance, so no more coming early on opening weekend to wait in long lines at the box office. But just how much will moviegoers be willing to pay for such luxuries? General admission tickets for Titan XC shows are $11 for seniors and children.

Tickets for 3D BRUCE ASATO BASATOSTARADVERTISER.COM 1 i i I W---- ff. i 4 BY THE NUMBERS 66-by-35 Dimensions in feet of new Titan XC movie screen 487 No. of theater seats 75,000 No. of watts in digital sound system $14.25 General admission ticket price $16.25 General admission 3D ticket price Theatergoers, above, donned their 3D glasses to watch a special viewing of Avatar in the Consolidated Theatres' new Titan XC theater at the Ward Stadium theater complex. Titan XC features a huge screen that measures 66-feet wide and 35-feet tall and a Dolby Surround 7.1 sound system.

The new Titan theater, right, at the Ward Stadium theater complex has comfortable leather seating. they didn't have a problem keeping up with the action on the giant screen but were a bit shell-shocked by the sound system. Movies show in Titan XC will be presented with a new NEC digital projection system, according to Consolidated, and 3D blockbusters will be showcased using the state's only XpanD 3D system, which is too complicated to explain here. Suffice it to say the XpanD 3D glasses, with their flexible, rubberized tips, are lightweight and the most comfortable around. "Toy Story 3" showings in the Titan XC theater at Ward Stadium 16 are at 10:30 a.m.

and 1:20, 4:10, 7 and 9:50 p.m. For reserved seating and other information, visit than a typical theater system, the sound comes from 18 speakers on the walls, 14 on the ceiling, and double the number and size of sub-woofers. At Wednesday night's advance screening of DisneyPixar's "Toy Story 3" in 3D, some in rows closer to the front of the house said that's even before hitting the concession stand. Titan XC seems more geared toward aficionados who will appreciate the reserved seating system and first-class leather furniture, and the theater's new digital sound system with 7.1 audio channels. Five times more powerful movies sell for $16.25 for general admission and $13 for seniors and children.

It's hard to imagine an average family of four shelling out $58.50 for tickets to a 3D showing just for an extra 10 feet of movie screen and Voice-overs: Ratzenberger makes a new home at Pixar i i I -N. mm m-m, i 1 COURTESY PHOTO "Toy Story 3" finds the film series' beloved characters in peril at a children's day-care center. worked as a house framer, appreciates the studio's strong work ethic and feels at home in the halls of Pixar, where the quality of the finished product is more important than the bottom line. "It's not a mistake that they've had the success that they've had," Ratzenberger says. "They don't make a movie until they're satisfied with every aspect of the production.

When you look at the old Disney films, you see the similarities. They both make movies with a lot of heart, and they don't rush anything out until it's ready." The actor generally does his voice-over work alone "Up" was the only movie where another actor (Ed As-ner) was in the booth with him and records mostly in Los Angeles, with occasional trips to the Pixar campus. He doesn't see his script until minutes before he starts working, and doesn't see any film until a month or two before its release. Ratzenberger says working with the makers of "Cheers" and working with Pixar filmmakers are actually similar experiences. In both cases the artists are in control.

And he says the approach to humor is similar. The characters are unpredictable, and it's rare that the audience can see the joke coming a mile away. His favorite character is P.T. Flea, the ringmaster from "A Bug's Life," arguably Pixar's least celebrated film. like him because he's so unbalanced.

He'll go into a rage Continued from Dl remained the same: Ratzenberger. He's returned to provide a voice for every one of Pixar's features "Toy Story 3" makes 11. Pixar filmmakers refer to Ratzenberger as their "good-luck charm." After voicing Hamm the piggy bank in "Toy Story," he was cast three years later as the ringmaster P.T. Flea in "A Bug's Life." The roles since then have been seemingly random: an abominable snowman, a school of moonfish, a super-villain, an anthropomorphic Mack truck, a waiter, a space traveler and a construction worker. Ratzenberger says the Pixar tradition is one of several fortuitous events in his career.

He was a carpenter at the 1969 concert at Woodstock, had a cameo in "The Empire Strikes Back," received a career-defining role as Cliff Gavin in "Cheers" and was a last-minute replacement in 2007 on "Dancing With the Stars." "You will never hear me complain about the wonderful things that have happened to me," Ratzenberger says. Both sides have a hard time explaining at what point Ratzenberger and the studio became permanently intertwined it seems to be one of those things that just sort of happened. The actor has never lived anywhere near Pixar, and his politics are far to the right of the liberal San Francisco Bay Area. But the Connecticut native, who once 'Toy Story 3': Film's Ken goes retro with 70s attire for no reason. I've always found that kind of humor And he didn't mind playing Hamm his Pixar character that's probably the closest to Gavin for a third time.

Next year he returns as Mack for "Cars 2." He likes that role a lot, too. Since he became a regular at Pixar, the writers seem to be finding roles that fit his working-class roots. Ratzenberger hosted and produced a reality series called "Made in America" for five years that was a tribute to the working man, and his Nuts, Bolts and Thingamajigs Foundation www.nutsandbolts-foundation.org was set up to "nurture the tinkering spirit" in kids. His repeat perform ances at Pixar definitely couldn't have hurt that foundation. And there are other strange perks.

His Pixar appearances, along with cameos in "Empire" and "Superman," have vaulted the one-time struggling actor into the top 10 top-grossing movie actors of all time. Still, he doesn't assume he'll be in the next movie even if everyone else on the planet does. Ratzenberger doesn't have to audition anymore, but he says the process for "Toy Story 3" was pretty much the way it was for the first film. "They call me and say, 'Hey, we have a character we want you to Ratzenberger says. "I ask when and where, and then I show up." the role of a lifetime, don't you think? Absolutely! a There were a number of different Kens over the years.

Which version are you playing? The Smitten With Barbie Beyond All Boundaries Ken. a How do you prepare for a role like this? Did you try to get inside Ken's head? Well, because of the solidity, let's say maybe it's the hair spray but because of the, well, hardness, the texture of Ken's (plastic) hair, it's very difficult to get inside his head. Continued from Dl some years, Keaton has been raising his public profile. He directed and starred in 2008's "The Merry Gentleman" and provided the voice of Noah in the animated "Noah's Ark: The New Beginning," due out this year. He will also appear this summer in the Will Ferrell vehicle "The Other Guys." Keaton's been making the media rounds to talk about playing Ken, a part that clearly tickles him.

We conducted a micro-interview by e-mail. a Playing Ken could be.