Landmark Ritz Five movie theater is open again
The movie theater failed a city inspection in March and another in August. It was ordered to close on Aug. 25.
The smell of buttered popcorn is wafting down Dock Street again, as the Landmark Ritz Five movie theater opened for business again Friday afternoon.
Business was slow at, first, with just 14 customers entering between 5 and 6:30 p.m.
That didn’t count concerned fans who stopped by to check in on the somewhat faded arthouse movie theater.
“When I saw it closed, it was very upsetting,” said Megan Corry, an artist who grew up and lives in South Jersey, but has been coming to the Ritz Five since she was 17.
The Philadelphia Department of Licenses & Inspections had ordered the theater to cease operations on Aug. 25 after it failed two city inspections.
Landmark Theatres’ parent company, Cohen Media Group, said in a statement days later that they were working to get the theater open again, in the midst of the hottest summer for big-screen films since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Corry has been monitoring the fate of one of her favorite theaters and stopped by Friday evening before her next engagement. She is cheered by the theater’s reopening and hoped to return soon for Willem Dafoe’s new movie Late Fame.
“That’s why I was peeking [in the window], I was worried about what’s been happening,” said Corry, who last saw the indie horror megahit Obsession at the Ritz Five. “It’s one of the few places where you can see very amazing film. It’s a hub.”
On Wednesday, the Cohen Media Group said that it “worked in partnership with the local fire department to address all concerns and ensure the theater is safe to reopen.”
The theater must be under a fire watch to remain open, L&I spokesperson Kandyce Stukes said Wednesday. That involves continuously patrolling the building to look out for signs of fire.
Property managers for the theater delivered an appeal to the Board of Safety and Fire Prevention, which is an advisory board to the city’s fire department. They were provided with a variance and can open the theater, Stukes said.
An inspection in March found seven violations. Those included failure to obtain a permit to install a fire alarm system, share documentation that fabrics are flame retardant, ensure that exit doors fully “self-close and latch,” and certify emergency lighting. The theater was also found to be missing a valid food license.
The theater again failed an inspection on Aug. 11. A cease operations notice on the doors of the theater in late August noted that it needed to obtain an electrical permit and install a fire-alarm system.
The notice had been removed Friday, although staffers were still peeling the remnants off the front door. They said they were unable to comment, but noted that doors had opened at 2 p.m. and business was slow because many customers did not realize they had reopened.
Tickets for Friday’s movies were available to purchase online, including a 9:45 p.m. viewing of The Odyssey and a 7:15 p.m. showing of indie chiller It Ends.
Anne Harvey lives just down the block from the Ritz Five, and said she just noticed it had reopened and rushed to get tickets to the 6:30 showing of The Odyssey, Christopher Nolan’s retelling of Homer’s epic.
“I had seen it was shutting down, and it was extremely dismaying,” said Harvey. “I hope it can maintain. I know it seems like a hard business these days, but it’s such a nice amenity for the neighborhood. If you like to walk to the movies in five minutes, like me, it’s a great deal.”
