Korean-developed cinema with 4D screen and motion seats to replace shuttered Van Ness AMC

A mockup of the CJ-CGV theater. A mockup of the CJ-CGV theater. Photo: Courtesy Of CJ-CGV Photo: Courtesy Of CJ-CGV Image 1 of / 72 Caption Close Korean-developed cinema with 4D screen and motion seats to replace shuttered Van Ness AMC 1 / 72 Back to Gallery

An entirely futuristic movie-going experience is headed to the heart of San Francisco, courtesy of CJ-CGV, a South Korean cinema company.

The new 14-auditorium movie house will take over the space that formerly housed the beleaguered AMC Van Ness 14, which had been operating at 1000 Van Ness since 1998 before it closed in early February.

CGV is reportedly executing substantial renovations to the space — a good idea, considering the spate of bad reviews around the theater's cleanliness and even bedbugs — to premiere a cinema with some brag-worthy sensorial upgrades.

RELATED: AMC's Van Ness 14 theater closing: 'It has become a dump in the last few years'

For starters, in at least one auditorium they're installing a 4D screen with "synchronized motion seats and environmental effects such as wind, rain, snow, fog and lightning."

In another, they'll build a ScreenX, which the Hollywood Reporter describes as a "270-degree, three-screen multi-projection system that uses a proprietary technique to expand select key scenes of feature films to the left- and right-side walls."

RELATED: AMC closes on Carmike deal, future for Sundance Kabuki theater 'uncertain'

Now to answer the question on everyone's mind: The theater won't open until early 2020, so unfortunately, it won't be ready in time for "Avengers: Endgame" or "Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker." It may, however, help to reinvigorate the Van Ness corridor, which has been the victim of incessant (and extremely delayed) street construction for years.

Its opening also underscores an increasing corporate interest in premium movie-going experiences. The Mission's often-bustling Alamo Drafthouse offers creative dishes, snacks and locally-made craft beer to patrons, and AMC Theaters and other local chains have begun supplanting old folding seats with leather recliners and installing full bars beside auditoriums.

CJ-CGV's new Van Ness operation — only its third in the U.S., after other locations in Los Angeles and Buena Park, Calif. — appears primed to bank on the trend.

Edit: This article previously stated that the AMC Van Ness opened in 1988. It has been corrected to read that it opened in 1998.

Alyssa Pereira is an SFGATE staff writer. Email her at apereira@sfchronicle.com or find her on Twitter at @alyspereira.

