Marcus Theatres begins limited reopening

“Normal” life is tiptoeing back, at least for moviegoers. h On Friday, Marcus Theatres is reopening six theaters, including four in Wisconsin — the Ridge in New Berlin, Bistroplex at Southridge Mall in Greendale, Renaissance in Sturtevant, and Valley Grand in Appleton — with an array of safety guidelines and distancing practices, from encouraging wearing face masks in public spaces to checkerboard seating patterns leaving empty seats between pairs of seats for reduced capacity and more distancing. h The theaters will be open for shorter hours, and only Friday through Sunday and Tuesdays; showtimes will be staggered, with extra time between screenings for additional cleaning.

Tickets, for now, are $5. Each reopened Marcus theater is showing a mix of recent and older movies — and at least one movie that came out during the shutdown but hadn’t made it to Milwaukee theaters.

The Ridge’s lineup includes recent releases “The Invisible Man,” “Sonic the Hedgehog,” “The Hunt,” “Bad Boys for Life,” “Jumanji: The Next Level,” “Bloodshot,” “Emma,” “Dolittle” and “Knives Out”; old favorites “Jurassic Park,” “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” and the Harry Potter entries “The Sorcerer’s Stone” and “Chamber of Secrets”; and acclaimed indie drama “Never Rarely Sometimes Always,” which didn’t make it to local theaters before the pandemic shutdown kicked in.

The Bistroplex’s lineup: “The Invisible Man,” “Sonic,” “The Hunt” and “Bad Boys for Life”; older movies “Batman Begins,” “The Sorcerer’s Stone” and “Chamber of Secrets”; and the new drive-in horror hit “The Wretched.”

See marcustheatres.com for tickets and showtimes.

The Ridge and the Bistroplex aren’t the first indoor

theaters to open in the Milwaukee area.

Fox-Bay Cinema Grill in Whitefish Bay has been open since May 29, showing mostly older releases. Starting Friday, Fox-Bay is showing “Back to the Future,” “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” and both parts of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.” Tickets are also $5; go to foxbaycinemagrill.com for tickets and showtimes.

In Washington County, the West Bend Cinema and Hartford Theatre have also been open. Check the theaters’ Facebook pages for updates.

Taking it outside: free outdoor movies

Some Milwaukee-area communities are sticking with their free outdoor movie programs for the summer. Elm Grove’s Friday Flicks series kicks off at 8:30 p.m. Friday in Elm Grove Village Park, 13600 Juneau Blvd., with “Frozen II.” Go to elmgrovewi.org for details.

COURTESY OF FOCUS FEATURES Sidney Franklin stars in “Never Rarely Sometimes Always,” one of the bestreviewed movies released during the coronavirus pandemic.