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IMAX or LieMAX? How to Tell the Difference

Engadget explains how 'LieMAX' differs from real IMAX, how to identify screen and projector, and why modern laser venues are not always bad.

AI News Feed · 2026-08-28 08:07

Engadget notes that LieMAX has no technical specification and has been used liberally since 2009, when fans complained that newer IMAX Digital screens in multiplexes were far smaller than the giant auditoriums associated with the brand. At the time, IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond acknowledged screens could be smaller but said size was only one part of the IMAX experience.

The best IMAX presentations use 15/70 film or GT Laser projectors, which can fill a 1.43:1 screen. Below them are CoLa and XT single-projector laser systems, typically limited to 1.90:1, and older dual-2K Xenon projectors that helped IMAX expand into conventional multiplexes starting in 2008. These aging Xenon systems on small screens are closest to what originally inspired the LieMAX complaint.

To know what you are getting, Engadget recommends starting with the screening label. 'IMAX 70mm' is definitive; 'IMAX with Laser' is less clear because it covers multiple laser systems and IMAX's public theater listings do not always specify the projector. Screen aspect ratio is another clue: a 1.43:1 screen is taller and squarer than 1.90:1. But a large screen does not guarantee what is inside the projection booth that night, as some venues switch between film and digital systems.

For official listings that omit details, community-maintained IMAX maps and the r/IMAX theater database can help identify screen ratios, projector types, and 70mm capability. Engadget advises confirming with the theater before traveling far.

LieMAX is not necessarily bad, the article says. A modern 1.90:1 laser auditorium cannot display the full-height 1.43:1 image, but it is not the same as the older 2K Xenon systems. Newer laser systems project in 4K with improvements in brightness, contrast, and color. Only a few films each year open to 1.43:1, and only for certain scenes, so a 1.43:1 screen does not always add missing parts of the frame. When no special 1.43:1 presentation exists, Dolby Cinema offers dual-4K Dolby Vision laser with Dolby Atmos, though it cannot replicate IMAX's exclusive 1.43:1 format.