'It's Time For Movie Theaters To Die So Movies Can Live Again' 178
Joshua Topolsky, writing at Input Mag: Movies are, by their very nature, good. Movies are one of the best things to have happened to the human race, probably ranking right up there in the top 5 with eating, sex, indoor plumbing, and music. We've probably all had formative experiences in one way or another around movies, and for many of us those experiences took place in a classic multiplex, surrounded by other like-minded film fans. But over the last two decades or so, the movie-going experience has been degraded by turns, both in terms of the physical reality of packing hundreds of people into a shared experience with a world of increasing distractions, and in the quality of the "blockbuster" fare being peddled by studios. This pandemic has made us all take a long, hard look at what has really been working for humanity and what hasn't, and I think the theater experience -- at least the massive, multi-screen one we've been living with -- might be dying at just the right time.
There are myriad contributors to this realization. For me, it starts with the basic reality that a truly epic film-watching experience can now be had in your house, with all the big-screen bombast and overwhelming audio that theaters have long touted as their domain alone. A fairly cheap, big-screen 4K TV, and an accompanying surround sound setup will put you right back in the theater recliner, except you have full control over the experience. Whether that means being able to pause for bathroom and snack breaks, having the option to just switch the film if you don't like what you're seeing, or being able to return to something over a period of time, watching at home can not only be as good as watching in a theater -- it can be better.
There are myriad contributors to this realization. For me, it starts with the basic reality that a truly epic film-watching experience can now be had in your house, with all the big-screen bombast and overwhelming audio that theaters have long touted as their domain alone. A fairly cheap, big-screen 4K TV, and an accompanying surround sound setup will put you right back in the theater recliner, except you have full control over the experience. Whether that means being able to pause for bathroom and snack breaks, having the option to just switch the film if you don't like what you're seeing, or being able to return to something over a period of time, watching at home can not only be as good as watching in a theater -- it can be better.
WTF is this shit (Score:5, Insightful)
WTF is this shit? Flowery hippie crap, vapid and worthless.
Re:WTF is this shit (Score:5, Insightful)
WTF is this shit? Flowery hippie crap, vapid and worthless.
Glad I'm not the only one. The WTF practically slapped me in the face with this one. Thought for a minute we were replacing theaters with HDTV marketeers.
Re: WTF is this shit (Score:5, Insightful)
It sounds like typical self important artsy types trying to prove that they are important. The same types that tried (and failed) to change the STEM acronym to STEAM.
Though truth is, ever since DVRs have been a thing, and the consumers have had the ability to watch on their own schedule, serialization has largely caused TV shows to replace what movies used to be. Imagine if game of thrones was done as a series of movies - that probably would have sucked, assuming it was even done to completion.
Re: WTF is this shit (Score:5, Funny)
Imagine if game of thrones was done as a series of movies
I don't have to imagine. I suffered through all three Hobbit movies.
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Don't even get me started on that steaming pile of shit.
[John]
Re: WTF is this shit (Score:5, Insightful)
Hey, don't insult flowers and hippies like that!
(Joking aside, the original hippies achieved more than today's failed generation of slacktivists ever will. And, come on man, flowers are way cooler than we give them credit for! Kinky too! :)
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No mod points, but I wholeheartedly agree. This is just trash.
Re:WTF is this shit (Score:5, Insightful)
We've probably all had formative experiences in one way or another around movies,
It's someone who doesn't read, so the depth of their thought doesn't go much farther than Avengers philosophy.
Re:WTF is this shit (Score:5, Insightful)
This the same person that will be whining about why movie theaters are gone and waxing nostalgic about them in 4 years.
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Sorry Hollywood but I think movies are going get bumped out of most people top 5, by things like oh antibiotics, the printed word, maybe the wheel...
It's an infomercial... (Score:2)
For sending Spotify and Netflix subscriptions to starving people across the world - cause it's cheaper, lighter and can be more tightly packed than food.
Re:WTF is this shit (Score:5, Insightful)
Exactly. Take the very first sentence by example.
> Movies are, by their very nature, good.
[[Citation]]
This begging the question fallacy is a horrible way to start any conversation. What makes _this_ particular art form "good" ? Playing devil's advocate I could even see how it could be argued, quite successfully, that society would be better off without movies. At least with books kids were not only "forced" to but inspired to, use their imagination. Anyone who read the classic Sci-Fi of Asimov, Clarke, Heinlein didn't need a movie to enjoy them. Not to mention the TV shows Star Trek, and all of the various spin-offs, inspired a LOT of people to get into Science.
In 2017 there were 704 movies released. Of those I would only say around 14 were any good -- 100 * 14 / 704 = 1.988% were worth watching which means the OTHER 98% of movies were meh, bad, or out right garbage. That's a colossal waste of time and talent.
You know what IS good? Education. Because without the ability to read or write this dingleberry couldn't even communicate his feelings to others. Today, a student of a developed nation can learn a summary of the past few thousands years of Mathematics, Philosophy, English, Physics, etc. all within a few years. That's pretty fucking amazing IMHO. Watching the latest "blockbuster" fad movie will be all but forgotten in a few years.
You know what ALSO is good? Art: People expressing their infinite creativity to inspire you think about a different perspective. There is nothing special about movies OVER any other art form -- movies AUGMENT other art forms.
Maybe the OP should watch more documentaries and learn about the importance of Education, Science, Art because without out THOSE he wouldn't probably wouldn't even have a computer to type on, or the internet to whine about "Theaters are dead so movies can live again."
Re:WTF is this shit (Score:5, Funny)
I'd take indoor plumbing over movies. At least I can read a book on the toilet.
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It's a typical msmash post.
It's a matter of perspective... and money (Score:2)
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Most people can't tell the difference between a rich person's TV and hifi and a budget setup costing less than $1K. Bigger maybe? Sure, but who cares if your viewing space can't accommodate it anyway. It's about subtended angle. Sit normal couch distance from the display and it will appear as wide as a cinema screen.
Rich people overpaying for electronics is just kind of dumb. That rich person's display will be no better than the mainstream walmart offering three years down the road and will need to be junke
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Most people can't tell the difference between a rich person's TV and hifi and a budget setup costing less than $1K. Bigger maybe? Sure, but who cares if your viewing space can't accommodate it anyway.
I just bought a 65" budget 4K TV and have it connected to what was once a rather good surround sound system. (About 15 years ago.) I am amazed at the quality of the screen. A 65" that was/is the second cheapest on Amazon. Fits my living room, sortof. So these days I do not see much reason to go to a theater. :)
I will miss paying more for snacks than the movie cost. but I am a masochist.
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I watch 95% of movies and TV shows on my tablet anyway. From a foot or so away, it's reasonably close to a 60" screen when watching from across the room. ;)
We'll occasionally watch a movie on the TV in the studio after moving the guitars out of the way though.
[John]
Re:It's a matter of perspective... and money (Score:5, Insightful)
You're taking a standard experience that productions can design around those conditions to expect and fragmenting it to an N* scale of different combos of technology
They can still design around the standard theatre experience in the production, and then ship it for Netflix like they already do -- its 1000x better when I can just watch it on my home TV, or even on my laptop, and I don't have to deal with heads popping up between me and the screen.. the High-Def super duper surround sound in a theatre isn't worth squat when other theatre-patrons are making noise, texting, causing distractions, etc.
Essentially... even if the viewing characteristics are fragmented, and even the display resolution is lower so you're viewing at a lower fidelity.. that junk is just Not nearly as important as they want you to think
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the High-Def super duper surround sound in a theatre isn't worth squat when other theatre-patrons are making noise, texting, causing distractions, etc.
I couldn't agree more. Even with the most well-behaved audience, you inevitably have people getting up to use the rest room, ushers occasionally walking around with flashlights and the noises people make when they eat, open food wrappers or react to the film in some way. I find all of this breaks the immersion for me and ruins my enjoyment of the film. Even if I had a tiny tv with poor audio, it would still be a more pleasurable experience than watching a film in a public setting.
Re: It's a matter of perspective... and money (Score:2)
Re:It's a matter of perspective... and money (Score:5, Insightful)
There's also the communal nature of going to a theater that can't really be reproduced even by a small gathering in your home. There's nothing I like more than kicking back on a Friday night and watching something good, or at least enjoyable, but some of my fondest memories even from childhood was going to the movie theater. I don't think some like ET, Star Wars or Raiders of the Lost Ark would have had nearly the same impact if I'd seen them for the first time on even a biggish home screen. Beyond the film itself, I can vividly recall the wows and ahhhs of the opening sequence of Star Wars, or of ET sending Elliot and his friends flying into the air on their bikes.
I haven't been to too many films lately, but I remember going and watching Deadpool in a fairly well attended screening, and the laughter of the audience as Deadpool continually broke the Fourth Wall with his running commentary was something to experience. I'm sure watching the film with my girlfriend or my kids at home would have been fun, but having a hundred people all laughing their asses of at the same time is another kind of experience entirely.
Re:It's a matter of perspective... and money (Score:5, Insightful)
This. While most movies are just as enjoyable at home, there are some movies that truly are enhanced by the communal experience of a crowded theater. It's not every film and not every genre (e.g. dramas, horror, and children's films generally seem to benefit the least), but some (e.g. comedies and action films) are nearly always improved in the right circumstances.
For me, there's nothing that sets the mood quite like the whoops you get on an opening night when the theater is packed full of super fans as "In a galaxy far, far away..." lights up the screen, nor the theater erupts into raucous cheering that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand on end as a favorite superhero suddenly does something especially amazing, nor the way that a live audience can take a decent comedy and turn it into something transcendent as they drag you along for the ride with the swelling and fades of laughter on the comedic beats. But for best enjoyment, you really owe it to yourself to go during an opening night or weekend. Going even a few days later, especially if you go during the day, will result in quiet and/or bothersome audiences that aren't as invested, whereas that sort of thing is incredibly unusual on opening night (though it can happen).
I love my home setup, and I even prefer it in the vast, vast majority of cases, hence why we wait to rent or stream most films, but I utterly reject the notion that theaters have nothing to offer. To me, the only question is whether what they have to offer is worth it. In most cases, it isn't, but when it is, it's very worth it.
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Different strokes for different folks I guess.
For me personally, movie-watching is not a social activity and I want to hear the film's audio, not the sounds of other people. Putting aside cellphones, people talking, the sounds of people chewing food or wrappers ... just other people laughing, gasping or what-have-you, breaks the immersion for me and pulls me out of it.
I'm old enough to have seen a few classic movies in the theatres when they were first released and I have never related to the statement "Yo
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Of course there are people who greatly enjoy the movie theatre experience, because its much nicer than sitting in the dump that is their home. So when you're like drugs, hate workouts, live most of the day on the couch, as do the creepy roaches underneath it, and last weeks food is still stuck in the carpet, then you'll certainly love the modern movie theatre experience with big doors, red curtains, shiny lights, and people in uniforms waiting to sell you delicious sweets. This does however not mean you're
Honestly they just need to hang on for about (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Honestly they just need to hang on for about (Score:5, Insightful)
7 months. By then Vaccines will be widely available. They'll lobby to block lock downs and keep the theaters open and to devil with the consequences (while pulling in cash from the Fed from a stimulus bill that's working it's way through without much in the way of help work working class Americans) and be just fine.
In 2019, the industry was already seeing a 9% decline from the previous year. They were in trouble before the pandemic. It's going to take a hell of a lot more than just a vaccine to cure the infection of lazy concepts, endless sequels, and taking the whole recycling thing, way too far.
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You're going to see a huge drop in the number of screens, some of the big multiplexes will just go under. Hollywood will adapt by licensing to streaming services. Theaters will survive, but not as they were. The problem the pandemic is creating isn't so much one of thriving industries being pushed over the edge, it's of vulnerable industries already in a weakened state now suffering the final straw syndrome. Businesses like restaurants and small retail, whose margins are razor thin, were already in trouble
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I agree, I think movies outside the home will become more "boutique". More about the people you're with (in your party or not) and the surroundings. Maybe a vintage theatre or a drive-in, maybe with booze and a meal. and less about the movie itself.
I'd like to think it will still be possible to go out to a movie though
Re: Honestly they just need to hang on for about (Score:2)
"The problem the pandemic is creating isn't so much one of thriving industries being pushed over the edge,"
Though there has been some of that, too, due to supply chain disruption...
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It's going to take a hell of a lot more than just a vaccine ...
That's it! We should distribute the vaccine only at movie theaters. That will get everyone finally going to theaters for an $8 soda and a $6 popcorn. Because god knows there isn't much other reason to go.
Re:Honestly they just need to hang on for about (Score:4, Insightful)
The only argument for physically going to the theatre these days is the social experience, and that increasingly just sucks anyway. Nothing like being stuck behind the balding redneck with the baseball cap. Or the fat pig behind you who just spilled their drink which is now making your shoes sticky. The stupidly overpriced popcorn covered with some industrial liquid remotely resembling butter, you can feel your life force draining away as you stuff your face with it. And you had to go through the aggravation of driving through a bunch of road raged idiots to get there. Yah, no. If I crave the social experience I will seek it in an actual social context.
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Sounds like you have shitty theaters. When I think of theaters of think of more expensive seats than my couch at home (nice theater) or tableside food service that's not as great but is perfectly fine. I mean, you'll spend an extra $25. Even the cheap theater revamped their seats to pretty nice ones, and if you can wait 3 months have second-run movies pretty cheap.
Re:Honestly they just need to hang on for about (Score:4, Interesting)
7 months. By then Vaccines will be widely available.
I think that is an insanely optimistic timeline. We still have people who don't even believe Covid is a thing. Then there are the Anti-Vax people.
I am hoping maybe a year from now things will be heading back toward normal, but I doubt even that.
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Re: Honestly they just need to hang on for about (Score:4, Insightful)
Congratulations on your TV purchase (Score:5, Interesting)
Yet Another person just tried watching movies at home and liked it. Welcome to the world of tomorrow (a.k.a. "the 1980s, when VHS rental stores popped up everywhere").
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Well watching movies at home is nice, I do love my 100" screen. But I still enjoy (well, enjoyed) the cinemas. It feels like a bigger deal, there's a great atmosphere for comedy or horror movies, and they can crank up the volume to a level that would get me arrested at home.
That said, the business model basically depended on a collusion. If you wanted to see the movie the year it came out, you had to go to the theater, no choice. For things I didn't care about (Marvell crap, Star Wars garbage, etc) that's f
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Theatres will be around. Not everyone can afford a 100" TV, or even fit one into their apartment (or room). Abd fewer have even the sound system capable of surround sound
If you can, and the associated sound system, great. But lots of people can't, probably most people worldwide. And anyone in an apartment or condo can't have a great sound system since the walls are generally paper thin and it's not neighborly to annoy everyone in the building because you wanted movie night.
North America? A good majority of
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Lesson learned: a small PC screen is no match to a large screen for movie watching. I've since gone out and purchased a 65" 4K screen. It was worth every penny.
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Well, a 24" screen is practically by design only enjoyable by one person. It also matters how one sits. For a child may a chair, or Daddy's lap, just not be as cosy over the full duration as the couch and a blanket.
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That's what I said, TV.
it's been a long time coming (Score:5, Insightful)
Theaters are going through a long "slimming" process. This has been slowly happening since the invention of the TV, but has really picked up the pace since the introduction of HD, the flat screen TV, and streaming. COVID-19 only accelerated this process. The quality you can get at home is mostly better than the theater experience anyway. Watching a movie in the theater is becoming less about quality and enjoing the movie and more about a "shared experience". I don't think that "shared experience" is going away, but I find it unlikely that theaters will ever recover to the level they were in the 90s. My prediction is that there will be fewer and fewer of them, but there will always be a few around.
Re:it's been a long time coming (Score:4, Interesting)
Theaters are going through a long "slimming" process. This has been slowly happening since the invention of the TV, but has really picked up the pace since the introduction of HD, the flat screen TV, and streaming. COVID-19 only accelerated this process. The quality you can get at home is mostly better than the theater experience anyway. Watching a movie in the theater is becoming less about quality and enjoing the movie and more about a "shared experience". I don't think that "shared experience" is going away, but I find it unlikely that theaters will ever recover to the level they were in the 90s. My prediction is that there will be fewer and fewer of them, but there will always be a few around.
And with a little planning, the "shared experience" need not have a theater. My GF has been doing a Horror Movie Night with a loose-knit group of people for a couple of years now, usually they take turns hosting at their respective abodes. Often between 6-12 people to make it manageable in someone's home.
For now it's gone online with things like Netflix Party (or whatever it's rebranded as now). The upside is that the "host" doesn't have to prep their place. They'll often group-video-chat for the first half hour, often streaming from their kitchen while they're making either dinner, snacks, popcorn. Then they settle in to watch the movie, with a chat window going on in parallel. Afterwards it's back to video to discuss the movie.
I've done the online version with her twice, and it's not bad. The prep-the-food-and-chat section is amiable, the chat window allows you to not be disturbed by commentary (though it distracts you more if you engage in the commentary), and the post-film video conference is almost as good as in-person. Plus the host doesn't have to deal with stragglers who can't take a hint that the night is over
Post-Covid it will probably go back to in-person, but what's happening now is actually pretty good considering the limitations.
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The quality you can get at home is mostly better than the theater experience anyway.
My god you have some crap theaters in your area.
Re: it's been a long time coming (Score:2)
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Oh god. I was being facetous, but I had no idea :-/ That sucks.
Really? (Score:3)
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That list arguably gets only one of the top three [youtube.com].
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Why do they need to die? (Score:5, Insightful)
This argument seems to be movie theaters need to go away because the author personally doesn't see their value anymore.
Why not just let the free market decide? Clearly before the pandemic lots of people disagreed with his conclusions here as there was plenty of demand for them.
Re: Why do they need to die? (Score:2)
Yes, but: Call me if you ever meet that free market...
A free market is the fundamental opposite of profit maximization.
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Why not just let the free market decide? Clearly before the pandemic lots of people disagreed with his conclusions here as there was plenty of demand for them.
For new releases there was no way to decide. You go to the theater or you don't watch it until it releases to "home" video. Granted, I typically had no issue waiting for all but a few movies (pre-COVID I'd go to the theater about 2 to 3 times per year), but still, you can't really say that people prefer to go to the theater when that's not the only issue that was in play. It could just be that they preferred to see the latest movies before they've been out for 4 months and everyone spoils them.
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Why not just let the free market decide? Clearly before the pandemic lots of people disagreed with his conclusions here as there was plenty of demand for them.
The movie market wasn't a free market. Companies limited movies to theaters for a certain number of months before releasing them for sale. Then, it was a few weeks before releasing the movies for rent. Companies did this because they got more money from theater releases, then sales, then rentals.
Were there an actual free market, then movies would be released simultaneously in the theater, for sale, and for rent. If this happened, then fewer people would visit theaters.
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That's a very strange interpretation of the words "free market" that I doubt anybody shares. Most people think "free market" describes exactly what you say companies are doing with limiting their releases in methods so that they get more money. This includes both people strongly in favor of free markets and people opposed to free markets.
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This argument seems to be movie theaters need to go away because the author personally doesn't see their value anymore.
Why not just let the free market decide? Clearly before the pandemic lots of people disagreed with his conclusions here as there was plenty of demand for them.
Methinks the author has no leverage on whether movie theaters live or die, and how their longevity or untimely death will come about. So I suspect that, yes, it will be the free market that decides, and it's unclear that anything was said to the contrary. Or that market forces were brought into the discussion in the first place.
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Life cycle of a film (Score:2)
Going back to the 80's, there has always been a thriving market for straight-to-video content. It continues today with the (usually) lower-budget movies made by streamers like Netflix and Hulu. Without movie theaters as part of the ecosys
VHS rental stores and drive-in's (Score:2)
VHS (and later DVD) rental stores and drive-in's have been evolved out of existence. Cassettes and Betamax also went extinct. I don't know that there's anything so special about the movie theater that protects it from being driven to extinction. The big screen TVs available at home do provide some competition to the theater.
However, people do crave social experiences and excitement and the movie theater can provide that so perhaps they have a bit of a ways to run. One may wish to spend a night out with fri
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The chief draw of theaters, whether for movies or live productions, is being part of an audience. It's similar as to why people like to go to conventions or church. While I'm in an introvert by nature, and hate conferences, and being an atheist, have no interest in church, I can well appreciate that we are social animals. I've done reasonably well during the pandemic, being in a job that isn't affected, and not really minding so much that I have to deal with less people on a daily basis. But even I find mys
This could expand great film making (Score:3)
More "K" needed (Score:2)
FFS - get a life! (Score:5, Insightful)
"Movies are, by their very nature, good. Movies are one of the best things to have happened to the human race, probably ranking right up there in the top 5 with eating, sex, indoor plumbing, and music."
Seriously??? Anyone who would rank movies that high is existing, not living. There is something rather pathetic, and disturbing, about the lack of vision, experience and wisdom that underlies that viewpoint. Moves are, at best, a relatively nice mild diversion, but, should not be ranked even in the top 100 best things to have happened to the human race. A few of the very many things that would rank higher than movies (in no particular order) include: agriculture, medicine, the printed word, recreational travel, meaningful work, the wheel, language, fine wine, electric lights, air conditioning, the motor vehicle, formal education, the birth of a child, etc. etc. etc. etc.
.
Re: FFS - get a life! (Score:2)
Wine snob detected... though. :)
Wine is a cheap gutter drink to get drunk. Any "fineness" has been literally scientifically shown to be a delusion. (Yeah, keep being in denial. Totally not pathetic.)
Other than that, I completely agree.
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I think also the whole category of "entertainment" which would include live stage performances and written books and movies and many other things is by definition more important than movies alone.
So much crap in so many words. (Score:5, Insightful)
First of all, the US movie theater experience is atrocious, of what I have been told is true. No wonder you want it to die. But this is completely not the case for the entire world. Here in central Europe, there is no such thing as people misbehaving at a theater. Let alone not being thrown out immediately. No popcorn throwing, talking, phone screens or the like. Clean seats too.
Second of all, no, you can't get an IMAX + THX experience at home. Let alone with you horrible people who go make a sandwich after the intro scenes, chat halfway through, and then complain you're not getting the story.
You can't even place the freaking speakers right. And who wastes $2000+ on a screen anymore?
Third, movies brutally murdered themselves, and theaters are their collateral victims.
I haven't heard of an AAA movie worth watching for at least a decade. All that is offered is *superhero" movies and similar crap. Which, to us Germans who still know of the N@zi Übersoldat propaganda, ticks all the same creepy boxes. They are literally not even worth getting via BitTorrent.
Putting them on your TV will not result in the Content Mafia ruining creativity any less.
And finally, you go to the movies because you want to go out with frends! You know... that thing that social people do, before "everyone" became a socially inept snowflake.
You go eat out afterwards, and then go on to party if you're not too old and tired. The point is that you are outside of your artificial cave slash hiding place and "out there" among people.
No surprise though that people like him don't get any of that. It's just: People like him are not part of my society. They can be weirdos with the other ones over there in the corner.
(And I say that as a former introvert. It's an llness. It causes suffering if aware, or disability if unaware. It can be cured.)
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First of all, the US movie theater experience is atrocious, of what I have been told is true. No wonder you want it to die. But this is completely not the case for the entire world. Here in central Europe, there is no such thing as people misbehaving at a theater. Let alone not being thrown out immediately. No popcorn throwing, talking, phone screens or the like. Clean seats too.
I rarely have problems like that in the US. No one has ever thrown popcorn at me, and in the last few years the seats have gotten really comfortable and spacious.
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I am agreeing with you. I know it blew my mind too.
Re: So much crap in so many words. (Score:2)
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Second of all, no, you can't get an IMAX + THX experience at home.
That's never been a selling feature to me. I enjoy a movie on a tiny laptop screen with poor quality audio as much as I have in the nicest movie theatre.
Here in central Europe, there is no such thing as people misbehaving at a theater. Let alone not being thrown out immediately. No popcorn throwing, talking, phone screens or the like. Clean seats too.
Even with the most well behaved audience you have people getting up to use the rest-rooms, the sounds of eating / wrappers etc., reacting the movie in some way, tall people sitting in front of you blocking your view, ushers with flashlights etc.
Third, movies brutally murdered themselves, and theaters are their collateral victims.
I haven't heard of an AAA movie worth watching for at least a decade.
Completely agreed.
And finally, you go to the movies because you want to go out with frends!
When I spend time with my friends and family, I want to socialize. Watching a film is like readi
and they will bill $19.99-$25.99+ for 48 hour rent (Score:2)
and they will bill $19.99-$25.99+ for 48 hour rental to cover this?
WTF? (Score:2)
Guy is rich.
Guy has a movie room.
Guy hates cinemas.
The End.
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rich? nah, have you seen the prices for big TV now? some are less than $200 now, holy crap. Then there are stereo speaker with subwoofer and amplifier systems for under $50. Sure not audiophile quality Monster "molten golden bass notes uplifting the effervescent treble through our gold woven wire....yada yada " but hot damn better than nothing.
I'm not getting any of that stuff, but... but that is CHEAP.
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SRSLY
$200 for a nice name brand 1080p tv
https://www.costco.com/samsung... [costco.com]
Although $50 is garbage level quality. You might as well just use your tv's built in speakers and save up another $100. $150-200 is the sweet spot where the quality jumps way up but the price hasn't gotten stupid yet.
$165 for a nice 5.1 setup
https://www.amazon.com/Rockvil... [amazon.com]
and how will they stop Cam / other (bootlegs) (Score:2)
and how will they stop Cam / other (bootlegs)
useing hdmi splitters to bypass hdcp?
Will miss the cinema experience (Score:3, Insightful)
But think of how much we'll all miss the cinema experience! Without them, how else will we:
- Find sticky floors slathered in (thankfully) unidentifiable goop?
- Sit in uncomfortable chairs with odd smells and (thankfully) unidentifiable stains?
- Buy $1 worth of popcorn sold for $20?
- Eat popcorn "butter" which bears no relationship to said dairy product in any way?
- Buy $1 worth of soft drinks sold for $20?
- Buy $1 worth of candy for $20?
- Deal with screaming babies inexplicably brought to R-rated movies?
- Enjoy loud, obnoxious attendees with no respect for others and no sense of self-control in public?
- Watch poorly-focused, poorly-maintained projection equipment aimed at dirty, discolored, ripped screens?
- Experience all this AND MORE for the bargain price of 20x the cost of purchasing the Blu-ray of said movie or watching it on a streaming service?
Now don't get me wrong: I love the cinema experience...as it was ORIGINALLY INTENDED. Unfortunately it's devolved into something more akin to a chore than a privilege. I place a lot of blame on the movie studios. They've made it where theaters are run on shoestring budgets, with ticket sales barely covering the expense of showing the film, leaving the theaters with a skeleton staff and resorting to concessions for all their operating costs.
Fundamentally wrong (Score:2)
"For me, it starts with the basic reality that a truly epic film-watching experience can now be had in your house, with all the big-screen bombast and overwhelming audio that theaters have long touted as their domain alone. A fairly cheap, big-screen 4K TV, and an accompanying surround sound setup will put you right back in the theater recliner, except you have full control over the experience."
This is, in essence, inaccurate. One can certainly get a very nice home theater setup up and running. But unless y
Thanks for the opinion. Here's another. (Score:2)
Sorry, the problem's not theaters, but priorities. People go to movies for a life distraction, perhaps a date, romance, wonder, "feeling special" or just for the unique experience. This is, ahem, the ideal year for that but a theater is not where to do it. Coughing in a theater might cause as much panic as yelling "fire." That too shall pass.
My home has a 4k projector, 120" screen, 9.1 perfectly positioned Atmos audio and electrostatic main speakers, and we STILL went to movies occasionally. Take it f
F--- OFF you self entitled twat (Score:3, Interesting)
Seriously what is it with people these days and their insistence that they and their experience should dictate what others want to or enjoy doing. I get it, a lot of the USA theater experience is shit. You're surrounded by rude people who aren't there to watch a movie in an establishment that can't even be bothered to clean up and by some comments here seems to be so outdated that someone's home theater can out do it (est. 1990s and never renovated?)
That's not the case for the entire world. It's not the case for everyone. You want to watch movies at home, more power to you. I will not criticise you for doing so, but FFS leave the rest of the world be. If the cinema is going to die it's because people en mass will decide it so, and while that may be the case in the USA through a slow burn, the rest of the world's cinema companies are not only doing well, but are expanding, renovating, and offering great experiences all around.
Enjoy your TV.
Let me enjoy a Dolby Cinema.
COVID-19 impulsed streaming of festivals (Score:2)
The costs of view a new movie in a festival is much more viable to me now: I think the situation now is far better and more democratic (for producers and viewers)
I hope this "new normal", in this area, don't go away anymore
Writing and the Printing Press? (Score:2)
Movies are one of the best things to have happened to the human race, probably ranking right up there in the top 5 with eating, sex, indoor plumbing, and music.
The guy really needed to work on his lead-in a bit more. First off, eating was invented a few billion years ago, and without sex there would be no multi-cellular life, so these were definitely prerequisites to their being a human race at all.
If by "indoor plumbing" he really means sanitation then he gets a nod, since that is the largest single source of improvement in human health in all of history.
But really, writing and then the printing press are obviously far more significant than the cinema, and I spea
Theaters are neccessary (Score:4, Informative)
First, not every has an 90 inch TV. This is some wealthy guy with a home theater system, possibly an entire room devoted to it.
Some people have a computer monitor, because they can not convince themselves to splurge on a second screen that is not connected to their computer.
But more importantly, I miss movie theaters. A neutral location to take a date, or just a bunch of friends. Better screens, better audio, and in some cases, better seats.
I want to go out and be SOCIAL, not stay home.
Screw this shmuck, give me back my theaters!
brave new world indeed. (Score:2)
yes, please atomize and isolate people as much as possible. there cannot possibly be any negative side effects to having zero human interaction.
eat the bugs
live in the pod
stream everything
own nothing
Why bother with restaurants, concerts, vacations? (Score:2)
Sit with a canned Mai Tai and a TV dinner in a hottub at home and listen to music on Alexa. Seriously, if this works for you, maybe you should. Saves lots of money and avoids all kind of risks. Just don't push this life on others who like going out and having social experiences.
Movie theaters are dinosaurs (Score:4, Interesting)
They were a byproduct of the technology of the time, but now they should be allowed to die
The theater experience is miserable. Drive through traffic, pay to park, wait in line for a ticket, try to find an acceptable seat, wait for the movie to start, be forced to watch commercials, get annoyed by loud people near you, get interrupted if someone near you needs to get up to go to the toilet, if you need to go to the toilet, you miss a bit, if you can't understand what is going on, it's gone forever, you can't pause or rewind. Add to that the pain of waiting in line for shitty, overpriced snacks, and the whole experience is the opposite of pleasant
I have hearing loss due to years of playing in rock bands. I use subtitles on all of the stuff I watch while seated in my comfortable chair in my home theater
Clearly you've never seen... (Score:2)
Total lack of shared experience (Score:2)
Crock o' beans. Shared experience is what makes going to a movie theater worthwhile. Can you honestly say that you would have laughed your ass off watching Airplane! at home by yourself? That and being immersed in the visuals, which is why small theaters are less than stellar. Those of us who are old enough to have experienced Star Wars in 1977 in 70mm in a huge theater know what I'm talking about.
Sorry, but the author has been self-quarantining far too long. Go outside. Get some fresh air. You'll fe
Re: (Score:2)
Re: Bring back the drive-in (Score:2)
Not with today's movies.
Re: (Score:2)
A couple of cities in my area are hosting drive-in movie nights at their fairgrounds for free, which I think is a great idea. There's also a drive-in theater that runs in a town about forty minutes from me every weekend during the warmer months. Drive-ins are still awesome, if you can find one.
Re: (Score:3)
I remember crackly speakers and dim screen far away.
Re: (Score:2)
I remember listening to the movie over radio and a multiple screens going, with the car backed into a spot that had an incline. Laying down some blankets and pillows for an intimate movie date or (later) a kids double-feature movie night is still something I will drive a distance to experience.
Re: (Score:2)
Put a tablet on the dash and stream to it with bluetooth audio to your car speakers. Way better quality than drive in ever was. Do it in your driveway, incline all you want.
Re: Just no (Score:2)
Uum, it's less deadly because we did something.
And we did something because for some weird reason we just now passed the political correctness treshold between not giving a shit that tenthousands die from the flu and cold every year to giving a shit (but completely inept at handling it).
Apparently not giving enough of a shit to treat car deaths or the like equally, though.
Re: (Score:2)
Your first point is valid. Your second point is bullshit. We're seeing multiple jurisdictions in North America alone that are seeing medical resources badly strained. This virus is dangerous, far more dangerous than the flu, and it isn't madness to try to limit deaths, either directly from the virus, or because hospitals are so strained that other sick people can't get the attention they need.
The first step to conquering this thing is stop trying to minimize it to make yourself feel better. That's infantile
Re: Too Soon? (Score:2)
Clearly you've never had the THX experience though. (*Proper* freaking bass and positioning.)
Or the IMAX one, visually. (*Full* field of view.)