I’d be more concerned that there aren’t going to be any movie theaters left at this rate. The studios own all the streaming channels now — they’re going to cut out the middle man.
This. There’s little point in seeing most films in a theater when they will be streaming a few months later.
That’s not too different from renting a movie a few months later. Theaters have always been more fun to go to for a movie you actually care about.
The problem I have with theaters is that the time and money sink is a terrible value these days. For my wife and I it’s always somehow shy of $70 and takes up most the night.
Holy shit. I live in a prominent city in the Midwest and tickets are only $11 to $12.
Just threw two tickets in for a local theater and it’s $38 for two tickets after the $6 convenience fee and taxes.
$20 for snacks and drinks not including tax
The problem I have with theaters is that the time and money sink is a terrible value these days. For my wife and I it’s always somehow shy of $70 and takes up most the night.
The money is bad, yes, but the deal breaker for me is…other movie-goers.
For 90 minutes, modern movie-goers simply:
- can’t keep their bright phones in their pockets
- can’t stop talking to each other above an occasional whisper
- can’t consistently keep their food and drink off other movie-goers
- can’t level their infants or small children at home during non-family movies
- can’t quietly not do any of the above when someone challenges them on it
Paying for a movie is expensive, but when its regularly ruined by others in the theater it simply stops being worth trying to go anymore. I’ll watch it at home when it comes there.
I went to see Venom and there was a group of people in the row in front of me - almost 10 people, all adults. They brought a toddler that screamed any time a symbiote was on screen. Which was a lot.
This. Its like people have no sense of decorum anymore. There was a couple chit chatting through every other scene in a movie I watched a while back like they had the whole cinema to themselves. Super distracting.
Kill the ads for sure, but go ahead and give me movie trailers before the start, but with some limitations in place:
- None of this “THE. TRAILER. STARTS. NOW” before the trailer starts
- The trailer must have a maximum length so it doesn’t go on too long
- The trailer shouldn’t give the entire plot away
None of this “THE. TRAILER. STARTS. NOW” before the trailer starts
Trailers played in movie theaters do not include this. That is only used for online ads, because sometimes the trailer will play as a pre-roll ad and they don’t want people to skip it.
The trailer shouldn’t give the entire plot away
There’s a reason studios do this. They run focus groups for trailers, and studies have shown that the more plot they reveal, the more likely audiences will buy a ticket to see the movie.
The trailer shouldn’t give the entire plot away
Someone once told me that once you decide to watch a movie you should no longer watch trailers for it. My experience has been that it was a good piece of advice. It’s INSANE how much of the plot some trailers give away. I remember people put together the entire plot of Prometheus before it was released just from all the spoilers in the trailers, and that’s not even the worst offender.
I’m lucky enough to have a theater nearby where I can pre-purchase a particular seat. Once the seat’s bought, I just show up 25 min after the “start time” and skip the ads.
