Geoff Coupe's Blog

Reflections on life at “De Witte Wand”…

Why Bother Going to the Cinema?

That’s the question that Diamond Geezer raised on his blog recently. He rightly notes that the time between a film being released in the cinema and it being released on DVD is becoming alarmingly short. It used to be a year, now it seems to be a few months.
 
He argues that we should still continue to go to the cinema (a) because it’s cheaper and (b) because it’s on the big screen. In an ideal world (b) would be true. There can be something magical about the shared experience of the audience sitting in the dark. But too often these days the experience is tainted for me by people talking, eating or slurping huge cartons of coke before tossing them aside. Increasingly, I find myself content to wait a few months (or even a year) for the DVD. Yes, it may cost more initially, but I see some good films being reissued at little more than the price of a cinema ticket. And every time I watch a DVD again, the value increases. I estimate that I’ve seen 30% of my collection at least three times and 40% at least twice. Basically, I’m willing to pay good money for a good DVD secure in the knowledge that I can devote my full attention to it, and not be distracted by my neighbours discussing the charms of the actress on the screen.

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2 responses to “Why Bother Going to the Cinema?”

  1. Shawn Avatar
    Shawn

    I agree and disagree (why else would I be commenting, eh?). My wife and I go to the movies to get away from home, away from a ringing phone or the urge to do some laundry while just sitting there. We go so we can see the epic sweeping views and the fully immersive sound. I’ve only been in one home theater that gave me close to that feeling and it cost upwards of $20k. Movies like LOTR would lose a lot in my eyes, even on a "small" screen of a 63" plasma.I do agree that the people text messaging and talking are a huge annoyance, as well as the people that think it’s ok to kick the back of my chair or make rude comments about the high school girl in the tight skirt that just walked in. I’ve found that people need to become more social to help curb these things. When you ask, "hey, would you mind keeping it down." in a polite way it tends to take a lot of the rebel steam out of people because now if keep doing it they are the ass, not you. I’ve yelled at people at the movies and all that did was egg them on while a polite tone almost always works. A slight trick that it helps when the oppisite gender does the asking.I don’t really buy DVD’s because I almost never re-watch them so a movie theatre is actually more expensive for me but I’m still willing to pay the $9.50 vs. $1.09 rental just for experience, warts and all. I believe the future is actually *more* expensive theatres with tickets upwards of $15 or $20 a person, slightly smaller with comfy chairs and the ability to bring in cocktails. Make the cost prohibitive for those that are just picking up a flick on a Friday because they are bored and want some place to hide out from their parents for awhile.

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  2. Geoff Avatar
    Geoff

    The problem is that the very films that depend on the immersive experience (LOTR, etc.) are the very films that seem to attract proportionally greater numbers of those who prefer to use the film as backdrop to their comments or conversations. And yes, while I might have a small circle of influence on those around me, I can’t reach those a few rows away who are doing the same thing. The only time I bother going to a cinema now is to see small art house films, because there’s a greater chance that the people in the cinema are interested in the film itself and not in themselves.

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