cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/6578850
After 23 years of film criticism, I was back in front of the screen as a civilian. I had no idea what I would find. --by former NY Times film critic A.O. Scott
You can’t replicate the cinema experience at home, regardless of how big your TV is or how impressive your audio setup is.
Watching some epic sci-fi on the big screen, or communally experiencing some creepy horror movie, or a whole crowd of 100s laughing along together at a ludicrous comedy is something I don’t want to give up.
Sure, a lot of films are fine to watch at home but with a decent audience the cinema experience can’t be beaten.
Sometimes I have the opposite problem, where the audience is more disruptive than anything. I haven’t been in a while, but I’m thinking back to the random cheering and clapping that pulls you out of the movie.
I also find that a lot of theatres are too loud now, but maybe my ears are getting old
I also find that a lot of theatres are too loud now, but maybe my ears are getting old.
I do too and I’ve probably damaged my hearing in my youth by being careless & invincible. I bought a set of fancy concert earplugs ($30ish) that protect hearing without muffling the sound and they were well worth it. They fit in a little capsule on my keychain so I’ve got them if I wind up someplace unexpectedly loud.
oh dang, the Eargasm ones? I just got a pair last weekend
Yup, a friend recommended them to me and I’m really happy with them. I haven’t quite gotten the hang of gauging my own speaking volume when I have them in at a loud bar or something but I’ll figure it out with more practice.
where the audience is more disruptive than anything.
I have a talent to always get or pick the seat where the tallest dude or the highest hairstyle is present and in the row before me.
Yeah I’m not an av fanatic so I could really care less about the Dolby Atmos plus extreme ultra©️ speakers nor how big the screen is or if it’s on film or whatever. I saw Oppenheimer at an IMAX theater with film or whatever because I kept hearing it was the correct way to watch it or whatever and it was basically the same as every other movie I’ve seen. And for the audience I purposefully go during matinees on a weekday so I don’t have to hear other people talking, digging in their popcorn, seeing their phones go off, or laughing way too hard at something for way too long. The only reason I still go to theaters is because I like seeing things when they come out and sometimes I just want a slushee and some bunch a crunch.
We saw the Lego movie opening weekend. I still remember it as one of my favourite movies, largely due to the experience of laughing along with a sold-out theatre.
I haven’t been to a theater in several years and I couldn’t care less
Cool, thanks for the valuable insights.
That is only true for the top of the line theaters. The mid to low range are not worth it.
I went to see Avatar 2 in a DTS certified theater in my town and was severely disappointed. Even the opening DTS advertisement where they try to brag that “this is black” looks way better on my home system and overall I wished I just waited for the 4K to come out and watched it at home.
If you have a big screen TV and a good sound system, I would say no.
That’s the dream.
I stopped going many years ago!
The last straw for me a group of teens taking photos of each other with a flash, can’t remember the movie, but it was about 2008.
Big TV, big sound system, fully loaded media library, pause, rewind and my comfortable lounge.
Why would I pay to be uncomfortable, sticky and annoyed by fuckwits!
Why do they still sell candy in plastic wrappers in movie theaters??? Nothing like trying to watch something and the idiot family behind you just goes rustle rustle the whole time.
Sorry this wasn’t the comment I clicked to reply to
I don’t know why, but I found this comment really funny. Have an upvote!
Only for IMAX and Dolby. Unless it’s a limited release (i.e. foreign film available in one regular cinema only), I don’t go to the cinema unless I’m watching it in imax or dolby. This means I’ve also started going less and being more selective with what I watch. For example, the last movie I saw in theaters was Oppenheimer in imax, and the next one I’m going to is Dune 2. The rest I just watch at home.
Yes, and theaters like Alamo will serve you food and have zero tolerance for talking and phones during the movie.
Latter part may have just been a bad experience, I’ve seen about 60 movies across the 3 denver Alamos in the last 3-4 years and only once were people loud, and they got a warning and removed.
Cinemas don’t have subtitles. That’s a deal breaker.
Is this an exclusively US thing? Back when I was in Asia there were always subtitled showings and non-subtitled showings. The better theaters even had a dedicated teleprompter at the bottom so the subtitles don’t block the movie.
It’s an Australian thing
I’ve been around Australians. I definitely need subtitles.
Depends on the country, but I feel you. It’s a deal breaker for me as well.
It did when i watched anime by Makoto Shinkai
My theater still gives a better experience than what I get at home due to the bigger screen and sound system. That said the loud obnoxious ads they blast at you before the movie starts make going with friends rather pointless and the previews go on forever. It actually makes me angry every time since it costs me $20-30 to go to movie with concessions. So I am going to say no.
There is a drive in theater that is about an hour away I occasionally go to, but other than that I haven’t bothered in ages.
Big-budget blockbusters: often no. I love movies, but the audience is often just too inconsiderate. Some genres more than others. Super-early matinees are how I see these movies now (no Alamo nearby anymore), and I’ll just get lunch afterward.
Small-budget movies, 70mm rereleases, classic films still unreleased on disc: yes. These audiences are film fans and they are well-behaved for the most part. Theaters like Nitehawk in Brooklyn (for example) are wonderful for this, but there are many good ones in larger cities.
Oh of course, going to the movies should be an experience, and it’s that shared experience of people watching, reacting, laughing, and crying together on the big screen that makes it magical, regardless of how good your home theater setup is.
I will concede that watching it at home on a tablet or on your TV isn’t necessarily worse, just different.
Is that experience worth 100 dollars for two people?
Where did you get the 100 dollars from? Checked on Fandango, an adult ticket to a new release costs ~15 dollars in LA right now, which I think is pretty reasonable.
A regular theater you’re looking at 30 for two tickets + what, another 20-30 for drinks and popcorn. Candy will push you over 70. An average persons full day of pay after tax. 100 is a stretch in that instance. Take into account the closest 3 theaters to me are all nicer theaters with real food drinks and wait staff, it’s impossible to come out of there for under 100
Just don’t buy food? It justs degrades experience for you and other people.
I’d argue the food and snacks is part of the experience. Sitting in a dark room for 2-3 hours with no food or drink after paying 30 dollars just to get in makes no sense to me. Then again paying that much for a 1 time viewing of a movie doesn’t make sense to me. Maybe I just value money differently.
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ANMA podcast says yes, along with going to the mall. (I hate that word as an Australian)
Whay does mall mean in Australia?
Nothing really, I’m just getting old i guess. We would say the shops, but i have seen the Americanisation and people in their teens now call it mall.
For reference im 29
I’m 42 and even angrier! 🤣
Huh, I never realized that was an American word.
I don’t think it’s really American, i think it’s English, but it’s certainly not Australian.
It’s “shopping centre” over here but “mall” is becoming more and more common with teens etc.
I do have a nice home setup, and I know friends that also do… but we all still go to the cinema maybe like once a month. It’s just nice to share something with friends and strangers from time to time. Socialize, feel the vibe of the crowd, get surprised, create memories. Being out of home is cool.
Usually not, but I finally live somewhere with an Alamo nearby and those are a nice experience and they enforce good behavior. We don’t see a lot of movies in the theater, but when we do, that’s where we go and we’ve been going more often as a result.
It’s absolutely worth it. You’d need so many tens of thousands of dollars to get similar fidelity at home that you might as well shell out $15 or $20 for a movie ticket instead
My system output Nolan mumble speech just as good as the theater. Plus no assholes on their phones, my seats are comfy, the snacks reasonably priced, and I can pause it whenever I want for whatever reason.
Going to the movies is a concept that should just quietly go into the night.
It doesn’t seem like you care much about audio and visual fidelity, and those are the only real reasons to go to the theater IMHO
Definitely
I only go to big IMAX shows, eg: Top Gun, Oppenheimer 70mm.
Those types are worth the experience.
