Take You to the Movies Tonight, by Martha Thomases – Brilliant Disguise
June 19, 2010 Martha Thomases 7 Comments
With summer officially starting this week, it’s supposed to be peak movie season. In tough economic times we, as Americans, are expected to seek out the most preposterous and escapist entertainment available to us. That was certainly the case last summer, when all kinds of records were set in ticket sales.
According to several stories (here and here, for example), that’s not the case this summer, a least not so far.
Why is this happening? If you read the articles cited above, you’ll find the conventional wisdom: ticket prices are high, people are worried about their jobs. I think there’s more to it than that.
In fact, I think it’s all about me.
Not me personally, but me demographically. As a proud member of the Baby Boom generation, I’m aware that my peers and I represent an enormous spending block. We always have, but its especially true as we grow older and pay off our mortgages, our kids leave college (and tuition) behind, and we advance in our careers. As a generation, we haven’t had this much free time since the 1970s.
Let me tell you about movies in the 1970s. They weren’t all great – the standard 90% was probably garbage – but many were gutsy. They defied easy categories. Maybe because there wasn’t yet a ratings system, Directors like Spielberg, Lucas, Scorsese, Altman, and De Palma had hits. Woody Allen, Mel Brooks and Mike Nichols were in their respectively hilarious primes. There were big blockbuster summer films, like Jaws and Star Wars that were also really interesting artistically.
Going to the movies was something you could do on an impulse. Ticket prices were under a dollar, and most often, the theater was a palace. If you were completely broke, you could hide in the backseat while your friends paid to go to a drive-in.
Since then, going to the movies has become steadily more expensive. A ticket in my neighborhood for a normal, non 3-D movie is $12.50. If it’s in 3-D, the price is closer to $20. Taking your family can use up the better part of $100, and that’s not even buying popcorn for everybody.
“So”, you say, “what’s the big deal? Everything costs more today than it did in the 1970s.” That’s true. I would be willing to pay the money if the experience felt like a good value.
It doesn’t.
I’m not going to discuss the quality of the movies. I like what I like, and I assume you like what you like. Very few movies target my age group, and those that do (like this are condescending to the max. However, the quality of the audience has deteriorated far more rapidly than the quality of the movies. It’s impossible to see a film without also having to listen to people talking (either to each other, or on the phone), or watch them texting. I can sit among rude assholes for free. I don’t have to spend $12.50 for a ticket.
Going to the movies is the only time I wish I lived in Los Angeles. The Arclight chain shows movies the way they should be shown. The theaters might not be the ornate palaces I remember from my youth, but they are clean, the sound system is awesome, and they make sure there are no distractions, including keeping the “Exit” signs angled so they don’t interfere with your concentration. An usher introduces each screening, and stays to make sure that no one talks or texts.
Rumor has it that the Scientologists own the Arclight. I don’t care. I wish we had them here. I would even let them audit me if they could get the jerks around me to shut the fuck up.
Media Goddess Martha Thomases is prepared to pay big bucks to see Toy Story 3-D.
Mike Gold
June 19, 2010 - 8:08 am
The reason we’ve got 3-D and all those animated movies is that we, as parents and (gasp) grandparents, will pay anything to shut our little rugrats up.
I think we still pay only $10 here in Connecticut. I say “I think” because I don’t go to the movies as much any more. That’s a shame, but like you said Martha, it’s a value thing. Some day I’ll buy a big ol’ HDTV, huge enough for my aging eyesight, and I’ll probably never go to the movies again.
Hell, I might not ever leave the house again.
John Tebbel
June 20, 2010 - 6:21 am
Nobody makes their children shut up in the movies; that would mean acknowledging their humanity. It’s so much easier to zone out, text a little and let them chatter like apes.
And if your kid isn’t five yet, he or she is too little for the movies and ought to be playing outside with other children.
Someone told me all the movie theaters in the country were owned by the Joker. Makes sense to me.
Martha Thomases
June 20, 2010 - 7:20 am
@Mike: Yes, I may never leave my house again, too, but I will regret it. There is something supremely awesome about sitting in the dark with a group of strangers, all sharing a story flickering on a big screen. It’s many of the pleasures of community without the lifting a finger to exert any effort parts.
Mike Gold
June 20, 2010 - 8:36 am
For me, the community experience began to fade when the movie palaces went blooie and the multiplex screening rooms took over. The majesty of those old theaters were a vital part of the experience.
I like going to a movie with about a dozen of my friends — that’s a lot of fun. We create our own community. And we bitch about the movie in the parking lot after. Great fun. When we-all saw The Spirit, we waited until the last showing on the last day and had the joint all to ourselves. That was like being a cast member in Mystery Science Theater 3000.
Having said that, Adriane and I are probably going to the movies today. My father was a major A-Team fan, and I’m a serious fan of Cannell’s teevee stuff, and quite frankly right now I can use two hours of things blowing up. As noisy as possible, too.
Howard Cruse
June 20, 2010 - 8:46 am
I like sharing movies with rapt, well-behaved in big movie theaters. I also like seeing plays in similarly communal environments. But I’ve been largely priced out of the stage performance market and could easily be priced largely out of the movie market, particularly sense Netflix has made seeing movies at home not just cheaper but more convenient, since you can time your movie viewing without regard to a theater’s showtime schedule.
You won’t find me seeing Avatar at home, of course, or even in any format other that 3-D. But you can’t build a whole art form around specialized formats, and who needed 3-D to enjoy Easy Rider?
Mike Gold
June 20, 2010 - 9:52 am
I’m told by reputable sources that we’re less than two years away from amazing HD3-D TV, at a competitive price. No glasses needed. We’ll see, but I’m reminded of a Wonder Wart-Hog story where everybody lived in small rooms with a toilet, a sink, a small refrigerator, and a teevee set located directly across the toilet. Put in a footstool and legalize grass and I’m there.
But the nursing care / assisted living lobby will fight that one off, I’m sure.
Whitney
June 20, 2010 - 11:10 pm
Best film experience ever: Watching a battle scene from “Braveheart” in a restored movie palace in Mount Vernon, Washington. An earthquake struck. Everyone initially thought that it was from the sound system, then realized that we were actually living it at that moment. But no one left their seats because the movie was so great. We sat there under the re-glued brick domed cavern with our eyes fixed on the screen after having done the math and deciding that it was worth the risk to our lives. The manager had to finally run to the front of the theater and shout for everyone to be evacuated. We grumbled while we waited on the street for the flick to start again.