The advent of the cell phone killed it for me. Half the room is not there to watch the movie. They are literally watching vids on phones. It’s a party, and not a watch party. I now only go for movies I feel can’t be replicated in my home, like Top Gun. And then I spring for IMAX hoping some of the non-watchers are priced out. And I used to be capital A avid. I’d go every cheap night, and one or two more times a week. I used to be of the “can’t be replicated” mindset. Still believe that although less so since I worked at an AV company and now have an absurd HT, but the value is so diminished now due to studios treating all movies like IMAX products and audiences simply no longer participating in the social contract to actually watch the movie.
what I meant was your avatar goes to the movie theater in the Metaverse, to watch a movie in a virtual movie theater.
Netflix, Meta, and you think alike You can already use VR to watch Netflix; the next step is exactly what you envisioned.
SEC Network didn't empty the Swamp. Streaming music didn't end concert tours. They have been predicting the end of movie theaters since TV showed up. Then VCR's, Cable, the internet, surround sound, etc. Yet I strapped a tux on and went to see the minion movies with my boys. People need to get out. Disclaimer: Game consoles killed arcades, but having participated in the same I can tell you in its heyday it was a gauntlet of elbows and standing in lines...
Streaming IS a threat though. The latest Predator (Prey) is the latest example. While I personally find the hype overdone (it was solid, but no revelation) it is inescapable that a box office stalwart, tailor-made as visual spectacle, and in this case an attempt to reboot the whole money machine, is strictly streaming.
No joke. We have been very choosey with movies. I think we've seen 3 this year so far and nothing we see until late Fall is appealing.
I'm turning 57 so I need a bigger screen to see anything these days. Sad to see this being a bigger thing because unless you are wearing eye protection to block the blue light waves, the future looks bleak for humanity concerning eyesight. I've been a software developer for 30 years and it's finally caught up with me. Diagnosed with early stage macular degeneration most likely due to viewing devices without any eye protection (since April I wear glasses that block the blue light spectrum).
When I was a kid my mother said if I didn't stop playing with myself I would go blind, so I quit beating off as soon as I needed glasses.
Back to the subject of movie theaters, as soon as each of my grandkids gets old enough that I think they will remember it they get a trip to the nearest Drive-in movie on grandpa. They seem to enjoy it, most of them had never heard of a drive-in.
To me, the content of HBO has gone downhill. As to Netflix, the services are starting to cannibalize each other with more and more choices. Amazon Prime has had really very little good recently. Surprisingly Apple TV has had some pretty good content.
As to movie theaters, for us (in our 50s) there aren’t a ton of choices any more. Most theater content are big franchises - superhero and action adventure crap. The typical drama movies with serious stars are becoming few and far between. We would probably occasionally go if there was something we wanted to see.
This is my biggest problem. The best movies don’t make any money. Only comic book popcorn crap makes money. So that’s where the focus is. Sad but true.
Some movies are best experienced in a theater setting (e.g. recent: Top Gun Maverick). That said, high cost, annoying people etc are a buzz kill. There is a lot to be said for enjoying a movie in the comfort of your home where you can pause, rewind, or whatever and not have to deal with someone else's screaming kid or some asshat who won't shut up.
I don't think I've been to a theater besides Sun Ray in 5 years. And I've prolly been to Sun Ray 3-4 times a year. San Marco Theater isn't bad either.
We aren’t the demo. Oh well. I suppose I got my due. If anything I’d go see Hunter Hunter or a brutally honest Korean jaw-dropper on a cheap small screen. As it is, my HT is wacko enough to have the cops knocking in less than 10 minutes and even a $500 TV is pretty bossy now. No reason for a $50 excursion unless it’s nutty like TG2.
I had to see Top Gun Maverick the first night. My wife made me see "where the crawdads sing" and I loved it! Go see movies. Great times with the wife and good for the economy. '
Our independent movie theater is a cool place to go. They have an indoor & outdoor stage for music, they rent it out for BDs, etc. they have sat morning cartoons, cult movie night, etc. We'll just go for a beer & a snack sometimes. Also live 1/2 a mile from a great drive in....burgers cooked on an outside grill!! I hope these theaters never die.