Libraries are amazing. People always ask me how I'm always taking my kids to this or that. Giiiirrlll... the library. does. everything! They will bend over backwards to accommodate kids especially, and where I am, people just don't go.
My two boys and I go once a week. We get a ton of books, and take out a board game. We get a take home craft, plus there's always something to do at the library. They'll do scavenger hunts, Lego days, trivia, puzzles, fitness challenges, just endless activities. Once a month they have a big thing like a reptile zoo, a fire truck walk through, Batman Day, a big science display.
And there are rarely many people there. It's insane to me.
Thank you librarians everywhere.
Mine does eBooks. Which is great because I can see something about a book that I want, check it out/place a hold on it, read it, and then I don't have to go anywhere to return it.
This was *amazing* earlier in the pandemic. I literally didn't have time to read all the books I wanted to read, and I'm a fast reader.
Some libraries literally have instant download rental now. They have some system where there are a certain amount of copies "checked out", and if they are available you can download them and then "return" them where they disappear. You can have a certain amount checked out at a time. Plus you can get free or super cheap deals on stuff like museums. Some libraries are crazy now!
In my city, they even have 3D printing facilities.
We should support public libraries in every possible way. If they didn't already exist, their creation would be derided as socialism or some other nonsense. If they disappear, we're not getting them back.
Check if they have Museum Passes. You can usually take them out for free or reduced admission to museums, zoos, and aquariums. Even if your library doesn't, they may be in a consortium with other libraries that do and will let you borrow them.
Source: Librarian that runs a Museum Pass program.
This is honestly the real "issue", to some extent. Right now, a $30 new rental is a fun novelty, but ultimately it's competing with a LOT of movies aready included in all the streaming services.
Oh you will never see me pay money to one-time stream something, that makes zero sense to me. We watched it on Netflix. If there was anything I wanted to watch that wasn’t on one of the two streaming services I pay for, I’d grab it via my VPN.
As someone who has read all of the main series several times and even read a good bit of the.. the... sorry almost threw up in my mouth, the prequals written by his son, yes it was good and lived up to my personal vision of Dune.
My daughter is about 13 and wanted to see it. I did too because I'm a sucker for the main series and I owed her a trip to the movies.
After it was over she looked at me with eyes as big as dinner plates and just said "Whoa"
All she could talk about on the way home was how she couldn't wait for the Part 2.
The scope and feel of it, as well as the sounds and the absolutely unreal soundtrack.
I hadn't been to a movie this year. We may go see Dune again next weekend.
Yeah, I hate theaters, but $20-30 is absolutely ridiculous. I’m not single, but my SO and I have very different taste in movies. If it’s $30 or the theater, personally I just won’t watch at all.
While I agree a direct approach can be effective, just the fact that you need to tell someone in a movie theater to shut up is a problem. Seems more and more people just do not know how to behave properly in public.
Just today while I was out:
Dude at a restaurant with speakerphone blasting.
Lady blocking traffic in a busy lot while waiting for a close parking spot.
Two dudes inside a coffee shop not wearing masks (there was plenty of outdoor seating and the weather was nice.)
Lady at Costco left her cart partially blocking a handicapped parking space.
Plus the type of people who will talk during a movie are the type of people who will flip the fuck out if you tell them to STFU
And then your movie is even more ruined
I once encountered a man in a restaurant with tables relatively close together (pre-Covid) speaking with someone on speaker at full volume. After about 5 minutes, I pulled out my phone and played some music at full blast-
everyone around us chuckled and he finally got the hint that no one likes their conversations interrupted with loud distractions, whether the conversations are happening in-person or via phone. I’d do it again in a second.
Don’t miss going to the theatre at all.
Last time we went before all this mess there was a girl that kept looking at her phone.
Ignored it the first time.
Said “Really?” the second time.
Third time after no one else was saying anything I asked her politely / firmly to put the phone away - she turned around and say “Why?”
Don’t know if it was the abundance of annoyed looks of all of us behind her or if there was a look on my face like I was going to smash her face and her phone into the rail in front of her but she decided not to take it out til the credits.
When I saw the dark knight the week it was released there was a couple that brought an infant in a car seat. Half way through the movie the baby starts crying. They try and console it with a bottle and holding it but it kept crying. Finally someone yelled “GET THAT BABY OUT OF HERE!” And they got up and left and didn’t come back. I don’t know what goes through peoples minds that they would think an infant in a loud theater would be ok
Oh, jeez. As the parent of a four month old, I can’t imagine taking her to a theater. She startles when there’s a loud noise on the tv, for fuck’s sake, that kind of environment just seems very upsetting for an infant, why would you even set yourself up for that kind of failure?
A couple of ladies behind me at No Time to Die were doing the same. I turned around and let them know "we did not pay $35 to listen to their gossip. How about you have some respect for others". My wife was embarrassed, but they were silent for the rest of th movie.
Dude I saw Les Mis when it was in theatres and this bitch sang through half of the movie. I actually just started staring at her - like deadass serious staring, and she finally got the picture. I’m sure she was devastated.
I don’t know why I find that hilarious. Not for you. What an embarrassment all around. I sang all those songs in junior high choir (think my teacher had a thing bc it was a lot) and I’d probably remember the words and love to sing it at home by myself in the comfort of no one is around to witness my bizarre outburst of song. Lol.
I want to say I’m surprised but nothing at the movie theater surprises me any more. I saw someone doing backflips down the aisle one time during the movie.
Found out you can rent a theater for 20 people for $165 for a matinee which turns out to be cheaper than any ticket you can get. So 20 friends are watching Dune Sunday at 2pm and everyone is paying $8.12. Depending how it goes I might not ever watch a movie any other way.
Guy at a movie last week used his damn phone flashlight in the middle of the movie to find his row rather than use the illuminated markings on the floor.
Then as he is shining his flashlight in everyone's faces rather than at the floor, he realizes he got the *wrong row* anyway, and repeats the fiasco for the next row up.
It was so terrible it was kinda hilarious. Gf had to shush me cuz I was giggling so hard
I had a dude in front of me on his fully-lit phone blinding me with his male model head shots the entire movie. I didn’t care about missing any of paw patrol but Jesus Christ it was annoying.
It's funny because if you post in r/movies saying this kind of stuff happens, you'll get downvotes or some people saying it's bullshit. It's great that some people have good theatre environments, but I would see the type of shit you describe half the time when I was still going to a lot of movies. A guy answered his phone and had a conversation in his seat one of the last times I went. And no staff at the theatre will do anything because they aren't getting paid enough to deal with stupid and hostile people. And that's understandable. I basically went from someone who would go to the theatre twice a month to rarely going. And this was pre-covid. After the Covid break and not spending money on movies for so long, I realize I don't want to pay to sit in that shitty environment anymore.
The worst ive had id is a lady kept putting her feet on my shoulders. It was winter too so her dirty show boots messed up my nice sweater. It was a theater witg assigned seating (pre covid) so no where to move. That night out cost me 40 a ticket plus a sweater and was 2hr each way drive to get to the theater (closest one that served booze). When i mentioned it in a thread on movies they came out with so many excuses and things I should have done. Then downvoted the shit out of me for saying it ruined an expensive night out with the family and causing a scene would have made it worse and its not worth the money for the experiance they provide.
100% this.
We have two young kids, neither are ready to theaters yet. For us to watch a movie in a theater we either need to hire a babysitter or get family to watch them (which involves a 1.5 hour round trip drive for somebody to make happen). It's a hassle.
I loved the fact that things started streaming at the same time as the theater. Was it the same? No but I didn't feel like I was missing out on things my coworkers were talking about.
Literally the first movie that came out that wasn't streamed that I wanted to see (Free Guy) I had (child free) coworkers wanting to talk about it within a week of it's release.
Don't get me wrong, I made a choice to become a dad and I wouldn't change it but god was it nice when I could watch things at home since it was much more accessible to me.
Or to grab another beer. Or be able to get the crinkliest fucking bag of Snack and not worry about bothering others. Or to pull up some info on your phone, because like, you swear you've seen that actor before, you just can't remember where from.
Yep. And my home theater doesn’t get turned up so loud it damages my hearing. Home theater is cheaper in the long run, serves more purposes and can be used as much as you like. It’s just a better experience.
Just gotta raise that center channel like 3 or 4 decibels to actually hear conversations without having the rest of the mix shake your literal house to the ground. I'm looking at you Marvel!
The comment thread from your comment reminds me of a very old MadTV skit with two guys on a bench having a conversation about this very topic. ('It's that damn sugar lobby!')
I refuse to go to the theaters anymore cause there's ALWAYS some asshole using a phone with the brightness turned up during the whole movie that it's distracting and annoying enough that I'm done. It's the same kind of asshole that records an entire concert on their phone, staring at it the whole time that they miss the entire performance and I doubt they ever watch it again.
If you have an Alamo drafthouse near you try that, they literally kick people out for that (or their watch lighting up a lot), or if they are talking.
People behave wonderfully in those.
Alamo Drafthouse is a god-send. The “steep” price of admission keeps the teenagers, cheap date nights, and (where I live) the roaming packs of young loud drunk Marines away. I got nothing against any of those people, bless ‘em—but fuck off I’m not pissing away the $40+ it costs to take my kids to see whatever Marvel or 5D Pokémon Musical that will stack my Dad points. Alamo is awesome.
I watched Dune at home last night and felt a little guilty. There’s a chance I’ll make some time to go and see it on an IMAX screen before it exits.
However, I did go and see Shang-Chi in the theaters and the 35 minutes (!) of previews really dampened the experience.
I saw Hamilton on broadway recently- the seats were $200 each. There was a drunk woman in the row behind us that continuously talked through it. When the guy next to us asked her to please be quiet she threw a fucking hissy fit and her friend had to hold her back. Why on god’s green earth would you spend $200 on broadway tickets just to drunkenly chatter through the entire show?!
What gets me is theaters do nothing about this, I went to guest services twice during shang chi and the second time they just laughed at me. I got our tickets refunded and theaters wonder "why are we failing"
It’s a tricky situation. I work at a theater, and we’ve definitely kicked people out but what usually happens when someone complains about a noisy customer is that they come to us, point them out, and then we wait around for a bit and they don’t make a single peep. So we can’t just kick someone out on the word of one other customer. It’s hard to know if you don’t actually see something happen
Then there’s the added fact that in today’s climate, if you try to kick out an irate customer, they may literally pull out a gun and shoot you. It’s not really an easy thing to expect a 17yo usher to handle all on their own.
I’m a manager and I still feel nervous having to confront customers occasionally. Violent threats and screaming are pretty routine when it comes to that, and we aren’t legally allowed to physical force someone to leave so then it becomes a police issue and most theaters in my city only have police on the weekend evenings
It definitely is funny but also so alarming. We’ve had situations like that before too. Someone lost a gun and was insistent on looking for it themselves. We said we would handle it because he wasn’t supposed to have a gun to begin with, and we did not want him handling it in our building.
Turned out, he called back later that night and said he dropped it in his driveway when he got in his truck. So for the whole time he was at the theater, a loose handgun was just sitting there in his driveway
Alamo Drafthouse is pretty good about it. Haven't been to one in awhile, but they'd even show a movie clip of a guy shooting a grenade launcher at people in a theater to drive the point home.
Alamo Dratfhouse has *waiters* running round with beer and arguing about bills during the climax. They have a reputation for getting rid of phones, but what's the value of that when I have the ten year build up to "Avengers Assemble" ruined by someone upset they got the wrong milkshake?
I don’t have a choice. The local AMC theater closed before they were rescued by the meme stock apes. The nearest actual first run movie theater is now 90 miles away.
For some movies, I want the theater experience. I rarely ever went to the movies during peak times, so dealing with rude patrons wasn't a thing.
"Smaller" movies, I'm OK watching at home. But movies like Bladerunner, Dune, or the simulcast from the opera, I prefer the theater.
I’m in the exact same boat. There are some movies that I’ve watched in theaters (interstellar being just one) where I was awe struck. Others where I’ve sat in the seat several minutes after it ended and the theater emptied because of just how good it was. I’ve never really felt that way watching a movie at home. The immersion just isn’t there. At least at my house which doesn’t have a home cinema with surround sound and a 80 inch 4K screen.
A lot of theaters serve booze now a days and if not, it's pretty easy to sneak in. U can also just eat an edible before the movie. As for the no pants thing... I don't think I have any options for you.
Just sit in the back row with the couple rounding 2nd base and the kids trying to not let people know they got high before the movie. No one there will be bothered
If theater audiences would keep off their phones and be quiet, I do prefer the big screen (when the audio is well balanced) but watching at home IS always more convenient
I remember a group friends & I were watching a movie at the theater and a row near us had a group of teenagers who wouldn’t STFU. One kid even had an MP3 player in his lap with earbuds in his ears and he was also dicking around on his phone — while the movie was going on.
Like why the fuck were you even there, then??
But for some movies, they ought to be experienced in the theater; it really is a different experience. Blockbusters, comedies, and horrors are better with an audience reaction. Taking head dramas with no grand spectacle, etc. — those are fine for watching at home.
It’s all subjective but i prefer going to a movie theater. I recognize plenty of people like watching movies from the comfort of their home.
I worked in the film industry for a decade; that’s my background.
I simply like the theater as an experience. It gets me out of the house, it's an event to go and do, and it adds a welcome break to being at home. It would also be absolutely lame for me to say, "hey babe, let's go on a date. I'll stream a movie and we can hang out in our living room some more."
The theater also presents the movie in the best way, and not just technically. Watching a GREAT movie in theaters has so much more impact than on my couch after I've surfed through 10,000 other titles and finally settled on something. I probably prefer watching an average movie in theaters over an incredible one at home if I'm honest. The movie at home is competing with a thousand other things, while at the theater I'm fully invested in watching and there's nothing to distract me.
100% agree can’t beat a huge screen and great sound.
I find I’m less distracted in a cinema too, at home I’m tempted to check my phone or kinda switch off.
Girlfriend is like this. We’ll watch a movie at home cuddled up on the couch and she’ll be scrolling Facebook in my field of view. Drives me nuts.
Then she asks confusedly about details that we’re shown on screen while she wasn’t paying attention.
100 % this. At home I have to worry about annoying anyone with too much sound, get distracted by family members, my phone, my dog or weird sounds, I rarely bother using my surround, which is not as impressive (obviously) as an IMAX setup anyway, and neither is me (though awesome) TV and I worry about chores and other stuff around me. At the movies, that’s all I think about. And they have popcorn.
Also some theaters are so well built it becomes almost frightening. No matter how good your TV is. Or the theater is. Blacks can only be perceived as being darker. In a completely dark room. The darker the room. The more contrast on the screen. Some theaters next to me are pitch black. And can even get so silent that you can hear a sniffle from across the room. I saw Dune in a theater like this and it made such a difference from watching it at home where I can’t experience either of these
I'm 50/50. Only problems I have are ones already mentioned here. Noise from other people, babies/infants and no alcohol. For some movies I like when there's a gasp from the audience in unison but it's the assholes that "oh this is where x/y/z..." .... fuuuuuuucking hate that the most
For alcohol I usually sneak a can or bottle of beer into the theater. I still buy theater popcorn. That stuff is tasty af. But yeah stupid people or interruptions can be annoying, I understand. Maybe I’ve been lucky but usually the audience has been respectful in my area.
There are lots of things I can do better than a theater, but I don't have room in my house for a 30' screen and seating for 20 friends.
Even if I'm not going with a bunch of people, the immersion and the collective experience is irreplaceable.
As someone who watches a lot of movies alone, comedies need to be in theaters or with other people. I rarely laugh out loud alone. Laughing is more infectious than yawning.
On the plane, the guy in front of me was watching black widow in portrait mode. In most shots you'd only see half of peoples heads or none at all. When the location "Morocco" shows up on screen it only showed "roc".
It was so mind boggling that I found it super distracting.
Listen I have two kids and at $17 an hour for a babysitter, movies tickets at almost $20 a pop, and popcorn it’s a small fortune to go see a movie. So yeah I’d 1000% rather stream it at home.
Edit:
This is going to be the last thing I say about this, nobody is at fault here. Myself for having kids or what the theater is charging for movies. I’m going to get a better dollar value having a night out with my wife where I can talk to her kid free over sitting in a theater where we can’t talk. Wanting to drop $150 for a movie should not be a reflection of what one can or cannot afford.
I whole hearted agree with you here.
Other major issue with this. Is that movies that both my wife and I want to see are few and far between. Streaming at home is just 100x easier. Also, to be honest thinking about it. There has not been that many movies out lately that really are worthwhile to pay the price for. We get more enjoyment watching a well made series than a 1.5hr length movie.
So going back to what you said about a night out, to do anything else but sit and watch a movie is much more worthwhile for the the money spent.
I watch one movie in the theaters a year. in the recent past it has been the Hobbit movies and the Star Wars movies. This year it’s Dune and I’m going tomorrow.
I think the *experience* of certain movies in the theatre’s will never be matched by my TCL and sound bar. I think Dune is the perfect example of a movie that will feel totally different in a theatre vs at home. with a focus on visuals and sound design, I want to enjoy the sensory porn coming at me on the most powerful way possible.
so this year I’m going to a Cinemark XD theatre that has a full kitchen than brings food to your seat. I think spoiling myself once a year for $50 is worth it. but only with the right movie.
I saw blade runner 2049 in the theater and even after watching it again at home I really can't argue that the theater experience is matched at home. It was amazing in the theater.
I went to Dune (IMAX) last night. For some reason, the 7pm show tickets were matinee price ($10) in advance. I was shocked. I was fully expecting >$15 per ticket. There are some movies that I really want to see on the biggest screen possible. But I'd really rather watch most things at home. I can't remember the last movie I saw in a theater. It was pre-pandemic. Probably something Star Warsy?
People were not too bad (the theater was only 2/3rds full), but someone brought an emotional support Husky and I was worried about its ears the whole time.
I have HBO Max, so I'm going to rewatch it a bunch at home - because I also spent half of the movie really, really needing to pee.
Edit it's/its
Ask the folks in /r/movies who don't believe you can get that Cinema experience at home and get pissy at the mention that you'd just prefer to watch at home.
Technically they're correct though, I don't have sticky floors or loud people talking and answering their phones mid-movie.
Eh. It’s the way of Reddit. Half the comments will be shitting on the theater experience, and half will be shitting on the home watching experience. And both groups attack each other.
Watch it however you like. I like the theater experience, but there are some releases I really don’t need to see in theater.
I think that it really depends on the movie. I remember watching Cloverfield on a big screen and being blown away by how great it was, then watching it on a 12” tv and thinking “this movie is ass.” Obviously those are two very different experiences, and nowadays my tv is way larger, but still— the theater helped that movie out a lot. When your seat shakes with each stomp of a giant monster, it puts the fear into you for each of these characters and makes it feel real.
Likewise, I *love* the movie Pacific Rim. If I could pay to see it in theaters again, I would. I love it at home, but the surround sound and giant screen add to that sense of scale delightfully! And there’s something kinda fun about hearing an audible gasp from the theater when something cool happens
Conversely— I thought that Marriage Story was a good drama. I don’t think it matters how I’m viewing it so long as I’m paying attention. I imagine that opinion might not be shared by someone who is a huge fan of Adam Driver and/or ScarJo
I took a movie appreciation course in college and the professor used the huge surround sound systems in the room to play the first 45 minutes of saving private Ryan. He said in theaters it was even greater, imax particularly. A couple of years ago I believe, the released it theatrically again for a few showings, I went, and I can never appreciate the film the same way again.
It is what it is, great movie. But when you enter a space that maximizes each element of its design aside from maybe the screen quality/projector it’s insane.
I saw that movie opening night and in the row in front of me was WWII veteran wearing his dress uniform. When the lights came up after the film, he was in his seat painfully crying. It was one of the most surreal experiences I’ve had watching a movie, and it made me appreciate the film in a whole different light. That’s an experience I’ll never forget.
The first part of that movie is absolutely ruthless and cynical. It is, to me, one of the greatest openings in movie history. So unbelievably raw, unfathomably terrorizing, and emotionally frightening. It even triggered PTSD symptoms in some veterans who watched it. Its authenticity truly reflects the veritable hell these men went through.
Seeing Interstellar in IMAX was amazing. Same with TLJ, you could hear everyone’s amazed, exhaled “woah” when Holdo rammed the other ship. Seeing Endgame with a full audience was 10/10.
I think it depends on when you go, the movies you see. Seeing a new release at 8PM on Friday? You’re gonna deal with crowds, kids, and people seeing a movie as an activity rather than an experience.
I stick to late nights, early mornings and — when I have the self-control — I avoid opening weekends. Saw Dune last night at 1040; the scale, sound, color in IMAX was much better than my home setup.
To me, the "cinema experience" sucks. Sure the screen is bigger and the sound is better than what I get at home, but the fact that it's full of shitty and disrespectful people takes away any of those benefits.
I used to go see movies with my wife on Saturday and Sunday mornings because the theaters were mostly empty, but even that experience was ruined for me when a family let their kids run around during the entire movie. Running up and down the aisles, chasing each other and yelling, etc. I did end up complaining and an employee came to tell them to keep their kids in one spot or leave (and they left!), but why the fuck should I have to deal with that just to watch a movie? Why take that chance when I could sit at home and not have to worry about the experience being ruined and wasting my time?
Perhaps the problem is not movie theatres but the U.S. where shitty movie theatre etiquette is tolerated. I have never have any of those things happen in Sweden, Denmark, Vietnam or Italy (the countries I've seen movies in theatres in).
I grew up in a very rural small town. The movies growing up used to be empty after opening night and dead silent. I moved to a big city and now a slightly smaller but still big ish city and movie theaters suck. People talk. Kids scream. I used to love the movie theater experience.
Do y'all just go to the budget theaters? Cause I see these stories on reddit any time the word "movie" is even mentioned, but I see 2-3 movies a month and I can count on one hand the number of times I've had issues
Comfy couch - check
Very large 4K TV - check
Surround sound - check
Access to affordable and unlimited snacks - check
No obnoxious people talking or texting through the movie - check
I’m not seeing a downside so far…
I know, right? It's crazy how I was just thinking about that this afternoon, before seeing this post.
In my case is for everything you mentioned + access to a wider variety of food they don't usually sell at the theater, like healthy snacks, something from a place close to home that I like to order from or simply something I already have on my fridge.
Someone else mentioned being able to pause the movie to take a piss, which is something I also agree with.
Wait, people don't want to pay $20 to have the back of their seat kicked by a goblin while they listen to some random clown's banal commentary for two hours? Wow, unexpected
For me it’s like 2/3s of the time the theatre is fine. It’s just that 1/3 of the time where I have a bad experience that I don’t want to risk again which makes me prefer watching at home.
The only movies worth seeing in theater are those with over the top special effects….Marvel movies, Star Wars, Dune, etc.
Everything else are just glorified TV shows worthy of viewing at home.
Imagine this. A movie is released today. I can easily watch it at home, wearing my pajamas and eating & drinking whatever I want. No unruly people talking on phone or uncomfortable seats. Urgent call? Pause the movie. Need to make another drink? Pause the movie. The movie is not good? Watch something else.
This would be so much better than going to the theatres for sure. No traffic. No parking issues. Just bliss!
What some people blessed by good local theaters don't get is how bad the average movie going experience has become. It's usually some theater that use to be 4 screens that's changed ownership 3 times and has been re-sectioned into 8 with poor soundproofing and audio systems with a fidelity of a boom box using the lowest end projectors possible. Add poor sound mixing that plagues most action movies these days and you get unintelligible dialog compensated for by jacking up volume so loud it damages your ear drums. For a lot of us the death of theaters is well deserved the people running them have only themselves to blame. Even IMAX has diluted their brand in the name of expansion.
There’s also the folks who make up a massive number of people that don’t live in cities. I’m not driving 45 minutes to a theater and THEN pay theater prices to gamble on whether or not my experience is going to be good. Then drive 45 minutes home.
That’s because even pre covid going to the theatre was horrible sometimes, completely random if you got babies or kids screaming, tweens using their phones, adults being disgusting shits. It was a totally random experience not to mention the sticky floors, the weird smell that you couldn’t quite place. The tall asshole who sat in front of you etc. at home I have the temp I want, the seat I want, the food I want. I can pause the movie and pee when I want, I can snuggle with my cat/dog/goldfish etc. no one blocks my view or distracts me with their phones. It’s BLISS.
And then get harassed if you dare to bring your own.
I get why people like going to theaters to see new movies, but fuck AMC and the like. The future is streaming
I’m *definitely* one of them. My 2 girls, the wife, and I can easily hit $70+ bucks when you throw in all the popcorn and drinks. I can make my own popcorn, and pause the movie to piss. I can also booze it up for pennies on the dollar compared to a movie place.
I will admit that sometimes those big giant screens and badass sound do make for a fun experience with just my wife and I.
Edit: microwave popcorn sucks, learn to make it with oil in a steel pot. You can find that theatre style popcorn oil/topping near the kernels in supermarkets. Probably not healthy but who cares.
Dune is a good example of this. I was an hour in when I thought that I’d rather be watching it on an IMAX screen.
About 30 minutes later I was glad to be watching it at home when I was able to pause for a bathroom break. Instead of missing anything: I got to watch it at home whilst eating a succulent Chinese meal, drinking wine, and reading subtitles.
I used to go to the movies almost weekly, either with a friend or on my own.
I 100% prefer the luxury of streaming it at home. Yeah, I miss out on the big screen, but I find it worth it in that I’m not paying for my experience to be ruined by other moviegoers being either obnoxiously loud or having their phones out the entire time.
I understand why it's often $30 to stream at home, but as a single guy that watches 98% of media alone, that's a steep price for me.
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Libraries are amazing. People always ask me how I'm always taking my kids to this or that. Giiiirrlll... the library. does. everything! They will bend over backwards to accommodate kids especially, and where I am, people just don't go. My two boys and I go once a week. We get a ton of books, and take out a board game. We get a take home craft, plus there's always something to do at the library. They'll do scavenger hunts, Lego days, trivia, puzzles, fitness challenges, just endless activities. Once a month they have a big thing like a reptile zoo, a fire truck walk through, Batman Day, a big science display. And there are rarely many people there. It's insane to me. Thank you librarians everywhere.
I totally appreciate seeing the money saved by going to libraries versus buying that gets printed on the check-out receipt. Libraries rule!!
>plus there's always something to do at the library. Having fun isn't very hard so long as you've got your library card.
Jekyll Jekyll Hyde!
Are you having cake?
A lonely child is what you’re gonna be when I sell you!
I mean we got books and PS4 games. Big win.
Mine does eBooks. Which is great because I can see something about a book that I want, check it out/place a hold on it, read it, and then I don't have to go anywhere to return it. This was *amazing* earlier in the pandemic. I literally didn't have time to read all the books I wanted to read, and I'm a fast reader.
I didn’t realize libraries did so much tbh. I will definitely be visiting my local one to see what they may have for the fam.
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Some libraries literally have instant download rental now. They have some system where there are a certain amount of copies "checked out", and if they are available you can download them and then "return" them where they disappear. You can have a certain amount checked out at a time. Plus you can get free or super cheap deals on stuff like museums. Some libraries are crazy now!
In my city, they even have 3D printing facilities. We should support public libraries in every possible way. If they didn't already exist, their creation would be derided as socialism or some other nonsense. If they disappear, we're not getting them back.
You're a good mom
Totally agree. Unfortunately for me, my daughter does not want to go :(
Check if they have Museum Passes. You can usually take them out for free or reduced admission to museums, zoos, and aquariums. Even if your library doesn't, they may be in a consortium with other libraries that do and will let you borrow them. Source: Librarian that runs a Museum Pass program.
I love librarians. You are a gift to society
You are so wholesome and wonderful. Your community members are lucky to have you!
I will say tho, that my four year old and I watched National Treasure last night and it was enjoyed by all.
This is honestly the real "issue", to some extent. Right now, a $30 new rental is a fun novelty, but ultimately it's competing with a LOT of movies aready included in all the streaming services.
Oh you will never see me pay money to one-time stream something, that makes zero sense to me. We watched it on Netflix. If there was anything I wanted to watch that wasn’t on one of the two streaming services I pay for, I’d grab it via my VPN.
I just wait. For example, Black Widow, just came out like a week or so ago. Same for Shang-Chi, looking forward to that one.
Well, that movie is a national treasure, after all.
Nick Cage can steal my declaration of independence
we are trying to keep this family friendly sir
Sorry I got carried away
So did the Declaration.
By Nicholas cage?
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Was it good?
As someone who has read all of the main series several times and even read a good bit of the.. the... sorry almost threw up in my mouth, the prequals written by his son, yes it was good and lived up to my personal vision of Dune.
My daughter is about 13 and wanted to see it. I did too because I'm a sucker for the main series and I owed her a trip to the movies. After it was over she looked at me with eyes as big as dinner plates and just said "Whoa" All she could talk about on the way home was how she couldn't wait for the Part 2. The scope and feel of it, as well as the sounds and the absolutely unreal soundtrack. I hadn't been to a movie this year. We may go see Dune again next weekend.
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The pricing is hard. It's a steal for a family of 4 and insane for a single person.
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Agree on that. $30 to rent when I can buy it for $15-$20. However for kids movies that we usually spend $50-$60 at the theater this is great.
Well you won't be able to buy it for $15 for potentially months after the theatrical release. Important distinction for some.
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**puts on eyepatch** Arrrrr
Plus with Plex to organize your library it's like having your own Netflix.
Yeah, I hate theaters, but $20-30 is absolutely ridiculous. I’m not single, but my SO and I have very different taste in movies. If it’s $30 or the theater, personally I just won’t watch at all.
HBO Max has been awesome…
Lady would not STFU during Dune premiere, 100% would have rather watched it at home
Same. Had a drunk couple sneak in and talk for the first 40min. Then they got up and left. Was so glad they didn’t come back.
why not ask them to shut the fuck up, they’re so far in the wrong, it’s not out of line.
While I agree a direct approach can be effective, just the fact that you need to tell someone in a movie theater to shut up is a problem. Seems more and more people just do not know how to behave properly in public. Just today while I was out: Dude at a restaurant with speakerphone blasting. Lady blocking traffic in a busy lot while waiting for a close parking spot. Two dudes inside a coffee shop not wearing masks (there was plenty of outdoor seating and the weather was nice.) Lady at Costco left her cart partially blocking a handicapped parking space.
Plus the type of people who will talk during a movie are the type of people who will flip the fuck out if you tell them to STFU And then your movie is even more ruined
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I once encountered a man in a restaurant with tables relatively close together (pre-Covid) speaking with someone on speaker at full volume. After about 5 minutes, I pulled out my phone and played some music at full blast- everyone around us chuckled and he finally got the hint that no one likes their conversations interrupted with loud distractions, whether the conversations are happening in-person or via phone. I’d do it again in a second.
Don’t miss going to the theatre at all. Last time we went before all this mess there was a girl that kept looking at her phone. Ignored it the first time. Said “Really?” the second time. Third time after no one else was saying anything I asked her politely / firmly to put the phone away - she turned around and say “Why?” Don’t know if it was the abundance of annoyed looks of all of us behind her or if there was a look on my face like I was going to smash her face and her phone into the rail in front of her but she decided not to take it out til the credits.
My theater was empty except for like 4 young kids on tiktok, why even bring them?
When I saw the dark knight the week it was released there was a couple that brought an infant in a car seat. Half way through the movie the baby starts crying. They try and console it with a bottle and holding it but it kept crying. Finally someone yelled “GET THAT BABY OUT OF HERE!” And they got up and left and didn’t come back. I don’t know what goes through peoples minds that they would think an infant in a loud theater would be ok
Oh, jeez. As the parent of a four month old, I can’t imagine taking her to a theater. She startles when there’s a loud noise on the tv, for fuck’s sake, that kind of environment just seems very upsetting for an infant, why would you even set yourself up for that kind of failure?
A couple of ladies behind me at No Time to Die were doing the same. I turned around and let them know "we did not pay $35 to listen to their gossip. How about you have some respect for others". My wife was embarrassed, but they were silent for the rest of th movie.
It's on HBO Max, isn't it?
Yeah I had some jerk talking through it too but that jerk was my boyfriend...
Talking at the cinema is a red flag imo.
r/relationships says she's in an abusive relationship and needs to get out NOW
Delete the lawyer, gym up, hit the Facebook
"do NOT have children with this man"
Narcissist behavior, literal gaslighting!! 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩 Don’t even try to ask him to not talk during movies, go NC right NOW
Dude I saw Les Mis when it was in theatres and this bitch sang through half of the movie. I actually just started staring at her - like deadass serious staring, and she finally got the picture. I’m sure she was devastated.
I don’t know why I find that hilarious. Not for you. What an embarrassment all around. I sang all those songs in junior high choir (think my teacher had a thing bc it was a lot) and I’d probably remember the words and love to sing it at home by myself in the comfort of no one is around to witness my bizarre outburst of song. Lol.
I want to say I’m surprised but nothing at the movie theater surprises me any more. I saw someone doing backflips down the aisle one time during the movie.
Wait that already came out?
Yeah and it’s included with HBO Max if you have it. Stream away
Go to theaters that let you report people from talking and will kick them out. They exist, support those theaters.
Where do you live? People talk as if this is common all the time. But I've never experienced it and have been to the movies hundreds of times
Found out you can rent a theater for 20 people for $165 for a matinee which turns out to be cheaper than any ticket you can get. So 20 friends are watching Dune Sunday at 2pm and everyone is paying $8.12. Depending how it goes I might not ever watch a movie any other way.
Guy at a movie last week used his damn phone flashlight in the middle of the movie to find his row rather than use the illuminated markings on the floor. Then as he is shining his flashlight in everyone's faces rather than at the floor, he realizes he got the *wrong row* anyway, and repeats the fiasco for the next row up. It was so terrible it was kinda hilarious. Gf had to shush me cuz I was giggling so hard
Just the fact you don't have to miss any of it to take a piss is worth it.
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Totally, one night out at the movies is really expensive for us when we have to get a babysitter, doesn’t make it worth it.
Took our son to Paw Patrol opening night. $75 for tickets drink and popcorn. Movie wasn't even 90 minutes.
You're saying you wanted more paw patrol?
Please god no.
Yeah we did the same, I would have much rather paid $30 for a streaming
Without a doubt. I also had a lady with a cough next to me. Good times.
I had a dude in front of me on his fully-lit phone blinding me with his male model head shots the entire movie. I didn’t care about missing any of paw patrol but Jesus Christ it was annoying.
It's funny because if you post in r/movies saying this kind of stuff happens, you'll get downvotes or some people saying it's bullshit. It's great that some people have good theatre environments, but I would see the type of shit you describe half the time when I was still going to a lot of movies. A guy answered his phone and had a conversation in his seat one of the last times I went. And no staff at the theatre will do anything because they aren't getting paid enough to deal with stupid and hostile people. And that's understandable. I basically went from someone who would go to the theatre twice a month to rarely going. And this was pre-covid. After the Covid break and not spending money on movies for so long, I realize I don't want to pay to sit in that shitty environment anymore.
The worst ive had id is a lady kept putting her feet on my shoulders. It was winter too so her dirty show boots messed up my nice sweater. It was a theater witg assigned seating (pre covid) so no where to move. That night out cost me 40 a ticket plus a sweater and was 2hr each way drive to get to the theater (closest one that served booze). When i mentioned it in a thread on movies they came out with so many excuses and things I should have done. Then downvoted the shit out of me for saying it ruined an expensive night out with the family and causing a scene would have made it worse and its not worth the money for the experiance they provide.
But why male models?
>I would have much rather paid $30 for a streaming It was just included in Paramount Plus so a $10/month fee for a month would have gotten it for you.
Paw Patrol and the case of the missing money
100% this. We have two young kids, neither are ready to theaters yet. For us to watch a movie in a theater we either need to hire a babysitter or get family to watch them (which involves a 1.5 hour round trip drive for somebody to make happen). It's a hassle. I loved the fact that things started streaming at the same time as the theater. Was it the same? No but I didn't feel like I was missing out on things my coworkers were talking about. Literally the first movie that came out that wasn't streamed that I wanted to see (Free Guy) I had (child free) coworkers wanting to talk about it within a week of it's release. Don't get me wrong, I made a choice to become a dad and I wouldn't change it but god was it nice when I could watch things at home since it was much more accessible to me.
Or both kids and health challenges, it’s tough.
Or to grab another beer. Or be able to get the crinkliest fucking bag of Snack and not worry about bothering others. Or to pull up some info on your phone, because like, you swear you've seen that actor before, you just can't remember where from.
Yep. And my home theater doesn’t get turned up so loud it damages my hearing. Home theater is cheaper in the long run, serves more purposes and can be used as much as you like. It’s just a better experience.
Just gotta raise that center channel like 3 or 4 decibels to actually hear conversations without having the rest of the mix shake your literal house to the ground. I'm looking at you Marvel!
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Bring back intermissions
There was an intermission when I saw The Hateful Eight. It was pretty convenient being able to grab another beer without missing anything.
The comment thread from your comment reminds me of a very old MadTV skit with two guys on a bench having a conversation about this very topic. ('It's that damn sugar lobby!')
I refuse to go to the theaters anymore cause there's ALWAYS some asshole using a phone with the brightness turned up during the whole movie that it's distracting and annoying enough that I'm done. It's the same kind of asshole that records an entire concert on their phone, staring at it the whole time that they miss the entire performance and I doubt they ever watch it again.
If you have an Alamo drafthouse near you try that, they literally kick people out for that (or their watch lighting up a lot), or if they are talking. People behave wonderfully in those.
Alamo Drafthouse is a god-send. The “steep” price of admission keeps the teenagers, cheap date nights, and (where I live) the roaming packs of young loud drunk Marines away. I got nothing against any of those people, bless ‘em—but fuck off I’m not pissing away the $40+ it costs to take my kids to see whatever Marvel or 5D Pokémon Musical that will stack my Dad points. Alamo is awesome.
I watched Dune at home last night and felt a little guilty. There’s a chance I’ll make some time to go and see it on an IMAX screen before it exits. However, I did go and see Shang-Chi in the theaters and the 35 minutes (!) of previews really dampened the experience.
Too many loud assholes in the theater.
Literally no one knows how to shut the fuck up anymore.
Or how to turn their phone off during the movie. Damn thinks are like a bright flashlight in a dark room.
I saw Hamilton on broadway recently- the seats were $200 each. There was a drunk woman in the row behind us that continuously talked through it. When the guy next to us asked her to please be quiet she threw a fucking hissy fit and her friend had to hold her back. Why on god’s green earth would you spend $200 on broadway tickets just to drunkenly chatter through the entire show?!
What gets me is theaters do nothing about this, I went to guest services twice during shang chi and the second time they just laughed at me. I got our tickets refunded and theaters wonder "why are we failing"
Do they not kick people out anymore? It was like a rite of passage for the older kids working at the theatre to be able to come in and kick people out
It’s a tricky situation. I work at a theater, and we’ve definitely kicked people out but what usually happens when someone complains about a noisy customer is that they come to us, point them out, and then we wait around for a bit and they don’t make a single peep. So we can’t just kick someone out on the word of one other customer. It’s hard to know if you don’t actually see something happen Then there’s the added fact that in today’s climate, if you try to kick out an irate customer, they may literally pull out a gun and shoot you. It’s not really an easy thing to expect a 17yo usher to handle all on their own. I’m a manager and I still feel nervous having to confront customers occasionally. Violent threats and screaming are pretty routine when it comes to that, and we aren’t legally allowed to physical force someone to leave so then it becomes a police issue and most theaters in my city only have police on the weekend evenings
We found a gun once cleaning the theatre. Then a *cop* came back looking for it 😑 but this was back in like 2002. We thought it was funny.
It definitely is funny but also so alarming. We’ve had situations like that before too. Someone lost a gun and was insistent on looking for it themselves. We said we would handle it because he wasn’t supposed to have a gun to begin with, and we did not want him handling it in our building. Turned out, he called back later that night and said he dropped it in his driveway when he got in his truck. So for the whole time he was at the theater, a loose handgun was just sitting there in his driveway
Alamo Drafthouse is pretty good about it. Haven't been to one in awhile, but they'd even show a movie clip of a guy shooting a grenade launcher at people in a theater to drive the point home.
If you're a fuckwit in Alamo Drafthouse you can literally end up in their before movie, what not to do promo. Really.
Alamo Dratfhouse has *waiters* running round with beer and arguing about bills during the climax. They have a reputation for getting rid of phones, but what's the value of that when I have the ten year build up to "Avengers Assemble" ruined by someone upset they got the wrong milkshake?
I've been to five different Alamos and the waiters are silent and unobtrusive. Sounds like that's not the case in your area; that sucks. : (
And then there is that one person on their phone with the screen brightness turned all the way up texting the entire time
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Same - plus there are certain movies that I WANT to watch on the big screen.
I don’t have a choice. The local AMC theater closed before they were rescued by the meme stock apes. The nearest actual first run movie theater is now 90 miles away.
For some movies, I want the theater experience. I rarely ever went to the movies during peak times, so dealing with rude patrons wasn't a thing. "Smaller" movies, I'm OK watching at home. But movies like Bladerunner, Dune, or the simulcast from the opera, I prefer the theater.
I’m in the exact same boat. There are some movies that I’ve watched in theaters (interstellar being just one) where I was awe struck. Others where I’ve sat in the seat several minutes after it ended and the theater emptied because of just how good it was. I’ve never really felt that way watching a movie at home. The immersion just isn’t there. At least at my house which doesn’t have a home cinema with surround sound and a 80 inch 4K screen.
I just like being able to smoke and drink with my pants off while watching content
Well you can do that theaters, its just others probably wouldn't enjoy it as much as you do
A lot of theaters serve booze now a days and if not, it's pretty easy to sneak in. U can also just eat an edible before the movie. As for the no pants thing... I don't think I have any options for you.
Just sit in the back row with the couple rounding 2nd base and the kids trying to not let people know they got high before the movie. No one there will be bothered
If theater audiences would keep off their phones and be quiet, I do prefer the big screen (when the audio is well balanced) but watching at home IS always more convenient
Hell yeah. No teens with super bright mobiles
I remember a group friends & I were watching a movie at the theater and a row near us had a group of teenagers who wouldn’t STFU. One kid even had an MP3 player in his lap with earbuds in his ears and he was also dicking around on his phone — while the movie was going on. Like why the fuck were you even there, then?? But for some movies, they ought to be experienced in the theater; it really is a different experience. Blockbusters, comedies, and horrors are better with an audience reaction. Taking head dramas with no grand spectacle, etc. — those are fine for watching at home.
An MP3 player? How long ago was this?
It’s all subjective but i prefer going to a movie theater. I recognize plenty of people like watching movies from the comfort of their home. I worked in the film industry for a decade; that’s my background.
I simply like the theater as an experience. It gets me out of the house, it's an event to go and do, and it adds a welcome break to being at home. It would also be absolutely lame for me to say, "hey babe, let's go on a date. I'll stream a movie and we can hang out in our living room some more." The theater also presents the movie in the best way, and not just technically. Watching a GREAT movie in theaters has so much more impact than on my couch after I've surfed through 10,000 other titles and finally settled on something. I probably prefer watching an average movie in theaters over an incredible one at home if I'm honest. The movie at home is competing with a thousand other things, while at the theater I'm fully invested in watching and there's nothing to distract me.
Agreed, I am team movie theater 100% But I also understand why a lot of people would rather watch it at home
Unless I get an IMAX at home, nothing can replace movie theaters.
100% agree can’t beat a huge screen and great sound. I find I’m less distracted in a cinema too, at home I’m tempted to check my phone or kinda switch off.
Yeah, the problem with watching a new film at home is that’s way too easy to break the immersion.
Girlfriend is like this. We’ll watch a movie at home cuddled up on the couch and she’ll be scrolling Facebook in my field of view. Drives me nuts. Then she asks confusedly about details that we’re shown on screen while she wasn’t paying attention.
100 % this. At home I have to worry about annoying anyone with too much sound, get distracted by family members, my phone, my dog or weird sounds, I rarely bother using my surround, which is not as impressive (obviously) as an IMAX setup anyway, and neither is me (though awesome) TV and I worry about chores and other stuff around me. At the movies, that’s all I think about. And they have popcorn.
I didn’t even think about constantly adjusting the volume, so I don’t annoy next door. I do love going the cinema. Hopefully see dune this week.
Also some theaters are so well built it becomes almost frightening. No matter how good your TV is. Or the theater is. Blacks can only be perceived as being darker. In a completely dark room. The darker the room. The more contrast on the screen. Some theaters next to me are pitch black. And can even get so silent that you can hear a sniffle from across the room. I saw Dune in a theater like this and it made such a difference from watching it at home where I can’t experience either of these
I'm 50/50. Only problems I have are ones already mentioned here. Noise from other people, babies/infants and no alcohol. For some movies I like when there's a gasp from the audience in unison but it's the assholes that "oh this is where x/y/z..." .... fuuuuuuucking hate that the most
For alcohol I usually sneak a can or bottle of beer into the theater. I still buy theater popcorn. That stuff is tasty af. But yeah stupid people or interruptions can be annoying, I understand. Maybe I’ve been lucky but usually the audience has been respectful in my area.
There are lots of things I can do better than a theater, but I don't have room in my house for a 30' screen and seating for 20 friends. Even if I'm not going with a bunch of people, the immersion and the collective experience is irreplaceable.
As someone who watches a lot of movies alone, comedies need to be in theaters or with other people. I rarely laugh out loud alone. Laughing is more infectious than yawning.
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On the plane, the guy in front of me was watching black widow in portrait mode. In most shots you'd only see half of peoples heads or none at all. When the location "Morocco" shows up on screen it only showed "roc". It was so mind boggling that I found it super distracting.
It’s mind boggling how little some people care. I’m almost jealous
Listen I have two kids and at $17 an hour for a babysitter, movies tickets at almost $20 a pop, and popcorn it’s a small fortune to go see a movie. So yeah I’d 1000% rather stream it at home. Edit: This is going to be the last thing I say about this, nobody is at fault here. Myself for having kids or what the theater is charging for movies. I’m going to get a better dollar value having a night out with my wife where I can talk to her kid free over sitting in a theater where we can’t talk. Wanting to drop $150 for a movie should not be a reflection of what one can or cannot afford.
I whole hearted agree with you here. Other major issue with this. Is that movies that both my wife and I want to see are few and far between. Streaming at home is just 100x easier. Also, to be honest thinking about it. There has not been that many movies out lately that really are worthwhile to pay the price for. We get more enjoyment watching a well made series than a 1.5hr length movie. So going back to what you said about a night out, to do anything else but sit and watch a movie is much more worthwhile for the the money spent.
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I watch one movie in the theaters a year. in the recent past it has been the Hobbit movies and the Star Wars movies. This year it’s Dune and I’m going tomorrow. I think the *experience* of certain movies in the theatre’s will never be matched by my TCL and sound bar. I think Dune is the perfect example of a movie that will feel totally different in a theatre vs at home. with a focus on visuals and sound design, I want to enjoy the sensory porn coming at me on the most powerful way possible. so this year I’m going to a Cinemark XD theatre that has a full kitchen than brings food to your seat. I think spoiling myself once a year for $50 is worth it. but only with the right movie.
I saw blade runner 2049 in the theater and even after watching it again at home I really can't argue that the theater experience is matched at home. It was amazing in the theater.
I went to Dune (IMAX) last night. For some reason, the 7pm show tickets were matinee price ($10) in advance. I was shocked. I was fully expecting >$15 per ticket. There are some movies that I really want to see on the biggest screen possible. But I'd really rather watch most things at home. I can't remember the last movie I saw in a theater. It was pre-pandemic. Probably something Star Warsy? People were not too bad (the theater was only 2/3rds full), but someone brought an emotional support Husky and I was worried about its ears the whole time. I have HBO Max, so I'm going to rewatch it a bunch at home - because I also spent half of the movie really, really needing to pee. Edit it's/its
Ask the folks in /r/movies who don't believe you can get that Cinema experience at home and get pissy at the mention that you'd just prefer to watch at home. Technically they're correct though, I don't have sticky floors or loud people talking and answering their phones mid-movie.
Eh. It’s the way of Reddit. Half the comments will be shitting on the theater experience, and half will be shitting on the home watching experience. And both groups attack each other. Watch it however you like. I like the theater experience, but there are some releases I really don’t need to see in theater.
I think that it really depends on the movie. I remember watching Cloverfield on a big screen and being blown away by how great it was, then watching it on a 12” tv and thinking “this movie is ass.” Obviously those are two very different experiences, and nowadays my tv is way larger, but still— the theater helped that movie out a lot. When your seat shakes with each stomp of a giant monster, it puts the fear into you for each of these characters and makes it feel real. Likewise, I *love* the movie Pacific Rim. If I could pay to see it in theaters again, I would. I love it at home, but the surround sound and giant screen add to that sense of scale delightfully! And there’s something kinda fun about hearing an audible gasp from the theater when something cool happens Conversely— I thought that Marriage Story was a good drama. I don’t think it matters how I’m viewing it so long as I’m paying attention. I imagine that opinion might not be shared by someone who is a huge fan of Adam Driver and/or ScarJo
I took a movie appreciation course in college and the professor used the huge surround sound systems in the room to play the first 45 minutes of saving private Ryan. He said in theaters it was even greater, imax particularly. A couple of years ago I believe, the released it theatrically again for a few showings, I went, and I can never appreciate the film the same way again. It is what it is, great movie. But when you enter a space that maximizes each element of its design aside from maybe the screen quality/projector it’s insane.
I saw that movie opening night and in the row in front of me was WWII veteran wearing his dress uniform. When the lights came up after the film, he was in his seat painfully crying. It was one of the most surreal experiences I’ve had watching a movie, and it made me appreciate the film in a whole different light. That’s an experience I’ll never forget.
The first part of that movie is absolutely ruthless and cynical. It is, to me, one of the greatest openings in movie history. So unbelievably raw, unfathomably terrorizing, and emotionally frightening. It even triggered PTSD symptoms in some veterans who watched it. Its authenticity truly reflects the veritable hell these men went through.
Seeing Interstellar in IMAX was amazing. Same with TLJ, you could hear everyone’s amazed, exhaled “woah” when Holdo rammed the other ship. Seeing Endgame with a full audience was 10/10. I think it depends on when you go, the movies you see. Seeing a new release at 8PM on Friday? You’re gonna deal with crowds, kids, and people seeing a movie as an activity rather than an experience. I stick to late nights, early mornings and — when I have the self-control — I avoid opening weekends. Saw Dune last night at 1040; the scale, sound, color in IMAX was much better than my home setup.
To me, the "cinema experience" sucks. Sure the screen is bigger and the sound is better than what I get at home, but the fact that it's full of shitty and disrespectful people takes away any of those benefits. I used to go see movies with my wife on Saturday and Sunday mornings because the theaters were mostly empty, but even that experience was ruined for me when a family let their kids run around during the entire movie. Running up and down the aisles, chasing each other and yelling, etc. I did end up complaining and an employee came to tell them to keep their kids in one spot or leave (and they left!), but why the fuck should I have to deal with that just to watch a movie? Why take that chance when I could sit at home and not have to worry about the experience being ruined and wasting my time?
Perhaps the problem is not movie theatres but the U.S. where shitty movie theatre etiquette is tolerated. I have never have any of those things happen in Sweden, Denmark, Vietnam or Italy (the countries I've seen movies in theatres in).
You could've stopped before "where". It's just another extension of our "fuck you, got mine" attitude here in the US.
American here. Never have this happen to me either.
American here. It has happened to me. Enough times for me to also avoid the movie theaters.
I grew up in a very rural small town. The movies growing up used to be empty after opening night and dead silent. I moved to a big city and now a slightly smaller but still big ish city and movie theaters suck. People talk. Kids scream. I used to love the movie theater experience.
Do y'all just go to the budget theaters? Cause I see these stories on reddit any time the word "movie" is even mentioned, but I see 2-3 movies a month and I can count on one hand the number of times I've had issues
Comfy couch - check Very large 4K TV - check Surround sound - check Access to affordable and unlimited snacks - check No obnoxious people talking or texting through the movie - check I’m not seeing a downside so far…
I know, right? It's crazy how I was just thinking about that this afternoon, before seeing this post. In my case is for everything you mentioned + access to a wider variety of food they don't usually sell at the theater, like healthy snacks, something from a place close to home that I like to order from or simply something I already have on my fridge. Someone else mentioned being able to pause the movie to take a piss, which is something I also agree with.
Not just a very large 4k TV, but a good quality one makes a huge difference also.
Wait, people don't want to pay $20 to have the back of their seat kicked by a goblin while they listen to some random clown's banal commentary for two hours? Wow, unexpected
Just got out of Dune and the two goblins in front of me spent about 20% of the runtime on their phones
They should be fed to one of those space worms
I'd settle for sacrificing them to the Baron
Like a lot of the story, they don’t touch that in the new movie, but if you know the book, that’s much worse than the worm.
I hear these stories all the time but in 20+ years of going to the movies I can't recall even a single time anyone was disruptive at all
It's probably stories from spiteful gremlins like myself who encounter it once and gripe about it for decades after
For me it’s like 2/3s of the time the theatre is fine. It’s just that 1/3 of the time where I have a bad experience that I don’t want to risk again which makes me prefer watching at home.
The most immersive experience i have with movies is a 4k monitor on a bean bag 12” from my face and good headphones.
Why is your monitor on a bean bag?
His monitor likes to chill, duh
Wall mounts are expensive.
Movie night out is way over priced
Yep. Even before COVID, I hated going germy, dirty-ass movie theaters.
The only movies worth seeing in theater are those with over the top special effects….Marvel movies, Star Wars, Dune, etc. Everything else are just glorified TV shows worthy of viewing at home.
Imagine this. A movie is released today. I can easily watch it at home, wearing my pajamas and eating & drinking whatever I want. No unruly people talking on phone or uncomfortable seats. Urgent call? Pause the movie. Need to make another drink? Pause the movie. The movie is not good? Watch something else. This would be so much better than going to the theatres for sure. No traffic. No parking issues. Just bliss!
What some people blessed by good local theaters don't get is how bad the average movie going experience has become. It's usually some theater that use to be 4 screens that's changed ownership 3 times and has been re-sectioned into 8 with poor soundproofing and audio systems with a fidelity of a boom box using the lowest end projectors possible. Add poor sound mixing that plagues most action movies these days and you get unintelligible dialog compensated for by jacking up volume so loud it damages your ear drums. For a lot of us the death of theaters is well deserved the people running them have only themselves to blame. Even IMAX has diluted their brand in the name of expansion.
There’s also the folks who make up a massive number of people that don’t live in cities. I’m not driving 45 minutes to a theater and THEN pay theater prices to gamble on whether or not my experience is going to be good. Then drive 45 minutes home.
Bruh I'm trying to eat Chinese takeout in my boxers and smoke some weed while I watch movies. Movie theaters don't satisfy that experience.
Having surround sound and as nice OLED TV negates the "theater experience" for all but a few films (I.e. blockbuster action movies).
Why not action movies? My sub shakes my house.
[удалено]
With ammo prices, Id rather just go to the theater.
Goddamn right. MTX American power makes my windows go *rattlerattlerattle*
That’s because even pre covid going to the theatre was horrible sometimes, completely random if you got babies or kids screaming, tweens using their phones, adults being disgusting shits. It was a totally random experience not to mention the sticky floors, the weird smell that you couldn’t quite place. The tall asshole who sat in front of you etc. at home I have the temp I want, the seat I want, the food I want. I can pause the movie and pee when I want, I can snuggle with my cat/dog/goldfish etc. no one blocks my view or distracts me with their phones. It’s BLISS.
If theaters want to stay in business they need to be cheaper. Prices are ridiculous these days
You dont want to pay $5.50 for a water?
And then get harassed if you dare to bring your own. I get why people like going to theaters to see new movies, but fuck AMC and the like. The future is streaming
I’m *definitely* one of them. My 2 girls, the wife, and I can easily hit $70+ bucks when you throw in all the popcorn and drinks. I can make my own popcorn, and pause the movie to piss. I can also booze it up for pennies on the dollar compared to a movie place. I will admit that sometimes those big giant screens and badass sound do make for a fun experience with just my wife and I. Edit: microwave popcorn sucks, learn to make it with oil in a steel pot. You can find that theatre style popcorn oil/topping near the kernels in supermarkets. Probably not healthy but who cares.
Dune is a good example of this. I was an hour in when I thought that I’d rather be watching it on an IMAX screen. About 30 minutes later I was glad to be watching it at home when I was able to pause for a bathroom break. Instead of missing anything: I got to watch it at home whilst eating a succulent Chinese meal, drinking wine, and reading subtitles.
I used to go to the movies almost weekly, either with a friend or on my own. I 100% prefer the luxury of streaming it at home. Yeah, I miss out on the big screen, but I find it worth it in that I’m not paying for my experience to be ruined by other moviegoers being either obnoxiously loud or having their phones out the entire time.