Skip the theater, Get the DVD? (2 Viewers)

[BrianB]

I'm sure an American up for the big crow experience would have been sorely disappointed as there was no applause, no cheering, no real reaction to anything: people were quite stoic, but when comparing notes with co-workers I was told that was par for the course.

Definitely. Brits generally don't get as "worked up" at the end of films the way a stereotypical American audience does. There's little cheering/clapping.

 

[Chris Bardon]

Actually, it does. From my daughter's birth till today (less than 4 years), I've bought almost 1000 DVD. For each movie I do not watch in a theatre, I saved around CAD$12. Therefore so far I've saved around CAD$10K. That's a LOT of money saved.

Point, but you've also SPENT about $25 000 on DVDs. Would you go to see 250 movies a year in theaters?

 

[David Susilo]

From 1992 until 1998 (the year my daughter was born), I used to watch at least 4 movies a week. At times, I start my Saturday around noon to catch the first show and go from one movie to the next (about 4 movies) until their very last show of the day.

So yeah, I do save THAT much.

 

[DaViD Boulet]

My goal is in the next year or so to install a projection system in my HT room with a nice 30 degree viewing angle (probably one of the new 16x9 HD-1 chip DLPs...or HD-2 DLPs by that time).

That way, watching a movie at home, if the DVD is well-recorded, will afford the same high-quality, big-screen impact as going to the local cinema.

My friend has the Sharp 9000 and good DVDs literally look so much like film (some look almost HD-like training day and Toy Story) that you just get chills. And all this on a screen you have to turn your head to view from edge to edge!

-dave

 

[Dan M]

I love my HT but I still say the theater is the best way to watch any movie. Size does matter to any film IMO. The larger the screen the more I'm drawn into the story. There's nothing like the look of well projected film.

I have a 56" widescreen with progressive scan dvd (RP91) and an Onkyo 989. It looks and sounds great but I still go the theater for the ultimate movie experience.

We have some nice, well calibrated theaters in my area. I go to about 4 different ones and they all do a pretty good job. The patrons are usually very well behaved. I feel for those of you who have to deal with rude people at the theater. I very rarely encounter that.

But then, I usually go early and there's very few people there at that time!

Now when HD dvd arrives, I may stay at home a little more. But I'll never have a 50' screen!

 

[Brian Kleinke]

I do this all the time. Very very few movies will I even watch in the theater, just waiting for the DVD.

Granted our screens around here all suck so my insentive goes down even more.

Brian

 

[Steven L]

I wait for the DVD, but cost isn’t a factor for me.
Like a couple of other folks on this thread, I've seen exactly two movies at the theater in the past three years - and both had “Star Wars” in the title.
I don't have to watch a movie on the big screen when it first comes out. I'm quite content to wait until the DVD gets released (but I have to get the DVD on its release date - weird huh?). And yes, I totally agree that the big screen theater experience is better than the home (BTW, I have a 65" WS) most of the time.
The overriding factor for me is how I spend my entertainment time (not money). I have a young child, and my wife and I VERY rarely get time alone. The rare times we do manage to go out for an evening, I'd much rather spend "face to face" in each other's company, rather than "side by side" passively watching a screen and not interacting. So I guess for me, it’s a matter of how I want to spend the limited time we have alone together. Oh God – I’m starting to sound like a guest on Oprah – I think I’ll stop now.
Before we had kids (and a home theater), we did go to the movies often. However, I am quite happy with my home theater and I’m not sure if I’ll go back to regular movie-going as the kids get older.
I don't think I’ve answered your question definitively...

 

[MikeDeVincenzo]

My Theater Tips:
1. Chances are there are several movie theaters in your area that are the teen hangouts. Avoid these like the Dude from the Big Lebowski avoided steady employment.
2. Go to the latest show possible. Shows after 11 pm are best: Minimal teenage element, minimal people in general.
3. Stay away from mainstream theaters in general. Chances are something far more interesting is playing in your local indie/foreign theater. And you'll find the crowds to be much lighter on teenagers, cell phone blabbers, and other such annoyances
4. And finally, never ever EVER get seduced by the concession stand. And teach your children to avoid them too...my parents did, and every time I walk past that tempting $3.75 bag of small popcorn, I thank them!

 

[Qui-Gon John]

2. Go to the latest show possible. Shows after 11 pm are best: Minimal teenage element, minimal people in general.

I would also add go to an early morning show if possible. A couple of the big theaters near me show the fairly new movies at 10am. I find very low crowds and matinee prices.

 

[Scott-C]

I would also add go to an early morning show if possible. A couple of the big thaters near me show the fairly new movies at 10am. I find very low crowds and matinee prices.

I'll second that idea. My wife and I saw Spiderman the weekend it opened, late on Sunday morning. We paid matinee prices and were two of about 25 people in the theater. It was one of the better commercial cinema experiences we've had in a while.

 

[Mickey Brown]

It kills me how some of the HTF people will complain that movie drinks and popcorn is so expensive, then buy a DVD for $25 they only watch once, on their $6000 home theater.

 

[Scott-C]

It kills me how some of the HTF people will complain that movie drinks and popcorn is so expensive, then buy a DVD for $25 they only watch once, on their $6000 home theater.

Point well taken, and I think your comments are reflective of the fact that everyone places a different economic value on things. Everyone chooses to spend their money in different ways. For some, the home theater experience is worth more (much more, in some cases) than the commercial cinema experience. It's all in how an individual values various economic choices. And there's no universally correct or incorrect choices; that's the beauty of free enterprise!

 

[Dan Galyen]

I have a perplexing dilemma. I agree with most that I only like going to "event" movies (AOTC, LOTR, HPATCOC, Spiderman). I've had enough experiences with rude individuals at theaters. However, my fiancee likes to go to the theater 2-3x per WEEK just to go to the theater.

She grew up in a small town where going to the movies was really all she did. However, every once in a while one will come along that really surprises me (The Majestic), a movie that I wouldn't have normally seen.

We're both military, and she has not had the pleasure of seeing the new home theater setup with projector and 100" screen at home. Hopefully once she sees this I can buck the trend of fighting going to the theater. However, I fear for my projector bulb budget in the future...

 

[Scott-C]

...the new home theater setup with projector and 100" screen at home

Right, like we're really going to feel bad for you and that "dilemma"!

 

[Dick]

Back in the 60's and 70's there was no week when I didn't hit a theater, sometimes even seeing two or three films in a single evening. There was almost always a decent movie playing locally. During the 80's I slowly began losing interest in attending movies at theaters, for numerous reasons: 1] Ticket prices were growing excessive. 2] Audiences were growing moronic. 3] Projection quality began to suffer - I was more and more often getting up out of my seat to complain about focus, framing and sound problems. 4] Fewer decent movies were coming out. I was at that point investing heavily in VHS and laser disc (and even RCA SelectaVision) for my movie needs. Currently, I very rarely hit a theater. I despise the staccato editing style used on about 75% of todays films - reveals an immeasurable lack of talent. I loathe the idiotic screenplays that have forgotten how effective good dialog can be without using "fuck" in every other line. I find the sound way too loud in digital theaters. And the poor projection, moronic audience and high price issues have only grown more acute. I have never ceased being a HUGE movie fan and collector. Now, however, I actually prefer running films in my very humble home theater (32" direct-view screen and Dolby Digital) to risking a bad experience at a theater. I do force myself to go for something like MINORITY REPORT and LORD OF THE RINGS, and sometimes I've come out quite satisfied, but stuff like A BEAUTIFUL MIND and IN THE BEDROOM can wait for DVD. I really have a nostalgic space in my heart for the old days, but as has so many times been said, "You can never go home."

 

[MikeDeVincenzo]

Mickey
I WISH I had a $6,000 dollar home theater...but for now I've got to settle for my relatively modest rig...someday!

 

[Patrick_L]

although i agree with all of your post Dick.....
Amen to that...
and do we REALLY need to have t*ts and *ss in just about every movie now? what happened to the imagination??! and at 32 i'm not an old prude either!

 

[Sean Aaron]

I have to concur that the general lack of quality is keeping me away as well. I'm tired of MTV-Style editing and films that clearly have more story to tell, but are afraid of boring young audiences with exposition.

People complained about the slowness of A.I. and Unbreakable, but frankly it was nice to see films that took their time in telling a story for a change. I don't need a movie to be 120-min. or less, I need it to be told as the creators see fit.

 

[Vickie_M]

It might be interesting to hear how many of the people who prefer the theater have a large screen at home.

(insert "raises hand smiley" here because I can't find one).
We have a ceiling-mounted projector and large screen, plus over 1000 DVDs, not to mention dozens of LDs and hundreds of videos, and we STILL prefer the theater experience. There's just no substitute for us. We see a lot of matinee films. I went to see Road To Perdition, Insomnia and Reign of Fire the other day and my total spent was $17.50. I paid for each movie individually (I don't sneak), but I took some Smarties in a plastic bag, a bottle of water, and stayed far away from the consession stand.
I hate waiting to see films. I like seeing a film I want to see as soon as possible. I like the fact that when the Academy Award nominations were announced this year, I'd already seen all 5 of the Best Picture nominees. I get antsy and depressed if circumstances are such that I can't go to the theater as often as I like (which happens far too often than I'd like).
Personally, I hope I never lose the desire to see films in the theater, because that would mean that I've lost something important about/inside myself.

 

[Kenneth Hoiland]

I find this discussion baffling. And it does a lot to justify and build up under the general European consensus that Americans are rude and loud. Yes, we do think so.. no offense it's just different cultures. I am Norwegian, but live in Glasgow Scotland. And I am the happy owner of a UGC Cinema Unlimited Card. This card costs me 10£ (about 13 USD) per month and gives me unlimited access to all the movies I want to see in all the UGC Cinemas in Great Britain (a few London cinemas are excluded). And with the new UGC Cinema building here in Glasgow. Brand new, 18 screens over 12 stories there is usually very good quality on the presentations. (Sean, Brian: There are some neds, but hey, you can't tun around in Glasgow without seeing them so why even get bothered..) There is the occasional mobile ringing, but that is usually muffled quickly, and the perpetrator is usually also quite embarrassed that the phone was left on. And occasionally there is something that can be annoying, loud teenagers, someone running to the toilets etc. But movies are still best experienced in movie theaters.
I go about 2-4 times a week. usually there aren't enough new movies coming out so I see some two or three times.. LOTR instantly comes to mind..
I also have a 72" CRT projected home cinema that gets loads of hours on it, but it still can't beat the feeling of a cinema IMHO.
In Norway however I was in a different situation, as a DVD reviewer I got loads of DVDs sent out for free, and did not go to the cinema that often. I lived 2 minutes away, and usually bought cinema popcorn and brought it home to my own theater. My friends used to call my apartment Screen 13 as the Cinema in Bergen had 12 screens...
Maybe you cost conscious should petition the US chains for a similar type card in the US.. As stated previously in the tread they make their money on the concession stand anyway..
Now if only there could be a subscription on popcorn..
My two cents
kenneth