Theatres nationwide are raking in less and less money, despite gaudy summer blockbusters. Hmmm….let’s think about this.
1. This is the DVD era. Netflix and Blockbuster have mail-order subscription services for DVDs that come out 3-6 months following theatre release, allowing family viewing of films for essentially fixed cost. Contrast that with $10/ticket + popcorn. Oh yeah, about that
2. This is the HD TV era. For better or worse, even Joe Schmo out there has a 16:9 Plasma screen with Subwoofers the size of your Aunt Edna’s purse.
3. Movies suck. Michael Bay (“Armageddon”) and the MTV generation of directors who can work a gimick but can’t tell a story have one-upped themselves out of existence. Go watch “The Godfather” and compare it to any of the current crop of blockbusters. Its painful to see how little $100 million buys you these days.
4. This is the big thing: Society has changed. Where once you *had* to go to the theatre to get the broad vistas of a “Gone with the Wind”, theatre-going is an exception now. This is the quote that’s killing theatres: “That looks good enough to see in a theatre.” Your LOTR series or “Star Wars” movies are “event” films that you want to watch much like an opera or symphony, but that’s just not necessary for most films these days.
Hollywood needs to change its production + distribution model, because in 20 years, theatres as we know them today won’t exist.