In recent years, we have been consistently reminded of the many hassles with attending movie theaters. Ticket prices are extremely high, people are exceedingly rude and, on average, a small popcorn will run you about ten dollars. Alright, point taken. There are several problems associated with going to the movies. So why do we still attend? With all of the technological advances in home theaters and in light of the FCC’s decision to allow the streaming of new theatrical releases directly to our home televisions, why would we continue to subject our nerves and wallets to the constant onslaught of the theater going experience? Simple-- because there’s nothing else like it, and we
know it.

It’s the atmosphere...

Walking into a movie theater, we are instilled with a sort of exhilaration that only an actual theater can provide. Whether it be of classic decor, with silk curtains draping the walls, conjuring up images of golden age Hollywood glamour, or of contemporary design with stadium seating and leg room to spare, movie theaters illicit a feeling of wonder and anticipation. Before the film even begins, many of us feel privileged just to be there.

...the sights and sounds...

No matter how much time and money we spend obtaining the finest quality, hi tech equipment for our homes, the effect will never come close to matching that of a genuine theater. Unless we are wealthy enough to possess an actual movie screen within the walls of our homes, (and a room large enough to encompass it), we can never match to the magnitude of a theater screen. Because of its sheer size, a movie screen removes all distractions that immediately surround the film, allowing it to completely engage our vision and mind; (unlike the experience we get at home). Add to this the vast, specially designed space of the theater, which allows for the advanced surround sound system to play off of its acoustics, and we’ve got a truly engaging experience. All of this enables the observer to see and hear everything merged the way moviemakers intended, completing the final masterpiece that is film.

The unified intensity of sights and sounds so deeply immerses us in the experience that a heightened sense of awareness often escalates us into a state of suspended reality. This feeling grabs hold of us so strongly that it does not let go of us for hours afterward-- long after we have left the theater. No matter how great the film, I have never walked away from my television feeling like that.

...the adventure...

Do you remember how special it was before the time of home recording devices, when we
would have to wait for our favorite movie to be played on cable, because that was the only way
we were able to see it? We would wait with anticipation for those few exciting hours, knowing
that we may not see the film again for awhile. However, when these devices came out, allowing us
to watch a movie at anytime, the event was somehow not as remarkable. Not only were we
able to view movies anytime we pleased, but also anyway we pleased. We could now press
stop at anytime, walk away, and just pick it up later; if we missed something, we could simply
rewind. Other great events cannot be suspended in such a way- a sunset, a storm- but now you can
pause a great adventure, a terrible tragedy? This somehow takes away from the wonder of a film.

It’s the same idea when we are watching movies at the theater as compared to in our homes. At the theater, we make sure that everything is set ahead of time, because there is no pausing and walking away. No taking a break to get up for snacks, no stopping to clean the living room, and heaven forbid you should have to use the bathroom. Some people find this is an inconvenience, but others consider this is one of the great joys of attending the show-- to be completely transported to another world, just for a little while, with the singular focus of our attention centered on the screen. No stopping to deal with phone calls, kids, and the like. For those couple of hours, our world is that movie, and we cannot just walk away. If we do, even just for a second, we will miss something-- and that makes it all the more special.

...and the friends we meet along the way...

One of the few occasions where people are comfortable planting themselves in the middle of a crowd for two hours is during a movie. Not before the show starts, (when we’re hoping that our strategically placed coats will maintain a minimum five foot, “people-free” radius around us at all times), but during the actual movie. Let’s not get into all of the complaints that we have about the people that often surround us, because we’ve heard it and personally encountered it hundreds of times. Instead, let’s focus on how wondrous it can be when a group of people experience something as one. Someone’s hysterical cackle from across the room makes us laugh even harder at the comedy we’re watching, someone’s scream from behind frightens us more than the horror movie itself, and the uncontrollable weeping coming from the person two rows ahead emotionally links us to that person, (and assures us that we’re not the most pathetic individuals in the theater). Yes, we know that people have always been and will continue to be ignorant, obnoxious and rude. However, they may also be the key to our movie going experience. When all of us come together, simultaneously feeling and exhibiting the same emotions, a collective consciousness pervades the theater and at the end, it’s as if you’ve experienced a magnificent adventure alongside a close group of friends-- and the journey would never have been the same without them.

...that create a magical experience...
So, no matter how much we spend on our home systems and how much we kid ourselves into believing that sitting at home is the same experience as attending an actual theater, we know it isn’t. Movies are larger than life and they require a space of equal magnitude in which to exhibit them.

In the end, it is not the ambiance, the size of the screen, or the people that surround us- it is all of these things. It is a unique combination of factors whose likeness cannot be replicated by any other means, each part that makes up the whole of the “theater experience”.

There will never be a substitute for our theaters. They are a part of our history and a part of movie making itself. Hopefully our tendency toward instant gratification and our intolerance for one another will not allow this great institution to fade out. I, for one, would find this a great tragedy.

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