An article on Yahoo noted that we are in the midst of the greatest movie box office slump in history (so to speak), as we've now gone something like 17 or 18 weekends in a row where ticket sales failed to better those of the same weekend of the previous year. While theories abound as to why this is happening, I do have a theory.
IT COSTS TOO DAMN MUCH TO SEE MOVIES IN THE THEATER.
Or, perhaps more accurately:
IT COSTS TOO DAMN MUCH TO SEE THE MOVIES WE'RE BEING OFFERED IN THE THEATER.
Why, for example, am I going to shell out $10 to see something like Bewitched in the theater when I can bide my time and see it for less than half of that (or less than a quarter if you consider I'd be seeing it with the wife) in the comfort of my own home. I can even use Netflix or on demand services to make the viewing experience that much more convenient.
(That being said, Bewitched still made over $20 million this weekend.)
I'm more likely to see "event" movies in the theater, but even then I've learned from past experience that they are likely going to disappoint me, so I'm only going to see a select few of them.
And let's not even get into the gougetastic world of movie concessions. I now pay more for popcorn and a soda than I did to get a movie ticket not all that long ago. That's not helping to being me into the theater.
I don't know if the only answer is lower prices, but I tend to think that'd be a good start.
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2 comments:
The cost of a movie is outrageous, I cannot imagine taking an entire family out for a movie.
I know living in Manhattan prices are high, but by the time I am done 2 tickets, one large soda, and one popcorn is nearly $40, and most of the time the movie isn't even worth it.
I think in 5-10 years the movie theater will be a thing of the past, people will just not accept the prices and the low quality of the offerings.
I do think there is something to the movie theatre experience, but isn't the theatrical release now just an ad for the DVD, much like the television series' original airing is just a promotional vehicle for the boxed set. Especially given what the studios make off of DVDs, I would think that they are secretly enjoying the idea that people don't want to go to the theatres any more, and will just buy the DVDs instead.
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