Movies Today: Cost Triumphs Over Nostalgia & The Magic of Cinema

I grew up watching movies on VHS and DVD. There was a time when folks would use their VCRs to record things off the air. I remember owning DVDs like the Godfather and feeling no small amount of awe that I had the privilege of owning a film masterpiece, with the right to watch it whenever I please. I remember when Netflix used to send DVDs in the mail, Blockbuster had a competing service, and Redbox vending machines started popping up outside of drug stores and inside supermarkets. Home video changed what was possible for people to access, how films were valued, and how people—especially children—were able to form memories around movies. Streaming augmented and exacerbated those changes by making thousands, now tens and hundreds of thousands, of films available at the touch of a finger.

Streaming has become the primary avenue for what used to be “straight to DVD movies,” increasingly what were called “TV movies,” and more recently low-budget and mid-budget movies that used to find places in theaters. With the advent of HBO Max, and Warner Bros.’s response to COVID, you can now watch some blockbusters at home. I saw Judas and the Black Messiah, Mortal Kombat, The Many Saints of Newark, and Dune in my own living room, and I’ve got to say – it was sweet. I would like to have seen them, especially Dune, in theaters. But the experience wasn’t ruined for me because I saw it on my couch.

The cinema is an excellent place to experience a film. Big screens, surround sound, the reactions of fellow audience members… what’s not to love? Life being what it is now, in the throws of a global pandemic against which we’re winding down precaution, there are still some risks being taken when you go to a movie theater, or any public place. But even outside of a pandemic, movie theaters have one relative downside to watching films at home: cost.

If you’re already paying for a streaming service, getting to watch a brand-new movie is real icing on a cake layered with classic films and beloved shows. And, as aforementioned, for many films that’s the only way you’ll see them. Netflix and Hulu both premiere and publish original material these days, in addition to their massive contracted catalogs. While Warner put all of their new movies this year on HBO simultaneous with theatrical releases, Disney also made some of theirs available on Disney+ at extra cost. It can be a bargain, but it’s also about comfort.

You may not totally be able to totally replicate the in-theater experience, but with some blackout curtains, you can come close. And you can set subtitles. And run scenes back. And pause them. It’s like how watching a football game at home gives you access to instant replay, and the beer is already paid for. Popcorn made on my stove is far less expensive, and far fresher, than at a concession stand, and I know exactly what the butter topping is made of. I don’t have to sneak any candy in – it’s just here, in my house. And no one has to try to explain missed plot beats to me in hushed tones if I get up to use the bathroom.

This is not me saying people shouldn’t see movies in theaters. I love theaters. Some of my best childhood memories are in theaters – midnight showings for Revenge of the Sith; seeing Accepted and Corpse Bride on different birthdays. And as an adult – watching MCU movies before getting bored of their schtick; Mad Max; The Green Knight. 

When you feel safe, go to theaters! Especially if you’re lucky enough to live in Philadelphia and have access to Landmark Theatre’s Ritz in the Society Hill area, where you can see some independent and art films (Ritz East is temporarily closed, but Ritz Five is showing Spencer and The French Dispatch; I saw Jojo Rabbit, The Favourite, and Mary, Queen of Scots there) or even attend a film festival. The Bryn Mawr Film Society is another worthwhile place to check out (I saw Vice there). And, while we don’t have Star Cinema Grill, Movie Studio Grill, or Alamo Drafthouse, all the AMCs and Cinemarks are bringing food to customers now.

I love movie theaters. I’m sad to see they’re hurting. I’m sad to see they stopped putting the labels of the films outside the individual theater rooms because it’s presumably to prevent movie hopping and reflects the dire nature of the situation. I think the film industry needs a lot of structural changes; that’s why IATSE went on strike. *Hopefully*, those changes benefit the laborers that make movies a possibility.

While the proliferation of streaming services reflects a negative trend in the pure sense that it’s difficult for anyone with eclectic tastes to grab hold of *everything* they want at once (to say nothing of the monopolistic nature of a conglomerate like Disney buying a Fox or an Amazon buying an MGM Studios), by measure of choice, things are pretty sweet for specialist consumers right now. You can access blockbusters (and a massive back catalog) through Disney+; HBO continues to live up to the billing of the “Home Box Office;” the aforementioned Amazon-MGM acquisition means you can watch all the Bond movies there; Shudder has classic and little-known horror movies; Criterion Collection stream their archive of classic and important films. The options are plentiful.

Given the option, all things being equal, I’d always rather see a movie in the theater. But, the world being what it is, watching a brand new movie at home ain’t the worst option.