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DVDs Are The New Movie Theater

Kymberly and I stopped by the video department of our local Fred Meyer after doing some grocery shopping. We spent a couple minutes perusing some new DVDs all around 10 and 14 dollars a piece. I picked up South Park : The Movie for ten bucks. On Friday I picked up a Speed Racer DVD and she picked up Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels each for ten bucks a pop.

The cost of ten to twenty bucks for a DVD of a movie is about the same price of going to the movies for two people. Here in the greater Seattle area it will set you back $7.50 to go see a normal movie that is not an afternoon show. When you buy another ticket for your significant other and a medium popcorn that is another $7.50 and $4.25. That is a grand total of $19.25 before sales tax. Now we could just wait three to six months after that movie first comes out and then buy the DVD for $19.95 and $.50 for a bag of theater style buttered microwave popcorn. Just wait a bit longer than there is a good chance you can find the DVD for 15 or 10 bucks. Or you could just rent it from BBQ at Blockbuster or find it at a used CD/DVD store for even cheaper than the retail and what it would cost at the ticket counter.

There are some movies that are almost made for rental and DVD since they don't have a good chance to make up the cost of production at the theater. Both artsie intellectual independent movies and low-brow teenager comedies have a good chance of reaching a profitable audience on DVD than just the movie theater. There are quality DVD players for under fifty bucks and if you watch on a good TV your personal home theater can be almost just as good as a multiplex.

DVDs have become a part of the film makers tool kit. Director's Cuts and Special Edition DVDs are a perfect compromise between the movie's financiers and the creative inspirations of the film makers. Besides the film industry just loves the fact that they can sell two editions of a movie and the physical manufacturing cost of a DVD is a matter of cents.

Movie theaters used to be unique experience and the absolute ultimate cinematic experience but in the past couple decades since advent of the multiplex theater at the mall has reduced the stature and ritual of the movie going experience. The VCR and DVD has eroded the manners of your typical movie going audience. Rude and insensitive actions such as talking and making noise in 2004 would have got your ass thrown out of the show in 1974. So times have changed and the movie theater has gone to pots while the home theater keeps getting better and better. When VCRs first came out there was a good amount of time until a movie came out on video. It used to be about six months to a year if not longer. Now days they are coming out faster than ever.

Movie theater runs are strictly limited in time and availability with the noted exception of Rocky Horror Picture Show. Where I grew up in Eastern Washington we would never get the cool creative movies but we would get every damn brainless action Hollywood flick or teenage comedy. A DVD store can offer a theatrical experience with more choices than a major film festival.

To sum things up movies theaters are too damn expensive, the screens are to small, the viewers are assholes who do not leave noisy kids and cell phones at home and the cost of theater popcorn is approaching the price point of diamonds. Thank God for the DVD because I would just rather watch one and nuke a bag of microwave popcorn unless I was dying to see the flick.

Jake at January 19, 2004 Raves

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Posted by: pete at January 26, 2004 11:56 AM

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