Post COVID are movie theaters obsolete?

[Paratech2008]

My girlfriend and I enjoy buying movies. We don't do Streaming, although we can see why many use it.

But with our local theater closed permanently and the nearest one an hours drive, even $20+ Blu-ray/ DVD combos look good.

Spending the gasoline, time, etc, just doesn't seem worth it.

I purchased Black Panther 2 (DVD), Black Adam (Blu-ray/DVD combo), Fast X (Blu-ray/DVD combo) for about $50 total including tax.

Again I get people streaming cheaper, but I intend to watch these movies multiple times.

I'm just curious about other's opinions.

[Psycho]

I still love going out to the theater with my family. (I just moved cities a month ago), but I had lived in a small midwest town for my whole life, and the town was so small that there was barely any fun things to do there

Just a bowling alley and the good old movie theater

So I think the theater in my town stayed in business all through covid because it was one of the only fun things to do there

I've seen pics of old drive-in movie theaters though, and those looked amazing... I wish they still had them over regular theaters to be honest

[Haruspex]

Theaters are to movies what the arcades were to video games. You used to go for the spectacle of it all, but now it's just as good, if not better at home. Also cheaper, easier, and more convenient.

Film studios don't really like it though, because they had a good racket going. At one point they could triple-dip their profits, or even more. Theatrical release > Rental release > Home video release > Home video "director's cut" release.

Now the streaming release has mostly replaced the theatrical release. The rental release is gone. The home video release still exists, but they're mostly trying to figure out how to turn that streaming release into a fountain of infinite money instead.

[Rio]

they been pretty pointless since the internet existed and high speed internet.

[Your_White_Knight]

Originally posted by Paratech2008:

Post COVID are movie theaters obsolete?

My girlfriend and I enjoy buying movies. We don't do Streaming, although we can see why many use it.

But with our local theater closed permanently and the nearest one an hours drive, even $20+ Blu-ray/ DVD combos look good.

Spending the gasoline, time, etc, just doesn't seem worth it.

I purchased Black Panther 2 (DVD), Black Adam (Blu-ray/DVD combo), Fast X (Blu-ray/DVD combo) for about $50 total including tax.

Again I get people streaming cheaper, but I intend to watch these movies multiple times.

I'm just curious about other's opinions.

Theaters were going out of style before Covid...

Got totally hurt during Covid...

And never recovered because of terrible movies nobody wants to watch... like Black Panther 2, Black Adam, and Fast X ...

Now it's the writers / actors strike.... movies might be over totally... and hardly anyone will care

[MistuhG]

Home theaters are becoming more and more common, and they are private, cleaner, and closer. While the lockdowns did indeed destroy a lot of businesses, i dont think it was to blame for the decline of theaters. Just like arcades and malls, they are simply a (fond) relic of the past that don't have a sustainable place in the modern age aside from niche and nostalgia.

[Tiberius]

Originally posted by Paratech2008:

My girlfriend and I enjoy buying movies. We don't do Streaming, although we can see why many use it.

But with our local theater closed permanently and the nearest one an hours drive, even $20+ Blu-ray/ DVD combos look good.

Spending the gasoline, time, etc, just doesn't seem worth it.

I purchased Black Panther 2 (DVD), Black Adam (Blu-ray/DVD combo), Fast X (Blu-ray/DVD combo) for about $50 total including tax.

Again I get people streaming cheaper, but I intend to watch these movies multiple times.

I'm just curious about other's opinions.

I was not aware there are still people who buy or borrow DVDs, lol.

Anyway, no movie theaters, I assume you mean CINEMAS are not obsolete.
The experience in a huge cinema room, with proper air conditioning, popcorn, a good sound system is a completely different experience than sitting at home and watching.

BOTH is pretty good, but here in my country plenty of people go to the cinema. Not as many as 20 yrs ago, but still plenty.

[Azza ☠]

A theater and a cinema are two different things here in New Zealand. We have live actors playing out in a theater, for musicals and shows, etc. While cinemas are a big screen you sit down and watch movies upon. I assume you are talking about the cinema?

The quality and range of movies is more limited in the cinemas I believe, as there's not many good ones I would consider worth going there to watch, but it's still around.

Blue Beetle, The Nun II, The Equalizer 3, Barbie, or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, are pretty much the picks at the moment for the cinemas here. Maybe out of those Blue Beetle would be worth a watch on the big screen in the cinemas?

[Tiberius]

Originally posted by Azza ☠:

A theater and a cinema are two different things here in New Zealand. We have live actors playing out in a theater, for musicals and shows, etc. While cinemas are a big screen you sit down and watch movies upon. I assume you are talking about the cinema?

The quality and range of movies is more limited in the cinemas I believe, as there's not many good ones I would consider worth going there to watch, but it's still around.

Blue Beetle, The Nun II, The Equalizer 3, Barbie, or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, are pretty much the picks at the moment for the cinemas here. Maybe out of those Blue Beetle would be worth a watch on the big screen in the cinemas?

Dude said " MOVIE theatres ". A movie theatre is a cinema. A theatre is a theatre.

[Grendalcat]

Haven't been to a movie theater since the third Hobbit movie, nine years I guess.

I still use Redbox if I want to see a movie the year it comes out.

[Azza ☠]

Originally posted by Altai:

Originally posted by Azza ☠:

A theater and a cinema are two different things here in New Zealand. We have live actors playing out in a theater, for musicals and shows, etc. While cinemas are a big screen you sit down and watch movies upon. I assume you are talking about the cinema?

The quality and range of movies is more limited in the cinemas I believe, as there's not many good ones I would consider worth going there to watch, but it's still around.

Blue Beetle, The Nun II, The Equalizer 3, Barbie, or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, are pretty much the picks at the moment for the cinemas here. Maybe out of those Blue Beetle would be worth a watch on the big screen in the cinemas?

Dude said " MOVIE theatres ". A movie theatre is a cinema. A theatre is a theatre.

And gas is gas... aka farts... not fuel...

This to me is a theatre:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BXk3QK5NF0

(actually singing and playing the instruments, etc, even if it's acting out an entire movie)

[nohuman]

Originally posted by Cheveux:

they been pretty pointless since the internet existed and high speed internet.

I think Revenge of the Sith was the last one I went to.

[Masque]

Post-Covid?

No. Post -public norms of civility. Post cellphones. Post-streaming. Post-60+ inch TVs at home.

Covid ain't got a thing to do with the death of movie theaters.

If it does it's far down on the list of causes.

[AJOTA]

i like to go alone in one of those

[Tiberius]

Originally posted by Azza ☠:

Originally posted by Altai:

Dude said " MOVIE theatres ". A movie theatre is a cinema. A theatre is a theatre.

And gas is gas... aka farts... not fuel...

This to me is a theatre:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BXk3QK5NF0

(actually singing and playing the instruments, etc, even if it's acting out an entire movie)

I dislike to repeat myself.

[Masque]

My last movie at a movie theater (sorry, "CiNeMa"..) was Ang Lee's Hulk.