do we need movie theaters?

I found it interesting, that last night at the Oscar they kept making pleas to America to "see movies the way they were intended on the BIG SCREEN."  What they fail to understand is that theater-going is just not enjoyable for most of us.

A film purist myself, a year ago I would have said that movie can only truly be enjoyed on the big screen. I truly felt that movies should be seen in darkened, quiet theaters where one can get lost in the magic of the movies. However, in the last year, a lot has changed.

I have become a huge fan of Netflix, and here's why.  I get movies I WANT TO SEE conveniently sent to my mailbox and I never have to wait on long lines of hyper-active teenagers to do so.  Also, my theaters don't show anything I want to see, and when they do get a good indie flick, the film disappears before I can make babysitting plans and get my ass into the theater.

With Netflix, I also don't have to sit in a crowded theater where those same teenagers gossip or answer cellphones.  I went to see 16 Blocks on Friday and it was the loudest and worst experience ever. There were two crying babies, a teen who tripped down the stairs, a couple of guys two rows up fighting, one guy said, "Shut up so we can watch the movie" and the other guy retaliated with "f**k you."  And of course, several ringing cellphones.

As a true movie lover, I have the ability to lose myself in movies no matter how big or small the screen.  In fact, once a week I spend 3 hours at my alternative doctor getting chelation therapy.  This has become the best 3 hours of my week, because I bring my mini-DVD player and earphones and watch my latest Netflix film.  I've watched Millions, Million Dollar Baby, and Casa De Los Babys this way and I was transformed by each of those films.  Despite the hustle and bustle of a busy doctor's office or the fact that my movie screen was only five inches, I was able to lose myself in those films because 1) I love movies and 2) They were damn good movies.

The point is that Hollywood should stop worrying about the box office and realize that some of us are seeing movies the way we want to.  And Netflix is allowing us to see more than we ever thought possible.  I'm working my way down the list of Oscar-winning documentaries -- films I'd never get to see if I waited for them to play in suburbia.

And honestly, the more films I see this way, the less inclined I am to go to a theater which means, plopping down $8.50 a ticket, sitting through endless commercials and previews,  sticking to sticky floors, and generally being annoyed by rude teens.  Oh yeah, don't even get me started on the concessions stand and the outrageous prices they charge for water.  Also, am I the only one who gets seriously sickened by being surrounded by people gorging themselves on hotdogs, nachos, popcorn and other junk? I'm at the point where I don't want to take my kids to the movies because I don't want them thinking it's okay to eat like the typical American.

I'd say there's lots of things wrong with the theater-going experience.  It's not that there aren't good, or even, great films. It's that most of us don't want to be bothered with what is basically a hassle. 

That being said, I have seen a fair share of movies at the theater in the past 12 months, including: 

Capote
The Squid and The Whale
The 40-Year-Old Virgin
Brokeback Mountain
The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire
Curious George
16 Blocks
Cinderella Man
Rent
Just Like Heaven
Fun with Dick and Jane
Hoodwinked
Fantastic Four
The Ringer
The Greatest Game Ever Played
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Kicking and Screaming
Fever Pitch
Madagascar
The Pacifier
Ice Princess
Everything is Illuminated
Chicken Little

And here's what I've seen on Netflix since November 2005 (about six months).

Walk the Line
Crash
Bowling for Columbine
Super Size Me
Millions
Million Dollar Baby
Trainspotting
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Monster
Donnie Darko
You Can Count on Me
Broken Flowers
Happy Endings
Kinsey
Meet the Fockers

In my Netflix queue, I have:

Bubble
Walking and Talking
Angela's Ashes
Pride and Prejudice
Jarhead
Murderball (doc)
Safe
Born into Brothels (doc)
House of D
Annie Hall (I've never seen it)
To Kill a Mockingbird (ditto)
Mean Girls
Hotel Rwanda
Stepford Wives
Personal Velocity
Heavenly Creatures
The Butterfly Effect
The Forgotten
The Sea Inside
Shallow Grave
Napoleon Dynamite
Dirty Pretty Things
Hildalgo
Into the Arms of a Stranger (doc)

Comments

[Liz]

We've also recently discovered the wonderful world of Netflix and, I have to say, I am totally addicted!

Picture me -- doing Steve Martin in the Jerk -- doing the happy dance as I pull my latest movie pick out of the mailbox and sing, "The Netflix is here...the Netflix is here!!!!"

Sometimes, it's the "littlest" things that make us movie buffs happy, huh!?!