Would you pay a premium to see a current movie at home?

[Akula]

I don't think I'd enjoy the distraction of people being served food throughout the movie, at least during a first viewing.

It's really no worse than the usual experience. The one time, however, we did a dine-in movie, the idiot waitress (she had been mixing up orders all night, etc.) managed to lose my credit card when I put it in the little payment folder. This happened right in the last 20 minutes or so, so I was upset and distracted right as the story reached its climax. That really ruined things, and it's a significant reason why I haven't been back to a dine-in theater since. We go to the ones with the recliners and whatnot, but you get what you need at the beginning and there's no wait staff bumbling around during the flick.

 

[Towen7]

For a first viewing of something that I'm really looking forward to seeing I'll definitely skip the theaters with food service.

 

[Snake Doctor]

Just out of curiosity, has anybody here experienced in person a mega budget classic film (like the _old_ Ben Hur), shown when it was actually new, in a road show release? The screen always had elaborate curtains which were closed while specially composed overture music for the movie played (no commercials or trailers). Then the auditorium lights dimmed, and the main theme music started playing while the studio logo was projected onto the curtains as they were opening. Then the opening credits and the movie proper started. It was all very spectacular, and is done only very rarely (if ever) these days.

I was the projectionist (while in college) for many such events, usually in Westwood in LA.

Anyone actually experience that?

I remember them. On Saturday the curtain would open there would be a cartoon, two if you were lucky. I lived in a small town so we were treated to an on going serial like "rocketman". Then the movie, wonderful movies, Cleopatras, Ben Hur, Grease, others. Now to the original question would I pay $30 to see a just released movie. HELL NO! Why? In two or three months it will be available somewhere for a lot less.

I haven't been to a movie in years, why you ask? Or maybe you didn't. One thing the theater doesn't like it when you stand up and say, in a strong but extremely polite voice "Would you please pause the movie? I need to go pee. Understanding? Tried really pissed off!!

Another thing as I have shared, I have put a lot of time, thought, money to build a system that I am very proud of, it is very good system, minus a good sub...But I degress. The sound systems in theatre are great, but I don't have the ear to appreciate the difference in their system then mine. They have more speakers, theyare louder, and deeper, but I have built my system ground up, and I love it!!

Last, it is just my wife and me, so $30.00 up is expensive, I would need to invite 30 people to watch with me, and I don't have the chairs. Lol.

 

[MakeMineVinyl]

The sound systems in theatre are great, but I don't have the ear to appreciate the difference in their system then mine. They have more speakers, theyare louder, and deeper, but I have built my system ground up, and I love it!!

I wouldn't feel you're loosing out on too much against theater sound systems. Performance wise, they're more akin to PA systems than the hi fidelity systems we value. Sure they are capable of high SPLs, but they are sorely lacking in finesse that we would take for granted in a good home system. Also, as much as it seems like they have "lots of bass", a good home subwoofer can be capable of better low frequency extension than would be practical for a large commercial theater installation. Theater subs start to sign off in the vicinity of 30Hz (they have to in order to keep the efficiency high enough).

 

[TKoP]

To the OP -- $50 for movie. No. That to me is just dumm (sic) unless you have Bat's home theater. $20, maybe.

To the way the current thread is going... for those that want a old time movie experience, The Stanford Theatre. Pains me to have Stanturd in the there, but it is pretty awesome. I haven't been there in a long while, but I remember seeing Lawrence of Arabia there. And they have a Wurlitzer organ for those that like that kind of thing... i think for the silent movies, the organ plays during the movie.

 

[Akula]

I wouldn't feel you're loosing out on too much against theater sound systems. Performance wise, they're more akin to PA systems than the hi fidelity systems we value. Sure they are capable of high SPLs, but they are sorely lacking in finesse that we would take for granted in a good home system. Also, as much as it seems like they have "lots of bass", a good home subwoofer can be capable of better low frequency extension than would be practical for a large commercial theater installation. Theater subs start to sign off in the vicinity of 30Hz (they have to in order to keep the efficiency high enough).

I've not been in many theaters where I haven't wanted to go ask if they'd please turn the subwoofer amps on. My sub isn't as capable as many here have, but it's got plenty of guts and will out-thump just about any theater I've ever been in.

 

[MatthewB]

Just out of curiosity, has anybody here experienced in person a mega budget classic film (like the _old_ Ben Hur), shown when it was actually new, in a road show release? The screen always had elaborate curtains which were closed while specially composed overture music for the movie played (no commercials or trailers). Then the auditorium lights dimmed, and the main theme music started playing while the studio logo was projected onto the curtains as they were opening. Then the opening credits and the movie proper started. It was all very spectacular, and is done only very rarely (if ever) these days.

I was the projectionist (while in college) for many such events, usually in Westwood in LA.

Anyone actually experience that?

We have a theater in Phoenix called the Cine Capri that still does this. In fact they have a manager who comes out and speaks with the audience to get them excited about the movie and gives some inside info on the movie and then talked about the system they are about to hear and how many speakers the theater has and how big the screen is (it's way larger than IMAX. In fact when Jeff Mackwood was in town I took him to this theater then when I had my mini get together I took both Jeff and Razz to this theater and I recall Razz being very impressed with how deep the bass was in such a massive theater. Whenever I go to a theater which is rare but will for special occasions like a new Star Wars I always go to this theater.

 

[MatthewB]

Here's a picture of what the inside of the Cine Capri looks like.