Reply #94: Combination of factors leading to decline of theatres

[MadHound]

First off, movies have become crappier and crappier as time goes on. Very few original ideas, just recycling the action/shoot em up motif, along with bad sixties and seventies TV remakes. I'm as much a fan of Beverly Hillbillies as anyone else, but that, along with a lot of other TV remakes, should have stayed in the can. Lots of sequels also, which is a drag on the market.

Weak economy combined with high ticket and concession prices means fewer people are going to go to the theatre. Most simply can't afford it, and why should they go when they can rent it for a few dollars in a few months? I've got a 33" wide/flat screen TV with a DVD player, I can afford to wait a few months, as do millions of other Americans. It is simply cheaper and more convienent to watch movies at home

In addition, for some of us in rural areas, gas prices are a consideration. Why should I add the price of burning a gallon or two of gas when I can pick the movie up on the way home?

If theatres want to pick up business, they need to drop ticket and concession prices, and start making better movies. I can count on one hand the number of movies that I've felt compelled to see in a theatre in the past year, and still have fingers left over. The only movie this summer that I feel I need to see in a theatre is the Star Wars finale, and that's more out of a sense of tradition, since I've seen every of Star Wars at the theatre. Everything else can wait until it comes out on DVD. The price is too steep, especially for the repetetive, formulaic crap that is coming out of Hollywood these days.