I was a sorcerer in AD&D. Here I hope to be interesting--at least to someone.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Goodbye to Movie Theaters

Yesterday I went to a local movie theater to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I was immensely disappointed not only by the movie, but also by the theater.

The ticket price was the lowest I could get; I went to an early show in an attempt to save some money (then I paid $4 for a small popcorn and $3 for a small soda). The price of the ticket was $5.75.

I got into the theater just after the lights had been lowered; a running screen program of commercials was playing, so I was able to find a seat. I also noticed that the number of people in the theater was fairly low (only about half-full). I sat in my chair and munched popcorn and sipped soda, and I became gradually miffed by the commercials and previews. They ran for half-an-hour!

When the movie finally started, I was chilled by the air conditioning (do I really need to see my breath in the theater?), but warmed by my annoyance to the commercials. The movie itself was so-so; call me peculiar, but I would like to have seen more of the story that I read in the book. I’ll never understand why the motion picture industry seems to think that viewers won’t stay for a longer movie than 2 hours – "Gone With the Wind" was 4 hours long, with a 15-minute intermission, and "Laurence of Arabia" was also very close to that time. I don’t recall hearing that the viewers complained of the length – the movies are still considered some of the best made.

Anyway, I was generally disappointed by the movie. It seemed to jump and skip from point to point, making it somewhat difficult to follow the story. Also, I would like to have seen the “Portable Swamp” that the Weasley twins created in the book, instead of the fireworks show that was used in its place.

When the movie came to a close, I stayed to watch the closing credits; I have always done this since I came to my first movie theater when I was 5 years old (For the Love of Benji). I always find the credits interesting. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to see the credits, since the movie cut from the last scene directly to the commercials that ran at the beginning!

Now I was really pissed off! I went to the front counter, and asked to see the Manager.

The Manager listed closely to what I had to say, and he apologized, then he gave me my money back for the ticket. He explained to me that the theater has no control over the way the movies are played; the movie companies have all the control now. Apparently, the ticket price is set by the movie company, and all that money goes to them. The only money the theater gets comes from concessions, gift items, and video/pinball machines (hence, the raised prices). He told me he would pass my complaints – along with the others – to the movie company; apparently I wasn’t the only person complaining.

Anyway, I’ve decided that – with the exception of one or two expected movies – I will not be attending movie theaters anymore. I’ll just wait for the movies to be released on DVD. If I really want the “movie theater effect”, I can always create one in my home with a projector, a DVD player, a stereo and a large white wall. Putting a home theater together won’t be cheap, but at least I’ll have total control over when I can see it, what I will be snacking on, and NO COMMERCIALS!!!!!!

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