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I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

rogerebert.com

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Re: I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

#141

Post by vonskippy »

Lets see..... at home I have a 60" Plasma, surround sound, comfy chairs, great food & drink, and 6-8 hand selected guests to watch a DVD I paid on average $15 from Amazon on our personally selected date and time.

Or.... Huuuuge screen, maybe good maybe bad sound (definately played way tooooo loud), sticky/wobbly/uncomfortable chairs, crappy overpriced snacks, and a room full of obnoxious self absorbed strangers, watched when and where the theater tells us, all at $12 (plus snacks) per person.

Yeah, boggles my mind why movie revenue is dropping.

Re: I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

#142

Post by cpeterso »

rdouble wrote: post #94
willwagner wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why is there nothing like like this in the SF Bay Area? It seems to me a theater that served beer and decent pub food would do well in SF and I'd pay a premium both for the movie tix and the food, but at the same time similar quirky places like the Red Vic shutdown.

There used to be one in Oakland.

That was Oakland's Parkway Speakeasy Theatre, now closed. :(

http://m.yelp.com/biz/the-parkway-speakeasy-theater-oakland

Re: I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

#144

Post by Tycho »

mitchty wrote: post #10
jwallaceparker wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> these are all critiques you could have leveled with equal force in 2002 Netflix streaming wasn't around in 2002. This (and similar services) is the biggest factor in theaters losing market share.

Don't forget Amazon and iTunes rental streaming. Since I've gotten my appletv 2 I have found that waiting for it to stream on iTunes has replaced netflix and most of my theater trips. Its nice to be able to pause and go to the bathroom at home. Do I miss some of the movie theater experience? Yeah, but not having kids kicking my seat, or people talking during the movie/etc... basically makes me not care about the plig…

And Xbox Live streaming (or 'Zune' as it's called)

Re: I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

#145

Post by ubercore »

JoshTriplett wrote: post #105
ubercore wrote: post #32

One thing that's become an issue for me, at least at my local theater (and I admit I may be in the minority here), is volume. Now, before you pull out "too old" or "don't be a wuss", I'll say that I'm only 29, and I play in a _loud_ rock band, and go to many loud concerts. I am no stranger to loud things, and have permanent tinnitus to prove it. I still enjoy concerts as much as I ever did, but I've found myself brin…

Sounds like a bug in your local theater's sound setup. The local theaters here seem to have it set up about right: loud when it should sound loud, quiet when it should sound quiet, and never painful.

I thought so too. In fact, I complained multiple times at one movie. They said they have no control over it, and couldn't turn it down if they wanted to. I'm not sure I believe it; _someone_ must be able to turn it down, but I may believe that the average employee on a random Saturday may not be able to.

Re: I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

#146

Post by Tycho »

jsaxton86 wrote: post #9

In addition to ridiculous ticket prices, the actual movie doesn't start until 15 minutes after the scheduled showtime. While you're waiting, you're expected to watch advertisements. I don't have any concrete data to back this up, but I feel it wasn't always this bad.

15 minutes? Seriously, in the UK it's like 40 minutes of ads and trailers sometimes.

Re: I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

#147

Post by pbreit »

ericd wrote: post #118
tptacek wrote: post #3

I guess... and of course I defer to Ebert on all things cinematic... but these are all critiques you could have leveled with equal force in 2002. There've been good years in the preceding decade. Except for 3D. But how much of an effect is 3D having? Most movies aren't 3D. I'll say this: I went to see Super 8 at an old 60's-70's style theater in the far-out suburbs, one almost identical to the ones I saw movies in wh…

Yeah, I generally enjoy going to the movies, but in the past couple of years, a setup that puts most theater experiences to shame has become pretty affordable. A fairly good high def DLP projector is in the ballpark of $1k. Add a $100 Roku or Apple TV and a $300 set of 550W Logitech speakers (including amp), and you've got a great general purpose theater for less than $2k, and without the hassles. (If you don't have…

That's 200 movie tickets for a decidedly worse experience. Could be a factor but I suspect small.

Re: I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

#148

Post by phaus »

I'm not trying to discredit the merits of watching independent films, but I think that they are disproportionately popular on netflix because netflix's streaming selection is terrible to begin with.

People don't care if a movie is domestic or foreign, so long as it is well done. I think the popularity of independent films is due to the fact that a higher percentage of the best independent films show up on netflix vs the percentage of popular Hollywood movies.

Its obviously going to be much easier to negotiate a contract with an independent studio that needs the money than it will be to do the same with a movie studio executive that hates the fact that your business even exists.

Re: I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

#149

Post by zackattack »

willwagner wrote: post #90
msluyter wrote: post #34

I think Alamo Drafthouse in Austin is doing it right: 1. Food & beer/wine served with movie -- convenient and much preferable to overpriced popcorn. 2. Cellphones must be turned off. 3. They take talking seriously, and preface each film with a strongly (and amusingly) worded statement to that effect. 4. No babies allowed except on specified baby nights. 5. Creative and fun special events, such as quote-alongs, sing-a…

Why is there nothing like like this in the SF Bay Area? It seems to me a theater that served beer and decent pub food would do well in SF and I'd pay a premium both for the movie tix and the food, but at the same time similar quirky places like the Red Vic shutdown.

The Rialto in El Cerrito serves beer and will bring food in to you.. It's quite a fun experience!

Re: I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping...

#150

Post by RobAtticus »

MichaelApproved wrote: post #124
rhplus wrote: post #116

2. Ticket prices are too high. People have always made that complaint, but historically the movies have been cheap compared to concerts, major league sports and restaurants. I had to check this claim, because inflation and purchasing power can fog people's memories. Using average U.S. ticket prices[1] adjusted to 2010 dollars[2], I get the following: Year | Price | 2010 price adj. w/CPI ------------------------------…

" both of which, incidentally, suffer from the same competition movies do: high quality home theater setups and internet streaming. " Live events shouldn't be so easily compared to movies and home entertainment. While you can wait for a movie to come to DVD for a similar experience, it's not the same for a live event. Watching a concert on YouTube isn't nearly as much fun as going to watch it live. Going to a live ev…

Concerts maybe not, but watching sporting events at home can usually be a better view and watching experience. Yes, the atmosphere of a home game for a passionate fan base cannot be replicated, but for casual fans who just want to watch the game in comfort, HD TV, comfy couches, and regularly priced food and drink is an attractive alternative compared to going to the stadium.
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