The age of the silver screen, are cinemas a dinosaur ?

[weeksy]

Gone are the days of Greta Garbo, Scarlett O'Hara and even DiCaprio and Titanic, the days of Star Wars movie afternoons and mornings in the cinema while the parents go shopping.

Is the age of the cinema dead now ? Or are the new generation cinemas with 4DX and immersive seats the way to keep people coming to view ?

[Count Steer]

Good question. I remember going to see Star Wars at Leicester Square and it definitely wouldn't have been the same on TV (even though we've got a MUCH bigger screen now than we had then).

Also went to see things at Europe's first Imax (Quiz question, 'where is it?'). That was quite something.

Think it'll split into a few big ones for the blockbuster films and independents/film clubs. My local arts centre puts films on, mainly new and newish stuff - saw Casino Royale there soon after it came out. Some are a bit more eclectic.

The multiscreen places seem to have turned into 'food' and chat places with the film as an incidental. Sounds like they're pricey too. I think they'll fade away, I haven't been in one for years so don't really know if they're full or empty though.

A lot depends on the power of the distributors too, they control who can show what.

[cheb]

The last film I went to see was the World's Fastest Indian. There were four people in the audience, including me.

One of the reasons I don't go to the cinema is that I don't really watch fresh films, most of the ones I watch are over 10 years old.

[KungFooBob]

I like going to the ficks, the wife doesn't have the attention span, I don't want to go on my own, so I don't bother.

[Taipan]

Not for me. I'd much rather watch a film in the comfort of my own home with a glass of wine etc. Plus, the last time I went it was like trying to watch a film in a piggery! People with literally buckets full of popcorn, huge jugs of cokes and rustling bags of crisps etc.

[MrLongbeard]

I used to love going to the cinema (pre-covid), take half a day off work, £5 a ticket and a cinema to myself more or less, used to do it at least every other month.

Then films got to be 3 hours + long with 30 minutes of adverts before, and quite frankly the quality of films had hit the bottom, so I stopped going, and then films got worse, so Sky Cinema was cancelled.

[Felix]

Harry Potter and the Chamber or Secrets was the last time i went. Time before that i was dragged to Ghost. Batman. The one with the Prince soundtrack and Braveheart. Whatever one of them were the last out. Nope, never been a fan of the cinema.

[MingtheMerciless]

Haven’t been to the cinema in years, too many dicks with mobile phones and very expensive.

[Skub]

I can't recall the last time I went to the flicks,nor which film I went to see. Like some above I like the idea of seeing stuff on the big screen,but people. The curse of the constant phone use is everywhere now,along with the urgent need to shove stuff in faces while not watching. It massively takes me out of the moment,so instead of paying to be irritated,I don't go. The 3 hours long shit is also more than I want to endure,I'd need to do that in two parts.

Libraries,now there's another place of the past I used to enjoy.

[MrLongbeard]

and very expensive

Is it, the Vue I used (Leicester) charged a fiver for a normal seat all day every day, and still do, are they all not around that ball park cost wise?

[Horse]

and very expensive

Is it, the Vue I used (Leicester) charged a fiver for a normal seat all day every day, and still do, are they all not around that ball park cost wise?

And join (free) the Cinema Society to buy discounted vouchers.

[Rockburner]

Funny - I literally just booked tickets for the F1 early release on the 23rd in the local IMAX.


I always enjoy a trip to the cinema, I like the whole experience, yes I get a bit annoyed at other people, but then: I too have a bucket of popcorn and a drink (generally the smallest on offer tbh), so I'm not going to complain about it as I'm sure I'm annoying someone. I do get a bit annoyed with the phone addicts however, but then I'm an old git who also doesn't particularly like it when people use the phone at meal times (but I'll do it myself ... we're all hypocrites to some degree).



We also went to see Top Gun Maverick when it was in the cinema a couple of years ago.
This was parked up outside

MAVERICK.jpg (1.05 MiB) Viewed 448 times

[Scotsrich]

I like going to the cinema. Probably going to see the new Tom Cruise film shortly.

[Ian]

I like the cinema but thank god for modern multiplexes some of the aging flea pits we had in my youth were grim. I'll happily pay a bit more for elbow room, reclining seats and feet not sticking to the carpet.

[gremlin]

I think the decline of the cinema is down to a number of factors, all mentioned above, but also the poor output from studios over the last few years. With possibly the exception of Tom Cruise and Dwayne Johnson (maybe DiCaprio) there are no big cinema names, such as your Garbos or Gables or Tom Hanks, Meg Ryans, Schwarzeneggers or Bruce Willisisisisis. Names that you'd see in font bigger than the film title. The studios got scared some years back after some big flops and fell back on remakes and franchise films, such as the DC and Marvel tosh. A classic example is Disney rehashing old titles for a new generation in the hope the parents who saw the original would drag their kids to the cinema. I suspect the adults watched, disappointed, whilst the kids watched Tik Tok on their phones.

[Mr. Dazzle]

Still the best way to see a film IMO.

There just aren't that many films I'm arsed about seeing! I went to see Dune when it was out because it's the sort of big screen epic which suits the Cinema. Other than that though, I've no interest in seeing the 6 millionth instalment of an extended universe* or another remake of existing IP.

I used to go reasonably often when I was younger, I CBA now, it's not worth it.

*especially when you have to have seen 3 kids cartoon series, a TV series and a read a comic to understand what's happening.

[KungFooBob]

I think the last film I saw on the big screen was the Banshees of Inisherin.

The first film I ever saw (at the long closed ABC in Doncaster) was Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

[ChrisW]

I don't go to the cinema that much these days - for me it was mainly an activity with the kids and it's sort of petered out to nothing by now.

We also went to see Top Gun Maverick when it was in the cinema a couple of years ago.

Went to that twice, taking different people along - definitely a 'see it on the big screen' film!

I remember going to see Star Wars at Leicester Square

Same - distinctly remember going back into school back in the North West on Monday trying to explain to my friends all about the film and how they were going to love it. They were mainly confused....

[Mussels]

and very expensive

Is it, the Vue I used (Leicester) charged a fiver for a normal seat all day every day, and still do, are they all not around that ball park cost wise?

I looked at my local Odeon, I could pick the film, time and grade of seat but it wouldn't tell me the price until I'd signed up for an account. I checked the local independent which was usually a bit cheaper and that said £12 a ticket. Two parents and two kids with film tickets and sundries can easily cost a ton.

I've attempted to buy cinema tickets several times over the last few years and it almost always results in failure when I get fed up trying to get a simple price list.

[MrLongbeard]

£12 a ticket.

Yeah, sod that for a game of soldiers.