The Cinema Experience: Don't Let It Die
Image Credit: IMDB
Throughout 2020 and 2021, during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, over 600 movie theaters closed across North America. Film festivals were canceled, releases were postponed, and the global box office lost billions of dollars. For a while, the traditional cinema industry seemed to be on a highway to its demise, further accelerated by the rise of streaming services. However, by December of 2021, as the wrath of the pandemic abated, cinema announced its return with a bang: Spider Man: No Way Home became the first film released during the pandemic to pass $1 billion at the global box office, and by January, it was the sixth-highest grossing film of all time. Regardless of how you feel about such big-budget, mass-produced MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) films, it was a well-deserved victory for both movie theaters and moviegoers, especially after nearly two years of drought.
More recently, Top Gun: Maverick, released in late May in the U.S. and a month later in South Korea, has been hailed by both professional critics and casual audience members alike as a film that reminds us why the cinema experience reigns supreme. And indeed, it brought a lot of people flocking to theaters, becoming the highest-grossing film of 2022 and Tom Cruise’s most successful film yet. You’re not going to get the same visceral experience watching the most impressive aerial stunts and fight sequences ever captured in the history of cinema at home as you will at a movie theater. And as someone who has viewed more than 60 films in theaters over the course of the pandemic, I was glad to see people getting up from their couches and away from their Netflix screens to watch a movie at a cinema (save for the noisy popcorn eaters).
Of course, there are many limitations to the range of films you can watch in cinemas. The great thing about streaming services is that they have a plethora of movies and shows you can choose from and watch anytime. Whereas if you decide to watch a certain movie at a theater, you have to consider how long it’s going to be showing at the box office, when it’s playing, the right seat, and the cost of the ticket, not to mention the safety risks of being in an enclosed space with dozens of other people. It’s also a hassle to go to the theater and come back, while at home, you can simply watch a movie with a few clicks and even pause it whenever you want. So why go through all this trouble just to see a flick on the silver screen? Because it’s worth it. It’s a truly unique experience that no device or TV screen will be able to replicate, and here’s why.
The roaring engine of an F-18 Super Hornet. The breathtaking expanse of the desert planet Arrakis. The shadowy outline of the Caped Crusader, slowly emerging from the darkness. Now imagine these sights on your tiny 13-inch laptop. These sounds from your cheap $10 earphones. They can’t possibly hold a candle to the gigantic 31m-wide IMAX screen at Yongsan or the moving audio of a Dolby Atmos sound system that wraps around you. Simply put, films are far more immersive when viewed with the best presentation technology available. And in this case, bigger usually does equal better. Moreover, the presence of an audience often plays a key role in the experience. For instance, Avengers:Endgame is rather awkward to watch at home without the gasps and cheers of fellow Marvel fans. A Quiet Place is simply not the same when there is no pressure to stay completely silent in fear of ruining the experience for other moviegoers, all the while tensely gripping the edges of your seat. Cinema needs an audience as much as the audience needs cinema.
My point is far from “You should watch all movies in cinemas and in cinemas only from here on out.” That’s impossible. But there are certain films that are made for the cinema experience. Interstellar, 1917, Dune, and The Batman come to mind, just to name a few. All large-scale, grandiose films that only an equally large screen will do proper justice. Nonetheless, a film doesn’t have to be visually imposing for you to love watching it at the theater. Whenever you find an upcoming film that you’re even the slightest bit interested in, check to see if it’ll be released in local theaters. These theaters need you as they recover from the pandemic and battle against the monstrous dominance of streaming services. And regardless of what that movie is, with the promise of a top-notch sound system and screen, I guarantee that the trip to the cinema will be worth it.