Will COVID-19 end theatrical movies

[Vakanai]

If you're rich enough to afford your own home theater with a huge 8K resolution screen, seat-rumbling sound and a bunch of hired audience members to cheer and laugh along with, you're going to be able to reproduce the blockbuster experience at home.

Everything else, though, is probably just as good sitting at your computer with headphones on.

Why would you watch a movie on your computer screen? Most people, even poor people like me, have some kind of HD TV with a screen bigger than a laptop's. Use an HDMI cable to connect your computer to your television or get a cheap Roku to stream videos on your TV. Why settle for a smaller screen? Maybe if you're away from home, but otherwise ideally that's such a subpar way to watch a movie.

[AndrewCrossett]

I honestly don't care about screen size except for big VFX movies. I very seldom even turn my TV on these days.

[Vakanai]

I honestly don't care about screen size except for big VFX movies. I very seldom even turn my TV on these days.

Really? Weird, but to each their own. I like a better screen size if I'm going to watch a movie or even a show.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Why would you watch a movie on your computer screen? Most people, even poor people like me, have some kind of HD TV with a screen bigger than a laptop's. Use an HDMI cable to connect your computer to your television or get a cheap Roku to stream videos on your TV. Why settle for a smaller screen? Maybe if you're away from home, but otherwise ideally that's such a subpar way to watch a movie.

Agreed. Not even the best resolution on a laptop or desktop screen can match a big screen TV for movie watching.

[Havok83]

If you're rich enough to afford your own home theater with a huge 8K resolution screen, seat-rumbling sound and a bunch of hired audience members to cheer and laugh along with, you're going to be able to reproduce the blockbuster experience at home.

Everything else, though, is probably just as good sitting at your computer with headphones on.

I can only assume you live with people and that form of watching a movie is conducive to your living situation bc a computer with headphones is most definitely not as good as a big screen tv, regardless of if you care about resolution. That setup cant replicate the social aspect of movie watching you get at the theaters which you can do on the couch with a loved one or group of people

[Gaastra]

John goes more into this.

[Holt]

I can only assume you live with people and that form of watching a movie is conducive to your living situation bc a computer with headphones is most definitely not as good as a big screen tv, regardless of if you care about resolution. That setup cant replicate the social aspect of movie watching you get at the theaters which you can do on the couch with a loved one or group of people

While I prefer TV, plenty of people, especially Zoomers, watch movies on laptops and tablets. Hell, even phones.

[Vakanai]

While I prefer TV, plenty of people, especially Zoomers, watch movies on laptops and tablets. Hell, even phones.

Yeah, but that's because they can't part with their devices. I think picture quality is less important to them than the security and comfort of physically holding their screen in their hand.

[Havok83]

While I prefer TV, plenty of people, especially Zoomers, watch movies on laptops and tablets. Hell, even phones.

and that generation is young and are in college dorms (or were) and live with their parents/families so that type of viewing is conducive to their living situations. When you're isolated to your room and/or have to share a communal space with someone, its easier for your viewing habits to be tailored around that. I dont think its an untrue statement to say that most people 30+ dont prefer to watch movies on their laptops and phones bc they have their own apartments and houses

[Jim Kelly]

I've been guilty of being a film purist--wanting to see the movie in its optimum conditions. But I wonder if that isn't just one way big studios have manipulated us to see movies at venues for ever larger ticket prices.

Back in my film studies classes, one prof said something that stuck with me. She said the filmmakers had to make movies that could be seen in the worst conditions--a dim bulb in the projector, the wrong aspect ratio, scratches on the print, bad sound, bad splices, bad seats--and still be a compelling experience.

In the 1960s, filmmakers used 16 mm. cameras to make movies on the fly. Such cameras were preferable because they weren't as heavy and it took less time to set up shots. The French New Wave had this idea of caméra-stylo where the auteur used the camera as his pen. They would shoot their movies fast and cheap, not worry about it being perfect.

Commercial films have sold us on a bias toward movies with bloated production budgets, where hundreds of millions are spent to produce them and they employ thousands of people to make them. And we believe that this is how movies should be--and anything less is not worth our respect. But maybe it's the other way around.

We don't think of a John Steinbeck novel being less than a James A. Michener novel. Even though by the weight, Michener's novels can stop a freight train.

[Holt]

and that generation is young and are in college dorms (or were) and live with their parents/families so that type of viewing is conducive to their living situations. When you're isolated to your room and/or have to share a communal space with someone, its easier for your viewing habits to be tailored around that. I dont think its an untrue statement to say that most people 30+ dont prefer to watch movies on their laptops and phones bc they have their own apartments and houses

Sure. But the youth market isn't small and as time goes on more and more kids will grow up with that habit. The home not being able to accurately 100 percent capture the feel of the theater is going to be less and less of an issue as time progresses.

[Havok83]

Sure. But the youth market isn't small and as time goes on more and more kids will grow up with that habit. The home not being able to accurately 100 percent capture the feel of the theater is going to be less and less of an issue as time progresses.

Will they? Because this isnt a new habit. Its what I and many others had 10+ years ago in college and when living at home in high school. That habit changed as I grew older and had access to other outlets bc my living situation changed

[Holt]

Will they?

Yeah, probably. Especially as streaming becomes more and more commonplace. I don't think the resistance to watching movies at home or on the go is nearly as great as this thread is trying to pretend.

While the new Universal deal will undoubtedly face its own challenges, people not wanting to see movies outside a theater setting honestly doesn't strike me as one of them.

[Vakanai]

Yeah, probably. Especially as streaming becomes more and more commonplace. I don't think the resistance to watching movies at home or on the go is nearly as great as this thread is trying to pretend.

While the new Universal deal will undoubtedly face its own challenges, people not wanting to see movies outside a theater setting honestly doesn't strike me as one of them.

But it's not resistance to watching movies at home to not watch things on your phone when home is where you keep your TV.

[Havok83]

Yeah, probably. Especially as streaming becomes more and more commonplace. I don't think the resistance to watching movies at home or on the go is nearly as great as this thread is trying to pretend.

While the new Universal deal will undoubtedly face its own challenges, people not wanting to see movies outside a theater setting honestly doesn't strike me as one of them.

We;re talking about two different things now. I was commenting on a person prefering to watch a movie on their phone or laptop vs HDTV. That has nothing to do with movies in theaters