Why I stoped going to the theater

I remember vividly the first time I saw Star Wars in the summer of 1976. I was only 10 years old, in a line that extended all the way down one side, then wrapped halfway around the back of the theater, anticipating what I had been told was an epic movie. The line was populated by Darth Vaders, Princess Leias and Luke Skywalkers, each acting out their assumed roles of savior or villain. I don't remember how long I waited in that line, but it seemed like an eternity before I finally arrived at the booth where I handed my $2, earned from my paper route, to the lady behind the glass and got my ticket. Once inside, I found my seat and waited. The lights dimmed. The speakers sounded the now familiar opening orchestration. The screen illuminated. I stared in wonder as the story of the rebels plight was put in parallax view, moving up the screen one tantalizing line at a time. Now, having achieved middle-age, I have lost that sense of theater inspired awe that I had that day. Whether it is merely a by-product of age, or has been beaten out of me, one fist at a time, by an instant gratification society, it is gone. I no longer go to the theater and prefer watching movies on Netflix for the lower cost, the convenience, and not having to deal with the absurdities of other people.

Any moviegoer that has been to the theater lately, can relate the story of the person that would not shut-up. Much like being on an airplane, there always seems to be that one person that lives to hear their own voice. In theaters, it is usually the person that has seen the movie 5 times, and now considers themselves an expert. They drone on-and-on about how the actor uses the gestalt method of acting, how the cinematography was done, what inspired the dialogue, al...

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... These theaters, like Cinetopia, now offer a complete package of comfort and culinary extravagance for the nominal fee of only $30 per person. That is a large chunk of change to only see one movie. A Netflix basic subscription, that allows you to watch unlimited streaming movies is only $7.95 a month or you can include the abitily to have them ship your choice of movies directly to your door for only $3 more. That sounds like the better bargain.

These are some of the reasons why I no longer go to the movies and prefer to watch movies at home on Netflix. Yes, it is true that this approach does have some trade-offs compared to a theater experience like watching on a bigger screen, or waiting for the latest blockbuster to appear on Netflix, if I ever does at all, but in balance, I believe that watching movies at home is a far better way to spend your hard-earned cash.