Originally posted by: Invader Jenny
I understand that movie makers are trying to get people back into the theater, but you know what? They've had to deal with that since the advent of VHS. Hey, here's an idea to get people back in the theater: MAKE BETTER MOVIES!! How about a movie with a plot for once? Or even better, likable characters!!

Rubbish! Making better movies will not bring people back to the theatre; an exclusive experience will. The reasons the theatre's are all dying are two-fold, I'll tackle one reason first; huge DVD sales.

These days anyone interested in movies, the same people who in the past when to the cinema a lot, now have their own home theatres. It is much more pleasant to sit at home on your nice soft couch, without crowds of people, while eating leftover lasagne. No annoying people whispering behind you, no parking frenzy, just an easy experience. You don't get the big screen, but all I'm hearing in this forum is size and presentation doesn't matter, only story. If that is so, better movies won't bring anyone out of their homes, it will just make their current experience better. The huge sales of DVDs showed that, while we all want better movies, the film industry isn't hurting due to poor output. It only shows that people think the hassles of theatre-going outweigh the exclusive benefits. So what do the theatres need to do to combat this perception? One thing is add more exclusive benefits!

This isn't the first time the theatres have had a problem like this, it also happened many years ago when a small box started appearing in lounge rooms. With this gadget people could now see movies in their homes, no need to drive all the way to the neighbouring suburb to watch them anymore, too much hassle. What did the theatre industry do to bring back some of their disappearing audiences? They started using a gimmick, something these people couldn't get at home. They introduced something they called 'Widescreen'.

A 'gimmick' called widescreen. Is there anyone here that now thinks widescreen is a gimmick? Anyone who thinks widescreen doesn't add to the movie experience? This didn't help movie makers produce better stories, but it did help audiences lose themselves in good movies, the landscape view was more natural, filled the eyes better as that is the way we view the world. I've heard that some of us here even view the world in three dimensions! Woah!

Shame on movie makers trying to create a more real experience for us! A good story presented with a near real experience is no better than a good story presented with handheld GI Joes! We can feel as great an attachment to the latter as the first! These are the shouts I'm hearing from this forum, it must be true!

Is story greater than presentation? Of course! It is way more important! I'm sure there will be many here now thinking about how all the time spent on this new technology could be spent writing better stories. But it isn't screenwriter Alan Smithee that is working on this technology, nor is engineer Craig Darrow writing the epic sagas.

In twenty years when everyone has 3D goggles at home will anyone think it is a gimmick? Widescreen now isn't. Colour now isn't. Sound now isn't. Am I going too extreme? Remember what Harry M. Warner said in 1927, the year before the first of the talkies; 'Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?!'.

3D was a gimmick. The old read and blue glasses didn't help create a more real experience as it created a distraction. The current movies out now no longer have that problem, but still has a big distraction, eye strain. This new method 'supposedly' eliminates that distraction due to the 3D levels being balanced by computers. Should we now be like the wise Harry Warner and scream 'gimmick'?

I said the reasons for theatre's current situation were two-fold. The second reason is entirely their fault; the cost of tickets and food and the loss of ushers to keep order. Neither of which have anything to do with the quality of movies.

Don't know why I bothered posting all that here, where in the same breath people can get out 'Story and characters are the ONLY thing that matt...WHAT?! No anamorphic and crystal clear picture?! How am I supposed to enjoy this film?!'.