Movie Night...

Movie theaters are trying desperately to restore customer attendance.  Even though Disney’s “Frozen” was named the best and most popular animated film of all time, many people chose to wait on it to come out on DVD.  Why?  Movies cost a lot… not to mention the refreshments. 

Netflix and Redbox have forever changed this industry.  Producers began rushing movies to home video many years ago in an effort to get the most money.  In the effort, they crippled the theater experience. 

Most people have large flat-screen televisions and can rent (or stream) and play a movie with all the comforts of home (and cheaper refreshments).  Can you say, “Movietime Popcorn?” You can sit with your family and friends, eat and enjoy.  It is better than the Dinner and a Movie theaters in the fact that you don’t have to be inconvenienced by going out.

By the way, let’s not discount the lack of spectacular movies in recent years.  Most people have never seen a majority of the films nominated at the Academy Awards for the past decade or so.

So theater owners are meeting to decide how to get you and I to return to their buildings, freeze with a bunch of unruly strangers and experience the movies. 

A suggestion is to make the experience of the theater more moving… literally. There are a few theaters springing up that offer vibrations and movements in the seats, much like an amusement park projection attraction.  Some owners want to band together to have a “Movie Night Out” across the country. They would offer a discount one night from coast to coast to attract patrons back to their seats.

Until owners come up with a better idea than immediate convenient gratification like Netflix does through online streaming and quick viewing without leaving your comfort zone, the prospect doesn’t look good for the old Rialto, Strand or Loews movie houses.