cover of episode The Movie Theaters in a Nutshell

The Movie Theaters in a Nutshell

2024/11/17
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Burdie Stories

Key Insights

Why has the frequency of movie theater visits decreased?

The rise of streaming services has made it easier to watch movies at home, reducing the need to visit theaters.

What was the speaker's attitude towards movie theaters as a child?

The speaker loved movie theaters as a child, eagerly anticipating any new movie, regardless of quality.

Why did the speaker enjoy movie theaters as a kid?

As a kid, the speaker enjoyed the excitement of new movies, the thrill of seeing previews, and the lack of financial responsibility.

What changes did the speaker notice in movie theater behavior over time?

The speaker noticed a decline in punctuality and an increase in disruptive behavior, such as throwing snacks and using phones during movies.

How did the speaker try to save money on snacks at the movie theater?

The speaker and a friend would buy snacks from a dollar store and sneak them into the theater to avoid high concession prices.

What was the speaker's opinion on certain movies that flopped at the box office?

The speaker felt that some movies, like Slenderman and Morbius, were so bad that they deserved to flop and be memed on the internet.

Why did the speaker suggest that movie theaters need to change?

The speaker believes theaters need to offer a more engaging experience to compete with the convenience of streaming services.

What specific improvements did the speaker suggest for movie theaters?

The speaker suggested better seating, more comfortable chairs, and creating a more immersive environment for moviegoers.

Chapters

The decline in movie theater attendance is attributed to the convenience of streaming services and the impact of the 2020 pandemic.
  • People prefer streaming services over movie theaters.
  • The pandemic significantly reduced movie theater visits.

Shownotes Transcript

The movies. It fell off really bad. I feel like I don't even go to the movies anymore. I don't remember the last time I went to a movie theater. And well, that's probably because of 2020 and the fact that there's literally any movie you could think of on streaming services. No one even bothers anymore. They're just like, eh, I'll just wait till it comes out on streaming services. And you know what? That's me.

I do that with most movies. You know, I'm not really hyped to see the movie that much to the point where I drive to the theater to go see it. But honestly, now I probably go to a movie theater like twice a year. You know, my friend sends me a text, yo, let's go see a movie. I'm down, so I just go. Now, as a kid, I loved the movies. The movies was one of my favorite places. And when I wake up to go see a new movie, even if it was a shitty-ass movie like, uh...

The Queen's Corgi. I don't know. I'd still be hyped to see it. Literally, as long as there was animated characters and flashing colors, I was all in. And I can't really be mad at my past self because, I mean, we did have some classics. I remember seeing toys. This is the sound of your ride home with dad after he caught you vaping. Awkward, isn't it? Most vapes contain seriously addictive levels of nicotine and disappointment.

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I get they don't really make money off the ticket sales, but look, nobody's trying to put down an arm and a leg for popcorn that has too much butter on it.

And it's not just the movie theaters, like every concession stand in general is just mad expensive. Sometimes I get charged like six bucks for a water. That is a crazy level of tax right there. But regardless though, I really enjoyed the movies as a kid because, well, the finances were not my responsibility. And plus, I didn't exactly have the bread to pay for a streaming service either, because the only type of funds I had was birthday money I would get.

And then that birthday money would be gone in an instant because I'm either buying toys, an iPad or something. And after my mom got me my overpriced food, I would go to the theater, sit down and watch the previews because I was excited for what was next. I was ready for the next Disney movie, like the next Cardi release. So you already know I had to go in so early that I would see the little trivia questions on the board. And by time the movie started, I don't know if this was just me because I was a fat ass, but the pop

I had it was already gone and then I would always have my mom take me to get more snacks throughout the movie like I don't know how the hell I could eat all that buttery ass popcorn and then want more food like I was just moving different back then I don't know I don't know if this is just that my movie theater specifically but they play the little countdown like 10 minutes before the movie like you'd see the five four three two one you start to get hyped and

Yeah, you just gotta watch another 10 minutes of trailers. I don't know what the holdup was with this movie theater in particular, but I swear to God, they were like never on time. And it was just so hype back then that you had to get your tickets early or else your ass was gonna be in the front row and no one wants to be in the front row in the movie theater.

Then you gotta tilt your neck up to see the movie. Like, that's just a pain in the ass. And then the screen is, like, so close to your face. Like, if there's no seats in the back available for the movie, I'm not going to see the movie. And, of course, we'd get good seats because, well, I was early all the time. After the long wait, you know, the movie starts, and shit, I'm, like, just in a trance for two hours. The moment I walk out, I get flabbergasted.

flash banged by the sunlight. And now I don't know why the hell I didn't just spend my day outside and then go to the movies, but I would go to the movies literally in the middle of the day. And that was all good and fun.

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So I think we all know those really annoying types of people in the movie theater that will just f*cking throw Skittles at you or popcorn at you. They'll be sitting in the back row and they'll just like chuck popcorn at people sitting in the front. I was that kid, okay? I was an a*shole. I was an edgelord. I had like this emo ass haircut. My YouTube browse history consisted of MLG videos. Leafy is here. So you could just imagine the levels of edginess we were working with. It was off the charts. And to look cool to my friends,

That was my bright idea. And I would be like, guys, watch this. Yeet. Hey, who is that? Oh, these nuts got him. It just makes me cringe thinking about it. And now that I'm older, I literally get hit with the same shit. I remember like a couple of years ago, I had a Skittle just pelted at

full speed at my head. And you know what, bro? I just accepted it because I'm like, that's karma for what I did in middle school. I would also put my hands in the air, jump around in my seat. During Star Wars, The Force Awakens, I just remember vaguely I put my hands in the air for some odd reason and some grown ass man kicked the back of my seat and I fully deserved it because one, that's just an asshole thing to do. And two, people were waiting years for this movie. I didn't understand how hardcore the Star Wars fan base really was.

Well, besides me and middle school, the asshole, you'll come across more types of people in the movies. And of course, let's start with the people that are always on their phone. Now, of course, when I was a kid, it bothered me very much, alright? I was trying to get the greatest viewing experience possible. I wanted no distractions. Now, of course, nowadays, I really don't care unless their brightness is like max level and I'm getting flash banged in the eye. Otherwise, I really don't care. But of course, whenever I have to go on my phone for an extended period of time, I just step out of the movies.

And well, if the movie's trash, I mean, I'll gladly step out. No hesitation at all, bro. I'm out of there. Like, I'd pay not to see the movie. It could definitely be slightly annoying sometimes, but it really doesn't bother me that much. Then you got the dude with the gourmet meal. He's got a whole buffet in front of him. And sometimes that makes...

It may or may not have been me. I was the dude trying to sneak in snacks. When it was my turn to pay for everything, I didn't want to do it. So I was sneaking in snacks. Me and my friend would stop at the dollar store right by the movie, buy a bunch of snacks and just sneak them in. I was trying to look all inconspicuous with the snacks just stuffed in my hoodie. And sometimes I would actually get caught. And then, then I realized I probably would have just been better off buying the snacks in the movie theater. I wouldn't have got as much, but at least I would add snacks for the movie.

Now, of course, I've seen some good movies in my time in theaters, but I feel like I have also saw some absolute garbage movies that should have never touched theaters. And as I said earlier, I feel like I'm doing them a disservice if I don't pay to not see the movie. Like, I saw this movie, it was a Slenderman movie that came out in 2018.

And it was so trashed. For a majority of the movie, Slenderman didn't even really have screen time. It was kind of hard to watch because like the characters were just having like mental breakdowns and shit. So it was just a little bit too weird for my liking. And I'm sure all you remember this one. Another shitty ass movie that I saw was Morbius in 2022.

I'm not even kidding. I went before the whole meme happened where like Morbius ended up getting put back in theaters. And when I went the first time, there was a few people in the theater, but I was there with my brother and one of my friends and my friend really wanted to see it. And we were all disappointed when we left the

And I'm sure the other people there with us were just as disappointed But then it went back in theaters and nobody even showed up like it was just straight tumbleweeds in the movie theater I don't even know why they thought it was a good idea to bring it back to theaters people were clowning the movie and

For how shitty it was. It flopped so bad, it got memed on the internet. It's like the meme where people say they're gonna eat lunchly and watch the talk to a podcast. That's not happening. Nobody's doing that. And people were saying the same thing about Morbius. Like it was the greatest movie ever. And nobody went. Who would have thought? And whenever I do see a trash movie, I'm just trying to move past it. Like I don't even want to think about the trash movie that I saw. And sometimes what I would do when I was a teenager is I would movie hop.

When you would exit the cinema at the theater I went to, you could literally just walk into another movie. Usually there's workers in the aisle. I would scout out to see if there was any workers and if there wasn't, I would do it. YouTube, I'm not advising people to do it. I'm just sharing my experience. I think this was either like in early 2020 or early 2021. I don't remember.

I saw a gas movie. I really wanted to see was playing and i'm like, you know what? So I checked to see if there's anybody working and there wasn't so I just booked it and nobody even saw me But nowadays they check tickets at the door So I couldn't even try that now But I left the movie theater feeling much better that day because I didn't leave it off on a shitty forgettable movie But obviously after what happened in 2020, I just stopped spawn camping the movies I feel like I really don't go that much anymore

And I think a lot of people feel the same way and even movie theaters themselves are saying they're not getting as much customers And it's just because of the convenience of streaming services And that's why my freshman year of college I had to do a project on how to get people back into movie theaters me personally If I was somebody who like managed a movie theater or owned a movie theater, whatever I would not be asking me for help. No

But what I feel like the problem is though, I feel like movie theaters have not changed much at all. Kind of just sitting in a seat watching a movie like always. It's got to be more of an experience because people don't feel like paying the extra $20 and driving all the way to the movie theater.

They'd rather just sit on the couch and watch a movie on some streaming service. Honestly, I really don't remember what the idea was. But all I remember, it was mad stressful because I had like three days to do it and I had to just like spawn in an idea out of nowhere. But, you know, in this case, you know, it being a group project kind of saved my ass. I wasn't exactly going to be the brilliant mind behind this idea.

But we ended up coming up with an idea and the rest of the project went pretty smoothly after that. But I feel like some of the problems with the movie theaters nowadays, honestly, I feel like the seats could be better and just the seating itself. Like, I don't know who's sitting in the front row of a movie theater. Some people have told me their movie theaters have recliners and shit. Mine has like folding chairs that are like

really uncomfortable to sit in for a long time. You could like hold an event for like a really hype movie or like decorate the theater. I don't know. Like if it feels like a fire experience, obviously people are going to keep coming back. But of course, not all my group projects went very smoothly. So you can watch a video on me explaining that right here. Just click on it.