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Are you going to the movies less?
On Monday our new Taste blog asked if you were eating out less. I’d like to piggyback off that idea by asking: Are you going to the movies less?
Actually, I think I already know the answer, if the box office is any indication. Pickings have been pretty slim among movies that have come out since August. By my reckoning, there has been only one even near-great movie in recent months, the Coens’ Burn After Reading. Nothing much is capturing moviegoers’ imaginations lately. (Although this Friday’s opening of High School Musical 3 will certainly set teen/tween hearts and ticket sales alight).
A number of recent articles about the economic downturn point to the fact that movies were extremely popular in The Great Depression, so, writers figure, movies will do well even as we struggle financially. We all need an escape don’t we?
Then again, moviegoing can get pretty pricey these days, with matinee prices as high as $7.50 locally. Add to that all the competition from DVDs, cable, the Net and such, and I’m not so sure the megaplex is heading for any bigger boon than usual. Next month, however, the big ticket items start to come out in force. November has the Madagascar sequel, Quantum of Solace, Bolt, Twilight and Australia, for instance.
So I wonder - will the economic pinch restrain you from seeing even those in theaters? Do you see yourself heading out to the movies more or less often than you would otherwise in the coming months?
What about DVDs? Will you be buying/renting more or fewer?
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Comments
By Erica
October 21, 2008 6:36 PM | Link to this
My moviegoing has gone down only slightly since the summer, and that’s only because there have been fewer good movies out, as you say. I’ve seen Burn After Reading, How to Lose Friends and Alienate People and W. in recent weeks. All diverting, so worth it to me. I’m looking forward to Quantum of Solace next month, but I foresee relying more on Netflix during the winter.