Over the four weeks of winter break, I found myself going to the movie theater more often than I ever had before. My Apple wallet is filled with expired passes of tickets from seeing movies like Saltburn, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, Wonka, Priscilla, and Anyone But You. After walking into the movie theater at the beginning of break and hearing Nicole Kidman’s minute-long AMC advertisement, my friends and I laughed at its melodramatic description detailing the ethos of the cinematic experience. But after a few more visits, our feelings soon mirrored her words’ passion and poignance.
The experience of being in the theater itself draws me in, with its variety of overpriced drinks and snacks—and AMC’s Coca-Cola Freestyle machine. Not to mention the ease of going to the theater late at night a couple of weeks after a movie is released when it isn’t as crowded. Somehow, the cinematic atmosphere of the theater is heightened when my friends and I have nearly the whole theater to ourselves.
Movie theaters have become less and less popular with the abundance of movies accessible on a variety of different streaming platforms. After all, Saltburn was available on Amazon Prime Video just one month after it hit theaters. But, the theater experience almost forces me to watch a movie in its entirety, whereas if I were at home with my friends, I’d get distracted and often miss important plot details. Don’t get me wrong, some of my favorite nights with friends have been spent from the comfort of a living room couch, our chatter blocking out the sound of a movie playing in the background, but going to the theaters has allowed me to find a greater interest and appreciation for them.
With this newfound love, I have been introduced to films I perhaps wouldn’t have selected if I were browsing on Netflix in my room. During this self-proclaimed movie fanatic era, I was able to explore movies spanning various genres, moving from one to another. One day I found myself engrossed in the thrill and adrenaline of dystopia in The Hunger Games; the next day, I was immersed in the romantic comedy of Anyone But You, laughing and manifesting a love story of my own.
“One day I found myself engrossed in the thrill and adrenaline of dystopia in The Hunger Games; the next day, I was immersed in the romantic comedy of Anyone But You, laughing and manifesting a love story of my own.”
Kate Corlew
While watching movies at home is economical and easy, going to theaters transforms the experience into a social outing, which is why I enjoy it so much. I often find myself trying to find new things to do whenever I am home from college. Over that break, going to the movies became a part of my definition of “going out,” partly due to the recent wide array of well-publicized, enticing movies. It’s an outing that I hope catches on to others—the cinematic experience deserves a revival with more screen time, silver screen time that is.