Another cinema chain going down the pan

[413x]

I just did some maths for fun. If you spent £2500 on a home cinema setup, and compare it to spending £30 a pop for two of you to go to the cinema (£15 each) then you’d get 83 cinema visits for the same amount of money. Across for example two years that’s be going on average every 8-9 days. Say you only went every couple of weeks then you’d probably hit 3 years for the equivalent amount of money. Granted I’m not taking into account food etc but there’s nothing stopping you turning up with a bottle of water, watching the film and going home again. You don’t have to have the meal out, popcorn etc.

Anyway, thought that was interesting although I’ve probably done my maths wrong somewhere.

I think what you're missing here is that you get that extra (having a nice home setup) for everything not just films.

This only really works of you have a bargain bucket tv setup. But then you'd be subjected to that for all viewing and gaming.

So you can't really compare with that.


Cinema is Dying as you need enough people to go. It's not even a social event. So it's no real loss there.

I do like the cinema. But I do think it's dying amd will die soon enough.

 

[GlitterBalls]

 

[Sirrel Squirrel]

Empire and Cineworld have always been expensive. I've also got the choice of two Vue's round my way and it's £5-6 a ticket vs £15 at the other two

 

[CaptainRAVE]

I’d rather stay home these days and watch it from the comfort of my own sofa with piles of snacks that I don’t have to queue for and were pennies to buy. Plus there’s no one else to irritate me with their phone or food rummaging.

 

[Neil79]

Cinema is Dying as you need enough people to go. It's not even a social event. So it's no real loss there.

I do like the cinema. But I do think it's dying amd will die soon enough.

Yep it needs to! Gone are the days when someone used to staff the Cinema and keep it secure from idiots ruining it. Would rather sit at home with my own surround sound system and nobody disturbing MY time.

 

[n111ck]

Seems like the cinemas need to do more if they want to attract back the grumpy OAP's clutching their Poundland carrier bags full of snacks

 

[Mint8]

Think there needs to be better films also - the latest superhero movie off the conveyor or yet another remake/follow-up just isnt good enough to be more than the dedicated fan audience.

 

[Steeps]

Maybe if I followed the financial advice of some government official and gave up the £20/mo we spend on cinema outings I'd be able to afford a detached house where I wouldn't have the inconvenience of annoying my neighbours to have my AV setup loud enough to rival that of a cinema. I love watching films at home on a 4k Oled TV with 9.1 surround in a 1 bed flat, but trying to find an extra 1k a month on the mortgage compared to £20/mo, I'd rather pay the £20 and go to the cinema. I don't need a detached house for any other purpose.

When the neighbours are out I take that opportunity to watch at home but it doesn't happen as often as it used to.

 

[Begbie]

You've forgotten to include the cost of streaming the films - so £19.99 to rent a stream of something that's been in the cinema for about a month vs £18.00ish per person for unlimited day 1 films in the cinema per month..

Watching at home weeks or months later will always be the poor relation to opening day in the cinema - which I guess is why the first showing of MI: DR part 1 is 00:05 Monday morning at my local lol..

There isn't good enough films to spend £20 renting online consistently, probably about 2 or 3 movies in the past few years worth going to the cinema for. I'd rather wait till they're on a steaming service or pay a couple of £ in a few years.

 

[hartgeh3]

Vue might be last one left standing, maybe Odeon aswell but their ticket prices are a joke

 

[mid_gen]

Well, yes, the technology has obviously moved on, but very few people have a setup on the scale of a cinema with tens or even hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of equipment.

I've got an above-average setup at home and it just doesn't hit you like a cinema experience does with films like Top Gun etc.

The vast majority of people don't use a good TV and certainly don't use a decent sound system, so the reason people don't go has very little to do with the fact that the home experience is more comparable these days, imo.

I don't go to the cinema anymore because I get better picture and audio experience at home watching on my OLED with pair of headphones.

It was a delight to actually see what was happening in the opening scenes of Dune at home. I won't be going to the cinema to watch part 2.

 

[Ayahuasca]

I don't go to the cinema anymore because I get better picture and audio experience at home watching on my OLED with pair of headphones.

It was a delight to actually see what was happening in the opening scenes of Dune at home. I won't be going to the cinema to watch part 2.

Either your local cinema is crap or you have very good audio equipment then. I’ve got an OLED and a high end surround sound system and it’s not beating out the cinema equipment…

 

[mid_gen]

Either your local cinema is crap or you have very good audio equipment then. I’ve got an OLED and a high end surround sound system and it’s not beating out the cinema equipment…

It's a pretty good Naim setup, but I usually just connect my Sony XM3s to the TV if I'm watching alone.

OLED is superior to projection, simply. If cinemas were showing films on gigantic OLED displays I'd probably still make the effort for stuff like Dune, but they're not.....it's still crappy projections with muddy blacks.

The sound is also perfect because it's never interrupted by idiots.

I can pause and go for a pee (maybe you haven't reached middle aged man stage yet, this is a thing).

Films just aren't more enjoyable for being on a big screen. I sit on my sofa Infront of my OLED and I'm more comfortable, with a better picture and good audio....it's just a better experience all round....and ultimately, it's not the technology that matters, it's the content.

 

[Ayahuasca]

It's a pretty good Naim setup, but I usually just connect my Sony XM3s to the TV if I'm watching alone.

OLED is superior to projection, simply. If cinemas were showing films on gigantic OLED displays I'd probably still make the effort for stuff like Dune, but they're not.....it's still crappy projections with muddy blacks.

The sound is also perfect because it's never interrupted by idiots.

I can pause and go for a pee (maybe you haven't reached middle aged man stage yet, this is a thing).

Films just aren't more enjoyable for being on a big screen. I sit on my sofa Infront of my OLED and I'm more comfortable, with a better picture and good audio....it's just a better experience all round....and ultimately, it's not the technology that matters, it's the content.

Whilst that may be the case for you it’s certainly not the experience for everyone else. There are plenty of others in this thread that have good setups but know it’s never going to compare to cinema equipment that can cost six figures in some screens.

The reason cinema numbers have plummeted is definitely content and cost though.

 

[mid_gen]

Whilst that may be the case for you it’s certainly not the experience for everyone else. There are plenty of others in this thread that have good setups but know it’s never going to compare to cinema equipment that can cost six figures in some screens.

The reason cinema numbers have plummeted is definitely content and cost though.

It is the experience for me and all the other people that have said exactly the same thing on this very thread.

If you detach yourself from the world of hifi/AV hyperbole, a film is not actually any better viewed at a cinema versus watching at home on a decent TV. Bigger? Technically better audio? Maybe if your main interest is AV technology then you appreciate it for the sake of it, but it doesn't actually make the film any more enjoyable for the vast majority of people.

I'm not quite sure why you are so reluctant to accept this as a factor

 

[Ayahuasca]

It is the experience for me and all the other people that have said exactly the same thing on this very thread.

If you detach yourself from the world of hifi/AV hyperbole, a film is not actually any better viewed at a cinema versus watching at home on a decent TV. Bigger? Technically better audio? Maybe if your main interest is AV technology then you appreciate it for the sake of it, but it doesn't actually make the film any more enjoyable for the vast majority of people.

I'm not quite sure why you are so reluctant to accept this as a factor

No, everyone else in the thread hasn't said exactly the same thing. You're trying to apply your own experience to everyone, including someone who has an OLED and good audio equipment.

Watching certain films like Top Gun in a good IMAX theatre is a completely different experience to watching it at home, even with your system cranked up.

Something about the experience must be more pleasurable for people, as there are others here with higher-end setups than yours who still go quite often...

So no, there isn't a factor to accept it's just your opinion.

 

[Kenai]

For me it's the poor experience - it's just a hassle going to the cinema, inflexible start times, takes hours out of your day including travel and parking etc., unless you go late in the run it's too busy and noisy to enjoy the film, unless you pay loads extra for "VIP seats" they're usually uncomfortable, the content of the film is identical at home as it is the cinema... the list goes on really.

I gave cinema another go recently for Top Gun - went during daytime in the week when I was off work to avoid the 'busy and noisy' and bought the fancy seats and it was ok. Just ok really. It was a bit jarring how poor the picture contrast felt coming from an OLED TV at home - whilst the TV obviously can't compete on sheer scale, it was disappointing in a cinema built about 5 years ago (with 'Barco Laser Projection').

For my personal enjoyment of film watching, the only things I can't compete with cinema for at home is simply the size and the sound, living in a semi-detached I can't really crank the volume on a window rattling sound system. Everything else is a hands down win for home watching for me.

Edit - as for IMAX, the most local one to me is over an hour drive away and has a screen half as wide/tall as the BFI IMAX and as far as I can see, isn't capable of projecting the full 1.43 IMAX aspect ratio that something like Oppenheimer is supposed to be taking advantage of (edit 2 - it would seem there are actually only three screens in the UK capable of showing Oppenheimer on the 1570 film format - BFI London, Science Museum London and Vue Manchester). In fact I think it's smaller than the screen I went to see Top Gun at, even though that wasn't IMAX, it was Showcase's 'XPlus'.

 

[mid_gen]

So no, there isn't a factor to accept it's just your opinion.

Nope, not a factor

It's just better to watch stuff at home now.
When I went to cinema often I had a 14 inch black and white telly.

Yeah, what with Tv tech and ever advancing home cinema audio, it’s not too difficult to get a good experience

Its certainly close enough, far less hassle, and guaranteed no annoying noisy teenagers

I suppose it depends what you want in a film. If you are a big action packed blockbuster fan then cinema will always be a cut above, but if you are more of a cerebral movie fan then I argue you get a better experience at home.

They're going out of fashion in many ways.
Having to deal with other people kicking your seat, throwing pop corn, rustling packets, talking and going on their phone during the film etc. Cost. I would pay more than my annual netflix sub to take my family for a single movie.* I have a big OLED at home with surround sound. I'm not saying it's the same as a cinema screen and speakers, but it's pretty good and the comfort of my own home with infinite flexibility and food/drink. It's another sad thing to lose, just because it used to be a cool experience and something to look forward to for kids as a treat.
*Turkey vpnflix

Too expensive, not enough top end films, all just seems like Marvel rubbish to be and rehashing old films.
Plus having 65" OLED and Atmos at home means it looks and sounds better at home as well.

Not really sure why cinemas are needed any more.

A large OLED, a decent sound system, and the comfort of your own living room is a much nicer experience.

It is also far too expensive.

I imagine it will mostly go the way of the dodo eventually.

Last films I watched at a cinema were the LOTR trilogy.

So around twenty or so years ago.

Quite happy now to watch media in the comfort of my home on an OLED screen with an AV receiver, without the hassle of travel, expensive seats, expensive food, and yobbish, feral yoofs.

Can't ever see me going to a cinema again.

Past its sell by date IMO.

I just watch everything on my projector in my dedicated cinema/gaming room. Only 84" & 5.1, but it's pretty bloody good!

 

[Ayahuasca]

Nope, not a factor

Those are all opinions? most of them don't even explain why it's better, just that it's a nicer (not better) experience and less expensive.

You're also on a forum full of introverts who couldn't be paid to sit near the general public

It's the same with things like Reddit, you get a very skewed response from certain demographics. The reason cinema attendance is down has nothing to do with the level of equipment people have at home, because the vast majority of people don't have an OLED or surround sound system. It's down to cost and the fact that there are only a couple of films a year that are worth seeing on the big screen.

I don't go that often myself, but I'm not under any illusions that my home setup can beat a cinema on the AV front. Yes, it may not have the infinite contrast ratio of my OLED or be as crystal clear, but some movies just need the sheer scale of a cinema screen to give you the full experience. The same reason very few people use TVs when building a dedicated home cinema room.

 

[the shadow]

Twice i went to see Top Gun 2 still not watched on my 65 OLED too small
I got to break out my Projector for that