A survey of 246 “cinema owners and film professionals affiliated with exhibitors” found that more than half believe the “traditional cinema experience” will be dead as a viable business model within 20 years.
“Among other findings in the poll, nearly 90% of U.S. exhibition executives stated that their revenue has not recovered to pre-COVID levels,” reports the far-left Variety. “An overwhelming majority of them, 81%, also want an exclusive theatrical window on new releases lasting at least six weeks, while 77% believe that day-and-date streaming releases have a negative impact on the theatrical model.”
What’s astonishing about the Variety write-up of the survey and the survey itself is that nowhere is the quality of the product (i.e., the movies) taken into account.
Sure, there’s talk of COVID and cost-cutting and expanding the theatrical window before the movie becomes available to rent or purchase at home, but nowhere does anyone talk about the quality of the product.
This is absolute madness.
What industry, other than the entertainment industry, is allowed to discuss the dogs (customers) not eating the dog food (the movies) without addressing the quality of the dog food?
Are these people insane? Are they really that freaken stupid?
If a business is in trouble, you look at three things: 1) the quality of the product, 2) the price of the product, and 3) the demand for the product.
All anyone in the world of entertainment does is examine number three, throw their hands up, and assume that’s the problem, and therefore it’s not their fault.
Sorry, but if you want to save your industry, a little introspection should come before surrendering to number three. And it’s easy to surrender to number the because then you don’t have to look at the possibility that the customers might not be the problem. The problem might very well be the lousy product you are trying to sell.
I’ve said this before, and I will say it again…
You open a carnival. The carnival has ten attractions. Three of those attractions make a ton of money. Seven lose money. Is the problem that no one wants to go to the carnival anymore or that seven of your attractions suck?
Obviously, you need better attractions. The three successful attractions prove people will still attend the carnival in droves … if the attractions are appealing.
And even though no one has the moral courage to admit it, this is exactly what’s happening to the movies. Post-COVID, we have seen movies such as Inside Out 2, Top Gun: Maverick, Barbie, Oppenheimer, Spider-Man: No Way home, Deadpool & Wolverine, Wicked, and Avatar: Way of the Water, among others, blow the doors off the box office, and in some cases, break box office records.
How is that possible it people just don’t want to go to the movies anymore because COVID, because the theatrical window, because streaming, because, because, because…?
There is no doubt people still want the theatrical experience, but not if the product stinks.
Everyone knows the quality of movies is nowhere near what it was ten and 20 years ago, much less during the 1990s.
The entertainment industry reminds me of Democrat voters in these failed cities. Lacking the maturity and honesty to correctly diagnose and solve the true problem (bad movies, destructive left-wing policies), things continue to worsen. Why? Because they refuse to admit they are wrong, so they keep voting for the same failed policies and continue to produce bad movies.
Maybe don’t have two guys kiss in a Marvel movie? Maybe don’t have Indiana Jones emasculated by a girlboss? Maybe don’t condemn the male gaze when sex and sensuality have sold tickets for a hundred years? Maybe don’t deliberately alienate your Star Wars fan base as toxic. Maybe stop handing beloved franchises over to sexless, unappealing chicks?
With rare exceptions, movies are no longer as much fun as they once were.
People want to have a good time at the movies, even serious movies.
Make better dog food, morons.
John Nolte’s first and last novel, Borrowed Time, is winning five-star raves from everyday readers. You can read an excerpt here and an in-depth review here. Also available in hardcover and on Kindle and Audiobook.
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