this post was submitted on 02 Jul 2025
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[–] Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works 11 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Tvs are gigantic, projectors aren't all that expensive anymore, people are sometimes obnoxious in public, and it's a lot of fun to piece together a good sound system. Fuck theaters.

And since I don't have to drive anywhere if I'm already home, drinks are back on the menu.

Can also pause when I have to take a piss in the middle of a 3-hour movie.

[–] melsaskca@lemmy.ca 3 points 1 day ago

Finally! Free movies for the masses paid for by ads. That's def a move in the right direction. Lots of people will be going back to the theaters now I bet. /s

[–] RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world 16 points 1 day ago (1 children)

The ad industry is destroying every form of entertainment or data access available. Even within the entertainment itself we get product placement for cars, foods, etc.

[–] mrodri89@lemmy.zip 1 points 1 day ago

Have you seen the beaches at Miami? That shit is dystopian.

[–] njm1314@lemmy.world 8 points 1 day ago

Well they're already doing it so at least they're being open about it now I guess.

[–] DarrinBrunner@lemmy.world 67 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Seems like a major selling point for theaters could be that they DON'T show ads, and that would be a draw.

They're competing with my big TV at home, my comfortable couch, surround sound, private bathroom, control over the volume, ability to pause, great snacks, and no annoying people. The only thing they have is first access, and I'm more than willing to wait to get all the benefits of watching at home.

[–] ramble81@lemmy.zip 10 points 1 day ago

Alamo Drafthouse already does this. Their pre-movie things are all related to the movie being shown, usually featurettes or meme videos related to it.

[–] bytesonbike@discuss.online 80 points 2 days ago (4 children)

Movie theaters: "Why are movie theaters dying?"

(Also Movie theaters)

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[–] Zier@fedia.io 45 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I won't sit through an ad, at home, in my underwear. I most certainly am not putting on pants, leaving the house, and paying admission to see ads.

The bar to get me to put pants on keeps rising.

[–] ramble81@lemmy.zip 16 points 1 day ago (2 children)

To all those people saying “well I’ll just show up late”, wait till they start denying entry if you are past a certain point with no refund, forcing people to sit through the ads.

[–] realitista@lemmy.world 9 points 1 day ago

That's the day movie theaters die

[–] RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Pop in earbuds, pull out phone, and find something else to do for (hypothetical required minutes prior to main feature).

Eject me due to using phone during compulsory ad viewing time? I’m never coming back to the theater again.

They shouldn't even really call it public masturbation if it's quite dark in there.

[–] Talaraine@fedia.io 66 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Their website literally said a movie started at 7 pm tonight so we get there at 7. Unfortunately it was a mistake and the movie started at 6:30.

We got to our seats with 3 trailers to spare.

[–] lurch@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Back before covid I went to the cinema almost every week to watch some 3D movie, always late past the trailers/ads and with a sub hidden in my backpack. Fool me once.

[–] nucleative@lemmy.world 14 points 1 day ago (1 children)

If the sentiment in this thread is representative of the population, it seems like theaters no longer have a value proposition. Home theaters are good enough, we have streaming, and we have budget limitations.

[–] tiramichu@sh.itjust.works 21 points 1 day ago (1 children)

There's an independent cinema near me which is doing it right.

The venue is a heritage building which has been refurbished to a high standard, and they have reasonably priced food and drink, including beers.

They participate in film festivals and show a lot of niche and foreign movies that would be impossible to find otherwise, so it's actually worth going to see something different or interesting.

To support accessibility they have child-friendly showings with zero ads or trailers, autism-friendly showings also with no ads, brighter light and less volume, and even pay-as-you-can tickets that go down all the way in price to completely free if you ask for it, so everyone can see a movie, even people who have nothing.

To me, making the cinema experience actually appealing again like that, and an actual part of the community, is the only way for cinema to thrive going forward.

Of course, the big chains can't possibly adapt to that, but as far as the big chains go, then fuck 'em.

That sounds amazing!

[–] etherphon@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago

Lol what? I guess I haven't been to the movies in longer than I thought, it was like 10 minutes max before. Well, no reason to go back now I guess.

[–] Bwaz@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago

A reason not to go to theaters and stream or rent dvds instead.

AMC has been in hard times but now theyve totally lost the plot and make times way worse.

[–] LaunchesKayaks@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago

Just solidifies my hatred of theaters even more lol

[–] j4k3@lemmy.world 35 points 2 days ago (2 children)

I didn't think there was anything worth watching before. I'm certain now. All ads are insults to your time and intelligence.

[–] Bonesince1997@lemmy.world 8 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Most didn't even notice the 12 mins of every hour taken for ads on TV (old stat; could even be worse now). And if you brought it to their attention, something about doing chores during them or somehow accepting them as the only way in which you'd receive your entertainment was what you heard. Any moment of most ads is an insult to your mental as far as I'm concerned. And others just don't want to protect themselves.

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[–] hark@lemmy.world 23 points 2 days ago

I think the saddest of all is when they roll ads for themselves. I'm already in your shitty theater, why are you advertising how "magical" your experience is? Just reeks of desperation and won't convince me to visit more frequently, there are many reasons why I very rarely go to AMC theaters and wasting my time advertising yourselves while I'm already there won't change my mind.

[–] AlecSadler@lemmy.blahaj.zone 11 points 1 day ago

Sail the high seas.

[–] LovableSidekick@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

The early couple decades of cable TV divided the audience into an ad-free overclass and an ad-inflicted underclass. Streaming services, once the province of the overclass, are now dividing their audience the same way.

[–] homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago

Movies used to be fun

[–] LuxSpark@lemmy.cafe 21 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I don't mind previews much, but ads? No.

[–] Cruxifux 9 points 2 days ago

I still remember the first time I saw an actual ad in a movie theatre. It was a car ad. I wanted to set the screen on fire.

[–] SkunkWorkz@lemmy.world 11 points 1 day ago

I now warn AMC to expect more yarr 🏴‍☠️

[–] ech@lemmy.ca 17 points 2 days ago (1 children)

It's been ~25 minutes of trailers since 2010. All that's new here is the transparency.

[–] remotelove@lemmy.ca 7 points 2 days ago (1 children)

It been 30 mins for ads and trailers for as long as I can remember and I am in my 40's.

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[–] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 10 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Well...I'm never going to see a movie in any theater ever again.

[–] doingthestuff@lemy.lol 6 points 1 day ago (1 children)

It's already been a decade for me. Doubt I'll ever go again.

I genuinely don't remember the last time I left a theater saying "that was so great." I saw Inglourious Basterds and Zombieland in the theater when they were out, enjoyed both, haven't seen either movie again in any format, and I don't have any concrete memories of walking into a theater since then. If I've seen a movie since what was that? 2010, 2011? It didn't leave an impression.

I used to be a big movie buff, now I'll occasionally rewatch Army of Darkness and that's about it.

[–] circuitfarmer@lemmy.sdf.org 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Same "logic" that expects me to watch ads for a streaming service I pay for at home.

I can get ads for free, capitalists. You're not even playing your own game anymore. You're playing some bullshit home version and hoping we don't see the difference.

[–] douglasg14b@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago

I recently watched cable television at a hotel.

Honestly, appalled. The ad segments are, as an aggregate, SHORTER than YouTube.

How tf did we get to this point, media fragmented across 20 different streaming services that want $10-$25/m to see their Alice of the media you're interested in.

Shits ridiculous

[–] PP_BOY_@lemmy.world 10 points 2 days ago

Fine by me. At least my local AMC theatre only does reserved seating, so now I know there's really no rush. Plenty of time to stop by the grocery store for candy on the drive over

[–] Lodespawn@aussie.zone 8 points 2 days ago

"Oh boy, here I go [pirating] again"

[–] TrickDacy@lemmy.world 8 points 2 days ago

This comment section seems to think this is news. 15 minutes of trailers is probably the least I've ever seen in my life at a chain at least. 25 minutes has been pretty standard for years. Doubt it's increased very much over the past ten years.

[–] Blackmist@feddit.uk 1 points 1 day ago

That's been the norm in the UK for years, and the main reason I no longer go.

[–] salacious_coaster@infosec.pub 8 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (4 children)

I haven't gone to see a movie in years. If I paid to see a movie in a theater and they started showing me fucking ads, I'd walk out and get my money back.

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[–] PhilipTheBucket@ponder.cat 7 points 2 days ago (5 children)

It's so sad. The studios started turning out an endless stream of absolute dogshit, just totally boring spectacle that there's no reason at all to get excited about let alone pay $87 or whatever it costs to go see a movie nowadays. And when people started not going to see movies so much anymore, they learned how to market the facsimile of a groundbreaking and awesome movie that everyone's excited to see, that leaves everyone satisfied and happy, but after being burned a few too many times by going and seeing a movie that was okay but basically am aggressive and overly proud-of-itself waste of a weekend night, people stopped going.

And now the theaters are fucked, the studios are fine because they can get away with rent-seeking from all the streaming platforms, and the people who made all these decisions are looking at their fat retirement funds and trying to figure out what new things they can even buy with all this money. I don't really blame the theaters for trying to figure out how to keep the lights on, but I don't think it's going to work real well for all that much longer.

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[–] nickwitha_k@lemmy.sdf.org 6 points 2 days ago

Guess I'm never going to their theaters again.

[–] hefejefe@lemmy.world 5 points 2 days ago

Theaters are really testing the limits of the bullshit its viewers will sit through.

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