Grumpy Old Man Alert!
The "summer movie season" starts in a couple of days, when Thor hits theaters. And even though I've pretty strictly limited my movie consumption the past couple of years, I was thinking of kicking it up a notch this summer, because there's a number of things that appeal to me. I'm a Marvel junkie, so Thor and Captain America are no-brainers -- but not X-Men: First Class (fool me once, etc.). Kung-Fu Panda 2 and Cars 2 are automatic for Sparky, and I enjoyed the originals, so I don't mind seeing either of those. The same goes for the new Harry Potter. Super 8 and Cowboys & Aliens both look too good to pass up, at least until I see some reviews. With the latest trailer, even Green Lantern looks like it might not be as bad as I feared, and possibly, dare I say it, Transformers? Nope, no, my sanity just called and reminded me of the whole "fool me once" thing, so that's out.
Anyway, no matter how things shake out, that's a whole bunch of popcorn movies I'd like to see this summer. I was all ready to get started, checking out showtimes for Thor, when I got a shock of cold water in the face. $17.50 for the IMAX version? $15 for 3D? Yikes! Hold the popcorn for my popcorn movie, please. The "vanilla" version is $11, which would normally be my choice, because almost everything in 3D lately is just a useless gimmick. And I'd normally save some cash by taking advantage of my self-employment to see it in the afternoon during the week, which would shave off another couple bucks, but that's no longer an option for various boring reasons. I realize that the $11 ticket is supposed to look reasonable by comparison with the more expensive ones, but all it's doing is ticking me off. Yeah, it's not that much more than I paid last year, but the fact that I'm supposed to think that $11 is the reasonable, lower-cost alternative, and be happy to pay it, makes me angry.
So I'm stuck between wanting to be a consumer of the cool, youthful, summer entertainment, and being an old stick in the mud who wants to save money. Probably not the decision-making process that the studios are hoping for.
Anyway, no matter how things shake out, that's a whole bunch of popcorn movies I'd like to see this summer. I was all ready to get started, checking out showtimes for Thor, when I got a shock of cold water in the face. $17.50 for the IMAX version? $15 for 3D? Yikes! Hold the popcorn for my popcorn movie, please. The "vanilla" version is $11, which would normally be my choice, because almost everything in 3D lately is just a useless gimmick. And I'd normally save some cash by taking advantage of my self-employment to see it in the afternoon during the week, which would shave off another couple bucks, but that's no longer an option for various boring reasons. I realize that the $11 ticket is supposed to look reasonable by comparison with the more expensive ones, but all it's doing is ticking me off. Yeah, it's not that much more than I paid last year, but the fact that I'm supposed to think that $11 is the reasonable, lower-cost alternative, and be happy to pay it, makes me angry.
So I'm stuck between wanting to be a consumer of the cool, youthful, summer entertainment, and being an old stick in the mud who wants to save money. Probably not the decision-making process that the studios are hoping for.