Gen Z has rediscovered the joy of going to the movies(economist.com) |
Gen Z has rediscovered the joy of going to the movies(economist.com) |
My submission got flagged, so may the odds be in your favor!
I think it is an interesting story.
Why can't it be the much simpler explanation: movies have sucked, so no one went to see them? Recently good movies came out, so ... more people are going to the theater.
This is why I haven't gone to see as many in the past few years, for sure
This year maybe three times
We're a bit pickier because it's much more expensive to go now, but it feels like not much is worth seeing these days
When we compare with flops like the Moana remake it really demonstrates that people who love going to the movies are discerning and demand authentic films, which often includes practical effects.
When a movie mostly consists of actors standing around motionless in front of a 360 degree screen stage or a green screen with cheap, rusher AI, people notice and they don’t recommend the movie to their friends.
Unrelated, I wonder if there’s still potential for movie rental shops in more dense urban areas. I think the concept could be more reimagined and focused on a third space, events, maybe involve a coffee shop or similar routine-worthy purchase.
I think the main barrier is that many people don’t have players anymore.
Libraries have stepped in to full this gap. Most have very decent selections of blu-ray and DVDs as long as you aren't looking for a very recent release. Although it's hard to say how much longer physical discs will still be made.
In a few years probably not. Pokemon Pikachu and the Sonic movies were way better than Mario. And I think Zelda needs to be WAY better than Mario to get a real audience.
But Hollywood is so bad with video games that "Mario with proper sound effects" is currently the bar. Like it's either Mario or Mortal Kombat for recent video game movies and somehow the Mario and Minecraft movies are objectively better.