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Quality of Movies in Theaters since the pandemic

1,901 Views | 16 Replies | Last: 3 yr ago by Stupe
dude95
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1:00p, 3/9/23
AG
Went to the movies the other day for the first time in years - "Cocain Bear". Pretty good movie - but not necessarily one I'll be thinking of for 20 years. There hasn't been too many movies go to the theater that I've been dying to see. Honestly - Avengers Infinity War was probably about it.

I also really haven't walked out of a movie since then where I thought it was really amazing. Just haven't been moved by anything like I used to.

Same can't be said of streaming - I've loved a number of movies and even more series on the streaming services.

Didn't love Maverick like everyone else did - that's the one example I'm good with. Look at the Oscar best pictures and I'm not that exited there either. I saw Elvis, Maverick, the banshees of inisherin, alls quiet on the western front. Really liked AQOTWF - but would be happier if I hadn't seen the others.

At one point, I would take my boys to every Marvel movie and we would have it planned out well in advance. Don't see them until they are free on Disney+. Just saw Black Panther - worst Marvel movie yet in my opinion. All of phase 4 hasn't been as good as just about any of the movies before it.

Is it just me? Is there quality out there that I just haven't been looking at?
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TCTTS
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In reply to dude95 • 1:26p, 3/9/23
AG
I don't know, this sounds like it might be a "you" thing.

Especially if you're counting Infinity War, which was 2018, as the last great thing you saw. Because 2019 is largely considered one of the best movie years of century, the best since probably 2007, with Endgame, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Parasite, Jojo Rabbit, Ford v Ferrari, Knives Out, 1917, Uncut Gems, Joker, Booksmart, etc.

And yes, the pandemic obviously killed all momentum from 2019, but starting in late 2021, personally, Dune, Spider-Man: No Way Home, The Batman, and Top Gun: Maverick were each some of my favorite all-time movie-going experiences, and some of the best blockbusters I've ever seen, period. I wouldn't quite put Avatar: The Way of Water in that category, but it was certainly an event, and better than 90% of everything else that's out there.

I do agree that A) Phase Four of the MCU was a misfire, and B) 2022 was a crap year for Oscar fare, relatively speaking. But again, the latter was due more to the pandemic hangover than anything, and yet Tar was still incredible, as were a couple others. As for the former, if there wasn't anything making up for the Marvel decline I might be worried, but so far, as mentioned above, other studios - Warner Bros, in particular - having been picking up the slack in ways I couldn't be more happy with.

That, and I've said it before and I'll say it again, but 2023 is stacked in ways that even 2019 wasn't. This year finally looks to be a return to form, with the craziest summer ever just around the corner, and already, two months in, I've seen and enjoyed more movies in theaters this time of year than I have in forever. Sharper, Knock at the Cabin, and Creed III, in particular, were all solid efforts, and March looks to continue that trend, with a likely $40M+ opener every weekend this month.

I get that the past three years have, for the most part, sucked theatrically. But again, the pandemic had *everything* to do with that, and yet there were still plenty of all-time gems. If anything, I would at least wait until this summer before officially declaring anything.
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dude95
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In reply to TCTTS • 1:37p, 3/9/23
AG
TCTTS said:
I don't know, this sounds like it might be a "you" thing.

Especially if you're counting Infinity War, which was 2018, as the last great thing you saw. Because 2019 is largely considered one of the best movie years of century, the best since probably 2007, with Endgame, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Parasite, Jojo Rabbit, Ford v Ferrari, Knives Out, 1917, Uncut Gems, Joker, Booksmart, etc.

And yes, the pandemic obviously killed all momentum from 2019, but starting in late 2021, personally, Dune, Spider-Man: No Way Home, The Batman, and Top Gun: Maverick were each some of my favorite all-time movie-going experiences, and some of the best blockbusters I've ever seen, period. I wouldn't quite put Avatar: The Way of Water in that category, but it was certainly an event, and better than 90% of everything that's out there.

I do agree that 2022 was a crap year for Oscar fare, relatively speaking, but again, that was due more to the pandemic hangover than anything. Still, Tar was incredible, as were a couple others.

That, and I've said it before and I'll say it again, but 2023 is stacked in ways that even 2019 wasn't. This year finally looks to be a return to form, with the craziest summer ever, and already, two months in, I've seen and enjoyed more movies in theaters this time of year than I have in forever. Sharper, Knock at the Cabin, and Creed III, in particular, were all solid efforts, and March looks to continue that trend, with a likely $40M+ opener every weekend this month.

I get that the past three years have, for the most part, sucked theatrically. But again, the pandemic had *everything* to do with that, and yet there were still plenty of all-time gems. If anything, I would at least wait 'til this summer before officially making up your mind.
Definitely forgot some of the 2019 movies. Particularly fond of 1917, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

2021 - Enjoyed Dune, but it's so much a story we'll have to see all the movies to truly appreciate. Spider-man was pretty good, but I'm not sure we'll all have the same feelings about it in 5 years. Feels like something that won't hold up.

I agree it could just be a me thing - put a projector up at home and now have theater chairs. Don't feel I'm missing out on anything at the theater except for opening weekend. Hoping that the movies get better next year and I'm not just entering the 'Old Man' phase
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AustinAg2K
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1:38p, 3/9/23
I'm not sure I would say the quality of movies has gone down that much, but the price of tickets, at least in my area, has sky rocketed. That makes most movies far less interesting to me. I took the family to see Ant-Man and it was over $80 for a family of four... And it was a Sunday Matinee. We saw Avatar in 3D and it was over a hundred dollars.

Going to see movies in the theater is one of my favorite things to do. However, I now have to consider how much I really want to see a movie because of the price. If it's not something I'm dying to see, I'll just wait for it to come on streaming. I can basically pay for a year of Disney+ for the same price as taking my family to a movie.
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PDWT_12
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In reply to TCTTS • 1:45p, 3/9/23
AG
TCTTS said:
B) 2022 was a crap year for Oscar fare, relatively speaking. But again, the latter was due more to the pandemic hangover than anything, and yet Tar was still incredible, as were a couple others.
Only really disagree with this part. As someone not really big into the Oscars/Best Picture stuff, this is way more fun, balanced group of nominees than what I'm used to seeing. Or maybe just the most accessible? I don't know. I normally will only end up watching 4 or 5 of the nominees but I am interested in every single one this year.
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TCTTS
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In reply to dude95 • 1:45p, 3/9/23
AG
To name a few, in the months ahead...

Air
The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Fast X
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - Part One
The Flash
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning: Part I
Oppenheimer
Dune: Part Two
The Killer (Fincher)
The Marvels
Killers of the Flower Moon (Scorsese)

... plus a TON of others. If a number of those don't get your juices flowing, then yeah, you're definitely in your "old man" phase, and I don't know what to tell you.
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javajaws
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1:45p, 3/9/23
AG
The last couple of years have been down for obvious reasons like the pandemic. But I think its more than that. I think its the plethora of direct to streaming offerings that is thinning the quality out a little bit (outside of the top notch blockbusters obviously). I think this is mostly transitional and the industry will grow through it eventually as more talent is trained up as well as studios figure out the right amount (and quality) of content to make. e.g. I think they erred and have been making more content at lower quality levels than they should have been. If say they make 10% less content with 10% higher quality in the future I think things improve immensely vs what they have been delivering currently. Purely anecdotal IMHO...
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TCTTS
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In reply to PDWT_12 • 1:46p, 3/9/23
AG
PDWT_12 said:
TCTTS said:
B) 2022 was a crap year for Oscar fare, relatively speaking. But again, the latter was due more to the pandemic hangover than anything, and yet Tar was still incredible, as were a couple others.
Only really disagree with this part. As someone not really big into the Oscars/Best Picture stuff, this is way more fun, balanced group of nominees than what I'm used to seeing. Or maybe just the most accessible? I don't know. I normally will only end up watching 4 or 5 of the nominees but I am interested in every single one this year.

That doesn't seem to be the consensus, but this is honestly great to hear.
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Aggie_Journalist
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In reply to TCTTS • 1:49p, 3/9/23
AG
TCTTS said:
To name a few, in the months ahead...

Air
The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Fast X
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - Part One
The Flash
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning: Part I
Oppenheimer
Dune: Part Two
The Killer (Fincher)
Killers of the Flower Moon (Scorsese).


That is an exciting lineup.

Also, dare I say Barbie?
Thanks and gig'em
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TCTTS
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In reply to Aggie_Journalist • 1:51p, 3/9/23
AG
I would absolutely add Barbie, as I'm on the record as saying it will be one of the biggest movies of the summer, but then people give me sh*t whenever I say as much, so I just left it off this time, haha.
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PDWT_12
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In reply to TCTTS • 2:22p, 3/9/23
AG
Maybe just due to how much I love EEAAO which seems to be the lock.
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Noblemen06
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In reply to TCTTS • 2:25p, 3/9/23
AG
That lineup is bananas. Can't wait for Oppenheimer & Dune pt 2
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Lathspell
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3:37p, 3/9/23
AG
If you didn't walk out of Top Gun: Maverick or The Batman with the thought that those were great theater experiences, then I don't know what you're expecting. Are you just *****ing that Marvel movies suck in phase 4?
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TCTTS
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10:51p, 3/9/23
AG
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Chipotlemonger
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In reply to Lathspell • 11:39p, 3/9/23
AG
DallasTeleAg said:
If you didn't walk out of Top Gun: Maverick or The Batman with the thought that those were great theater experiences, then I don't know what you're expecting.


Preach
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Iowaggie
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7:32p, 3/10/23
AG
I think the movie producers and theaters are going to have to deal with the same challenge that college and pro sports teams had to do once almost all games were broadcast in HD and fans didn't have to go to the stadium to see a game.


The pandemic certainly paused studio production, but people modified the way they consumed entertainment. We all got out of the routine of going to the theater, and at the same time, streaming services really were loading up on high quality content, and it seems like the movies in theater to streaming service is even quicker now because of the highly competitive streaming industry, and some really good movies skip the theaters and go straight to Netlfix or Amazon Prime. So now why go pay $15/ticket for going out to a theater when you can wait a few weeks until it is on Disney+ or HBOMax unless it a tremendous event type movie? Or just stay home and watch something else.

So, I don't think the live football game experience has gotten worse, but the value of going to the live sporting event isn't as strong as it used to be. Likewise, I'm at a point where going to the movies doesn't seem "worth it".

For me, I'm done going to the theater for almost any movie over 2h45m. Unless I'm going with my kids, I'm not going to any Disney movie when I can see it a few weeks later on D+, and I have a "watchlist" of about 100 movies and 20 TV series* that I really want to watch, so the movies in theaters have very little appeal to me right now, but I realize it might not be because the quality has taken a dive, I've changed.







*Side note: If SAG writers strike, I'll be OK on content for the next 5 years.
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Stupe
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9:27p, 3/11/23
S
I'm at the point that if a movie is a drama or comedy, I'll probably just watch it at home.

If it's action / military / sci fi and I really want to see it, I'll go to the movies.
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