Alongside the advent of sound films in the late 1920s came the widespread popularization of the moving picture industry as a leading facet in entertainment and its allure for families across America. Peaking at nearly 70% of Americans attending cinemas on a weekly basis in 1930, visiting the movie theater to see the latest cinematic attraction would be a great delight particularly for middle class families who wished to tune out for several hours the outside world and simply enjoy the night.

A major dwindling of movie theater attendance in America began to take place during the 1950s as the popularity of television in homes began to spread like wildfire across the country. No longer were families obligated to visit the theater and pay an admission fee to experience this form of entertainment. As technology continued to advance progressively further, so did the tumbling of movie theater attendance. During the second World War, the figure had declined just slightly to around 60%; two decades later, it had fallen dramatically to just 10%, near which it has remained ever since.

In the last two decades, still further technological advancements have transformed the way people have consumed entertainment media. With the onset of web-based streaming services, offering a massive catalog of shows and movies for astonishingly low prices relative to the cost of just one ticket to the theater, even cable television has seen a rapid decline in popularity. The movie theater industry–though undoubtedly struggling from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic that swept the economy off its feet in 2020–still survives by a small number of people who swear by the cinematic experience that only the theater can truly provide.

Is the thrill of watching the latest film, fresh on the eve of its theatrical release, still worth meandering out to the theater and paying the exorbitant cost of a ticket? What if monetary factors between theatrical and online viewing experiences were placed aside momentarily? In such a case, it is worth considering that the movie theater experience provides numerous benefits to the viewer–of which most are all but impossible to replicate at home with Netflix or other online streaming platforms.

When one goes to the theater to watch a film, it is often an immersive and memorable experience. Perhaps the most striking feature of the cinema is the loud, pounding surround sound that truly engulfs the audience. Today, some may consider this overbearing, but film down through the years has always been optimized for these very circumstances. This, paired with the enormous and brilliant visual experience that theaters alone provide, can scarcely be matched at home on the living room television or mobile device.

Though other factors today such as finances and convenience are likely contributors to the downturn movie theaters have endured over the past seven decades, their cultural influence has not altogether ceased as even today many still recognize the theatrical experience as the unparalleled means of entertaining film consumption. Given the choice of watching a certain film alone in the theater or alone online–independent of the financial aspect–I would certainly opt for the theatrical experience.🔹