Baseball Blues
.: Well, that didn’t last long, but it’s ok, the win over the American team is something that can never be taken away from the Canadians.
.: Whenever discussing All Things Pop Culture, the only constant is the number of hours in the day, and how one parcels out that time. In 2005, the number of movies I watched was way down from previous years, in fact it was the lowest number since the late 70s. Why was the number down? A combination of things: fewer quality movies made it to Edmonton, the cost of a movie ticket continued to rise, and the overall moviegoing experience continued to lose its appeal. Seeing a film in the theatre is a crapshoot. You never know who will be sitting behind, next to, or in front of you, and whether they will talk throughout the film, flip their cells phone open 10 times, or actually just watch the movie peacefully.
But the other reason is the ongoing increase in the quality of television, traceable back to the days of Hill Street Blues and St Elsewhere. HBO has raised the bar very high, with shows like The Sopranos, Oz, The Wire, Six Feet Under, Deadwood, Rome, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Larry Sanders Show, and many more. Last week, I watched two new network shows, and found myself pulled in almost immediately. The two shows are Sons & Daughters and The Unit. If I am able to keep up with both shows, I will essentially write off my Tuesday nights, which already includes Law & Order: SVU. There is always bit torrent files and video tapes to make it a bit easier. Rather than expound on the virtues of either show, read Tom Shales to learn more about why each is worth making the effort to watch.
March 16th, 2006 at 21:25
Same thing happened to me a while back…going to the movie theater wasn’t as much fun as it used to be. Spoiled by the mass of humanity that got no manners. Going to early matinee’s is always cheaper and less crowded and a good way to use up a couple of hours of vacation. I get 28 days of vacation nowadays and I don’t go anywhere but Winnipeg and that doesn’t take up much time. I still enjoy watching dvds and since I got my new tv it’s been made even better. If I turn the lights out it like being at the theater but there’s no one there but me and I don’t have to have any pants on.
That joke never gets old.
What’s a ticket cost in Edmonton? I’m not sure what it costs here. I went to see Harry Potter last year and it was at a matinee at the Mall Of America. That was $6.50. Other places are usually a buck cheaper. We’ve got several cheap theaters about town. My brother says there aren’t many low cost theaters in Calgary. They don’t go to the theater much as a family anymore. It had gotten very expensive as a family outting.
garth