For some, film is not just a job, or a hobby, it’s their life. It’s their reason to get out of bed, it’s the thing they look forward to during a long day of work or school, it’s their escape from the madness of the world. Film can be a job, film can be a hobby, or it could just be the most casual of interests, but the important thing is that it connects people.
For over a century, the cinema-going experience has enchanted and connected people, providing an experience like no other. No matter the quality of the movie, going to the cinema is almost always a magical experience which should be cherished. Some of my closest friends I have met through group cinema trips, discussions about cinema and the like, and naturally none of that would’ve happened without the existence of cinemas in general.
Me? I’ve been going to the cinema since I was a young child, but after I fell completely in love with the art of film in my early teens, cinemas became my favourite place on the planet. Some of my best memories exist within those four walls, sat in front of a cinema screen, completely mesmerised by whatever I was watching. It became an escape for me throughout my teenage years and into my university years and beyond. I got to see huge event movies like Avengers: Endgame; classics and older personal favourites like Shallow Grave and The Shining; and some of the best modern cinema has to offer like Sinners and Everything Everywhere All At Once. Through these experiences, my passion for film became a desire to make films and to do just about anything related to film for a living.
Reducing the theatrical window to make movies release to streaming services may sound like a good idea to casual movie fans, but for those who value the wonderful cinematic experience, it feels like a death sentence. Everybody should get the chance to see a new movie on the biggest screen, and reducing that window not only limits the amount of people able to do so, but harms the industry as a whole, especially when you take into account locally run and independent cinemas who don’t have huge financial backing.
The shorter theatrical windows are a death sentence not just to the industry, but to the passion of young people for film who became enamoured by seeing movies on the biggest screen possible. Streaming will never replace the cinema experience, and to an extent the human experience and connection.
Netflix, you can go to hell!
