Herr Wozzeck Comments On: Small Town Theaters

So... I'm sure you all noticed a recent drop in review activity. So the next question is probably this:

Why?

Well, there's a perfectly reasonable explanation. I'm in the very small town of Oberlin, Ohio at the moment, with the nearest multiplex a long drive away. Trust me, it's a long drive to the nearest one.

That's the downside.

The upside?

There's a small-town movie theater across the street from where I'm staying. Why is this a good thing?

I get to experience one of the more charming ways of seeing a movie in America.

Generally, it's just a better experience overall. For one thing, it's not owned by a major movie theater group like AMC or Regal, so there's no annoying preshow feature. For another, we actually don't get oversaturated with trailers. We just get trailers for the next two features that are playing in the movie, and then it's on to the movie itself. Therefore, it's all nice and brief and gets immediately to the picture. For one more thing, it actually feels like a fairly intimate setting. To be sure, the theater seats are all fairly worn and the whole thing seems needlessly fancy in some places, but for me that just adds to the charm.

The only real downside? It plays the same feature for weeks on end, instead of bringing in movies. Given that it only has one screen, I can't say I blame them, but it's still more than a little disappointing to not be able to see a new movie every week or so the way I usually do. But that's a downside in a world of charm.

Oh, yeah, and the tickets are cheap. That too. I kid you not: when I was here, I paid seven dollars to see Toy Story 3 in the newly fitted 3D screen. Yes: I paid less money to see a movie in 3D than I normally would to see a matinee feature at the Regal multiplex close to where I am in Boston. And the employees actually care to look at you when you make purchases of stuff.

So overall, it's a pleasant experience. I don't know what makes it so charming, but I guess it's good that small theaters like the one at Oberlin, Ohio still exist. I'm not sure where I was going with this, but... hey, I figured I'd just talk about how it is to watch a movie in a small town like this.