COVID HORROR
Could movie theatres become a permanent Covid casualty, Stephanie Arthur-Worsop asks
COVID-19 HAS SNATCHED alot away from us. Some things are obvious, like overseas travel, no-hassle international online shopping and big, public events. But others were probably less anticipated.
For me, the thing I didn’t realise how much I was going to miss was going to the movies.
The salty, buttery popcorn, the choctops, the theatres that have the aircon up so high that even in summer you have to wear a cardigan. But more than that, I miss the shared anticipation of a packed theatre waiting for the movie to start.
One of the last films I saw in the cinema was Avengers: Endgame back in early 2019.
Like any superhero movie, the theatre was brimming with excited patrons. The energy was contagious so as you sat there, you could feel your own excitement grow.
The movie was good, I mean, it was a superhero movie — after so many, they all become one synonymous reel.
But, having watched it a couple of times on Disney Plus since, I can tell you it hasn’t managed to evoke the same feeling it did when watching it for the first time with a group of enthused fans.
When lockdown had us all stuck at home, at first I was stoked movies were going straight to streaming sites.
It meant we were still able to enjoy the new content being produced, just from the comfort of our home.
And it was an added bonus for my household because we hadn’t actually been able to go to the movies since our son was born anyway.
On top of the already booming industry of big-budget television production, we were spoilt for choice.
For those five weeks of lockdown, hubby and I would turn the lights off, get a packet of microwave popcorn and pretend we were at the movies. It worked over that period of time because we knew we had no other option and it was a novelty.
But then, as we found ourselves in one of the few places on Earth where the virus was under control, life in New Zealand started to go back to normal.
We were allowed out of our homes, cinemas reopened, social distancing was no longer required and it started to feel like Covid was a thing of the past.
The problem was, the rest of the world wasn’t in the same position. And sadly, most mainstream movies are made in the US and UK, where Covid is raging on.
So more movies are being pushed back or pushed straight to television, leaving us Kiwis with pitiful pickings if we’re eyeing up a trip to the cinema.
Many of the big franchise films I’ve been eagerly awaiting have been deferred to 2022 or even 2023. When they finally do get released, will it be to a packed-out movie theatre? Or will we all be watching it from our couches?
I’m hopeful it’ll be the former but if production companies see too much success releasing films straight to streaming sites, the days of movie theatres may be numbered, making them a permanent Covid casualty.
I for one, desperately hope not. The shared hype of going to the movies simply cannot be replicated. Plus, everyone knows microwave popcorn just isn’t as good.