Since the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020, Rob and I have been inside movie theaters twice. The first time was in Orlando, at the Enzian. It’s beautiful theater, with an outdoor restaurant, and shows mostly independent films. The second time was today.
Rob and I went to the Paragon, a theater in our local mall. ! p.m. showing in the middle of the week. Reclinable seats, spacious. When we bought tickets, the guy at the booth showed up which seats were sold already – mayby six of them.
The movie, Everything Everyone All the Time, is an Asian Matrix, but also spoofs that movie. The action is dizzying. The story is unclear because a lot of the dialogue is in Chinese. And yes, there’s something great about the big screen. But as we sat there in the dark, in a completely empty theater – no shows for those supposedly taken seats – I started feeling eerie, uncomfortable, disoriented. I was also hungry and needed to use the restroom. At the end of Part I, I told Rob I was going to the restroom and left.
It was a relief. It was an even bigger relief to walk outside toward our car. Light, heat, the fecund scent of South Florida headed toward summer. I texted Rob that I was outside. Before he showed up, I realized that the pandemic spoiled me with so many streaming choices. I like stretching out with my dogs and cats to watch a show, a movie, news. I like being able to pause it to answer an email, take a call, or take a break to fix a snack that doesn’t cost more than our tickets.
I’d like to see this movie again when I can stream it from home. According to an article in Bloomberg in Dec 21 2021 , more than 600 theaters remained closed. I wonder how long the surviving theaters will continue to exist. Will they go the way of Blockbuster?