Many parents and even students see the movies as a great way to spend time with friends or family without spending too much money. It is still cheaper to see a movie rather than go to an amusement park.

Most theaters have early showings that are cheaper so instead of the usual dinner and a movie, people are choosing to save some cash, see the early showing, and grab lunch.

Then again people won’t stop dating and like Liz said up top, movies are still relatively inexpensive compared to other forms of entertainment.

These films are NOT recession proof. Most of the time, these films won’t even get launched in an economy such as ours. Why? Remember all those banks that were freezing assets and loans? Well, for the small business (i.e. independents) these loans are necessary in order to get a movie off the ground! This economy is already hurting from the IOU disaster. And it has hurt the film/video industry just as hard! Add on top of that a writer’s strike that lasted about 4 months and the upcoming actors strike and bam: For the first time you’re seeing the film industry in a world of hurt from an economic crisis! Of course, really the industry has seen slowing ticket sales for the past 2 decades. Studio’s can’t rely on their b-movie’s, 3D glass’s, and double feature night anymore. The production cost of the average blockbuster movie has skyrocketed, and advertisement strategies like 3D and double feature night can’t bring the type of income that used to be expected. We’re seeing more films shot over seas and in Canada as well. Why? Because of the tax incentive. The problem is that if this country is hurting, chance’s are those countries will feel the pinch as well.

So, while most of you are talking about ticket sales and DVD sales, we should really be thinking about what it costs to make a film. Because that’s what really determines whether the film industry is doing well. If you can’t make as many movies, you don’t make as much money, and your investors won’t be investing as much! Now this isn’t true for everyone, right? Because we haven’t really discussed the largest factor of the dying film industry: the television! Yes, it seems video has killed the motion picture star.

I think that ultimately what will determine whether or not people keep spending their money on entertainment is the value of the products that Hollywood produces. An amazing product is obviously harder to pass up and thus more likely to be successful in a rougher economic outlook. I also appreciate your point that in hard economic times “funding for movies become a lot harder to find and studios will be forced to take less risks.” It is easy to forget that the studios are also affected, and effectively restricted, like the rest of us during economic hardships. I thought it was a valid and interesting point to bring up the idea that the restrictions placed on the movie studios will result in less creative freedom. In an industry when it is usually all about the money anyhow, when money is tight, it is definitely all about the money in Hollywood. I definitely agree with your opinion that this will be a depressing reality for Hollywood if these economic restrictions do come to fruition. The last thing Hollywood needs is more big-buck blockbusters and fewer significant and challenging films.

It is heading that way in the USA….maybe after martial law is instilled.

Exactly. You’d spend five times that at a bar for the same duration of entertainment as Joel said.

“Maybe movie theaters will suffer a bit.”

They already are. I’ve worked at three theatres in my life (as projectionist and even assistant manager) and two of those (even one with a large amount of patrons) are closed now. My guess is that in another decade or so movie theatres (in rural areas specifically) will be few and far between like the video game arcade is today. I’m not spending seven dollars on popcorn anymore and when its cold outside my jacket allows me to smuggle canned drinks. (In doing this I’m effectively an asshole because I love the theatrical experience and I’m helping destroy it…for those that don’t know concessions are the only thing that pays bills at a theatre.)

The Great Depression verified that movies are recession proof (Joel is right; the movie industry boomed back then)…but that was way before torrents and DVD ripping software.

I heard an interesting story on NPR today (this is where everyone tunes out) that explored whether the video game industry was functioning now like the film industry did during the Great Depression. During the depression, people still went to the movies in droves, the story argued because of an escapist drive on the part of audiences.

I don’t play video games anymore and don’t understand how grown adults can prefer playing video games to watching films (as many interviewed in the story did), but hey, whatever floats your boat!

Also, I agree with Liz. $10 is really not that much, once every week or two, to see a movie. I have friends who bitch about paying to see new releases because of the $10 price tag but have no problem going to bars on Friday and Saturdays and paying upwards of $50-$60 for the pleasure of getting shitfaced and turning into a puking hungover wreck in the morning. Doesn’t make sense to me.