“In the 1940s, [going to the movies] was the national pastime. Approximately 67 percent of the American public — every week, on the average — went to a movie. And they didn’t just see movies — they saw newsreels, they saw cartoons, animation, shorts, a second feature — but it was their weekly pastime. Today, less than 10 percent of the public, on the average, go to the movies in a week.”

I don’t have to go back as far as the 40’s.  I can take a trip down memory lane to the late 80’swhen I spent an afternoon in a movie theater around the corner from my apartment on West 71st in NYC and sat through a double bill of Lina Wertmüller ‘s – Swept Away and Seven Beauties. (If you’re familiar with Ms. Wertmüller ‘s work, you’ll understand when I say I needed oxygen and a trip to a relaxing spa when the credits rolled.)  Regardless of my emotional state – I loved the fact that I could spend an entire afternoon in a movie theater.  It was normal to go to the movies at least once a week.

So, what happened?  Why is it that only 10 percent of the population goes to the movies now?  Is it the price of the ticket?  Perhaps it’s the fact that I can download a film on Netflix soon after its release.  Or could it be there’s a dearth of good films being made?  I can recall going to the movies a few months ago and watching the trailers for upcoming films.  My comments ranged from “Oh, that’s definitely a rental,” to, “I wouldn’t see that film even if I was locked in the bathroom on a cross Atlantic flight and it was playing on a screen in front of me.”

So the question is – Do you go to the movies?  How often? And why do you think there is such a dramatic decline in movie going?

In an interview with SciFiPulse, Corman was quoted as saying, “We’ve come a long way from trucking 35mm film prints to the drive-in. Now, through the medium of the internet, filmmakers can reach the audience immediately, and open them up to new experiences in interactive storytelling. Viewers can now decide the outcome of the story for themselves—provided the writer and director can present all the options. The devil is in the details, and it’s a new kind of entertainment for a fast-changing audience.”

Take a look at Splatter and decide if interactive story telling works for you.  A word of caution, this series is not for the faint of heart – the title says it all.

However, there are a few that peaked my interest –

The Time Traveler’s Wife
Based on: THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE by Audrey Niffenegger

The Time Traveler’s Wife is a romantic drama about a Chicago librarian with a gene that causes him to involuntarily time travel, and the complications it creates for his marriage.

Based on my love of time travel books, I had to pick this one up – however, I was disappointed. I felt no empathy for the protagonist or his situation. You’ll have to judge for yourself. Will I see the film. Most definitely yes.

Julie & Julia

Based on: JULIE & JULIA: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen by Julie Powell

Based on two true stories, Julie & Julia intertwines the lives of two women who, though separated by time and space, are both at loose ends until they discover that with the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible.

I can remember years ago, before the Food Network, there were only two people you could watch cook on television – Julia Child and The Galloping Gourmet. They weren’t called “Chefs” back then but they were delightfully entertaining. They cooked with tons of lard and they prepared dishes only a stay at home wife with an army of servants could prepare. It was great ‘theater’. Will I see it on the big screen- absolutely. Why? Because it stars Meryl Streep – I’d go see her reading the phone book.

You Tube Video

Taking Woodstock
Based on: TAKING WOODSTOCK by Elliott Tiber

A man working at his parents’ motel in the Catskills inadvertently sets in motion the generation-defining concert in the summer of 1969.

Ang Lee directs this one, and I love his work. I’ll most certainly be buyng a ticket to this one. I lived the era and I’m curious to see yet another angle – Woodstock never gets old.

I Love You, Beth Cooper
Based on: I LOVE YOU, BETH COOPER by Larry Doyle

I Love You, Beth Cooper chronicles the story of a nerdy valedictorian who proclaims his love for the hottest and most popular girl in school, Beth Cooper, during his graduation speech. Much to his surprise, Beth shows up at his door that very night and decides to show him the best night of his life.

For me, this one is a rental – and that’s only a maybe.

What’s on your summer movie list?

Network is a scathing satire about a fictional television network UBS. This Oscar winning screenplay was written by Paddy Chayefsky. It was unbelievable then and today it’s still almost unbelievable. It’s the story of a news anchor, Howard Beale who after many years of reporting the news with integrity finds his ratings slipping. In an effort to boost the ratings, UBS decides to combine entertainment with news. The once lone anchor reading from a teleprompter looking straight into the camera is replaced by fortunetellers, evangelists, and urban terrorists. Distraught by what he now sees as passing for news, Beale delivers his famous on camera speech urging the viewers to open their windows and scream out into the streets – “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore.”

When I saw the film in 1976, I loved it. But I never, in my wildest dreams thought we would see anything like what was portrayed in Network on real television. I was wrong. You only have to see what passes for Reality TV to know we are living the film Mr. Chayefsky penned more than 30 years ago.

I bring this up because — well frankly, I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore! Really. What passes for news media should really be called ‘bad news’ media. We’ve always lived in a world of,  “If it bleeds, it leads”, however, I think they’ve taken it to the point of,  “If we can scare the bejeez out them, let’s run with it.”    There are too many people on the news today offering me their opinions instead of the facts.  And those opinions are designed to make us afraid.  What happened to solid journalism?  Where’s the reporting?  Where’s the investigative non-biased journalism?  Not much around these days.  What I do see are more blogs, more opinions and more people telling me to crawl under my covers, it’s a dangerous world out there and you may not make it.

Well – guess what.  I’m not crawling under my covers.  I say get some people who can just give me the facts, and I’ll live my own life thank you very much.  Carpe Diem!