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The Goblet of Fire

Tonight I plan to go out and see Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, thus making this my second trip out to the movies this year. Yes, the yearly amount of times I go out to the movies is now about average with the yearly amount of times I go to a comic book store or a video game store. I'm still very satisfied with watching movies at home, but there are some movies that I can't wait for rental.

The experience of seeing a movie on a screen 200 times larger than my TV is a cool spectacle. The sound effects are great and deafening at times (in a good way). So, I hope to have a good time tonight. Even my fidgety nature of being in a dark room full of strangers won't stop me from seeing this picture.

I used to often go out to movie theaters, but that was when I had a student ID or was still considered a "child." As the cost of a ticket grows closer to the cost of owning the movie on DVD, I'm more than willing to wait a few months. I understand that in most places, you pay extra for the atmosphere, but I'm such a tight-wad with these kinds of things. Plus, my tastes have become more pickier. I don't think of movies as mindless entertainment, but a large sect of the buying audience thinks they are reasons to turn off one's brain. As long as I am living, I can't turn off my brain; not even with a so-called, "brainless" flick. As long as I'm interested enough in a particular film, I'll bypass whatever anxieties I have and go see something that I'm 95% sure I will enjoy.

I'm baffled by the thought of people constantly going to movies and seeing whatever is new. Some of my relatives do this and I don't fully understand why. Nevermind the fact that a movie looks good or stupid; people will go to it since it's new. I don't think there is some sort of makeshift tribal community formed by a hunger for Milk Duds, Coca-Cola and popcorn. I think a lot of people want to be entertained without having to think much about their own life. I can't just be "entertained" and forget things in my life. I want to get something really dense out of a flick. I know I'm not going to get that with National Treasure or Dukes of Hazzard.

Yes, back in the days before there was a vast amount of information on the Internet and before I had developed a jaded eye towards the world of making movies, I enjoyed movies like Independence Day. Back then it was pure excitement for me, but after seeing certain films that rocked my socks off on some many emotional levels (from The Lord of the Rings to Clerks to Donnie Darko), I can't go back to a world of being a consumer looking for a brief blast of fun.

The Harry Potter films really do justice to the overall story, the charm and the aura told in the books. I enjoy seeing each one and am very much looking forward to the next three films in the next few years. I'll definitely pay to see something like this in a movie theater. And to think, a certain big-name director wanted to Americanize Harry Potter in order for it to translate to an American audience. I'm glad Jo Rowling said no to this and kept the films very British. You don't have to know British slang or even understand its class system to get this epic tale of good versus evil.

Comments

Eric said…
Not gonna see any of the movies until I read the books. SO if that is never, then so be it.
Kev said…
I'm getting a new AMC theatre within rock-throwing distance of my house in a few weeks, so I'm sure I'll go to the movies more than I do now, but I can't imagine being one of those who would go out every week "just because it's there."

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