This seems an odd one to moan about as when I was growing up, the cinemas I went normally only had 2 to 4 screens.
Now cinemas have screens in double figures, for example, my cinema of choice has 10 screens, so this should now give plenty of choice for when choosing what to see.
Yet the reality is when a blockbuster is released, multiple screens will be dedicated to showing that film, with some animated films having shorter run times, this means they can show them every hour of the day.
An example of this is despite being nearly 3 hours long, Batman v Superman is currently showing on 5 different screens.
The film has released to a $500 million opening, so of course cinemas should look to capitalize on that, but it can be extremely frustrating when it comes at the loss of other films.
A few weeks ago my local cinema was showing Kung Fu Panda 3 nearly every hour of the day, with multiple viewing choices as well to incorporate 2D and 3D.
Yet this would appear to have reduced audience choices! I myself had hoped to see High Rise, yet with all the popular films on, it wasn’t showing.
What I found most odd was High Rise didn’t even get an evening performance, when you would imagine the family orientated Kung Fu Panda 3 crowds may reduce.
It can also make us as audiences make tough decisions, Deadpool was released at the same time as Zoolander 2, but in addition so was Pride and Prejudice with Zombies.
I had been to see the first two and had planned to watch P&P, but it was taken off showing after a week as the other 2 were doing good business. They had to show another blockbuster to dominate the screens.
Deadpool was still showing well after a month of its initial release alongside the Panda antics. Of course, you have to assume people are still seeing the film, so you can not blame them to keep showing it.
I obviously do not run a cinema, so these decisions must clearly be made with some thought to making profits. Going back to the High Rise example, I would guess it may not be cost effective to show it for one performance a day or even as a one-day presentation. For example, I am not sure it would be cost effective to show the same film on
For example, I am not sure it would be cost effective to show the same film on less screens but alternate the times, so one day it would be at even performances 10am 12pm 2pm etc with the next day 11am 1pm 3pm which could free up screens for other movies.
It does seem petty to moan, I myself will more than likely always see those blockbusters. This makes me part of the demand for them to be shown, yet it can be a shame when missing out on smaller films.
Do you agree or disagree with blockbusters dominating screens for blockbusters or would you have more choice of films? We would love to hear from you here at Barking Mad About Films.
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