Damn You, Cuban!

Well, there goes the neighborhood.


"Bubble," the new film from Steven Soderbergh ("Traffic," "Erin Brockovich," "Ocean's 11") is being released in theaters today. And on sattelite. And on Tuesday, it'll be on DVD. This mode of action has been talked about for quite some time right now, and there are a number of critics who feel it'll mean the end of the movie theater.

I agree.

Mark Cuban, whose Landmark theaters and HDNet are the ones making this all possible, had some words on Fresh Air:

In collapsing the months-long release window [between theatrical release and DVD release - Scott] into a matter of days, Cuban says consumers will have more choice in how content is delivered, which may result in higher overall sales. In answering critics who have decried the day-and-date approach as the death knell of the theater experience, Cuban has compared the approach to the NBA, in which sold-out games are also aired live on television.

First, you can't compare the NBA to the movies. Cuban also owns the Dallas Mavericks, so his perspective's a bit skewed on the whole thing. I've been to an NBA game before, and there's a clear, distinct difference between watching a game live and on TV. While I believe there's a huge advantage to seeing movies in theaters, there are plenty of people out there who not only believe there's little-to-no difference, but if there is a difference, watching movies on DVD is better (less expensive, no crowds, etc.)

Here's the thing about giving people a choice - they'll choose one or the other. Some will buy the movie blindly. Some will rent. Some will see it in theaters. Some will buy it through sattelite. But it'll be months, maybe a year or so, 'til the theatergoers rent or buy it, unless they REALLY like it. Which is EXACTLY how the market exists today. Besides, with tickets being the price they are, someone's gonna figure out that if they just pay an extra $10, or the price of another ticket, they can own the movie, whereas the old-fashioned way of doing things would have them paying the $10 ticket, then ANOTHER $20 when the DVD comes out.

Yes, overall, this is better for the average consumer. Choices are always preferable to the average consumer. But if studios pick this up, I fully believe that the theater business will dwindle if not disappear altogether, neither of which I'm really interested in. I LIKE going to the movie theater. I LIKE a ton of people being in the audience. Can you really imagine theaters being as packed for the opening night of the next Spider-Man or Batman or Harry Potter if audiences realize they can just go rent it a couple days later? Gone will be the days of loud cheers and a real buzz over major new releases. No more fight to get tickets to sold-out shows, and realizing that everyone's discovering a tiny Oscar hopeful at the same time as you.

I've been posting various articles about the so-called box office slump over the past few months, and it's really all come down to this. This really could be a major mark in the history of motion pictures, or another failed experiment. I can only hope for the latter.