We leave the house and open our wallets because we expect a better movie experience in a theater than we could get on TV. But what creates that experience? Is it film’s superior visual properties? Or is it the thrill of sitting in the dark, surrounded by strangers, without benefit of a pause button?
This isn’t idle curiosity. It’s becoming increasingly common to pay admission, settle down with an audience, and technically speaking, watch TV. Is this a reasonable entertainment alternative or a waste of money?
I’m not talking about the fancy digital projection systems proudly advertised in certain multiplexes, or consumer HDTV, both of which at least try to approximate the quality of 35mm film. I mean plain old NTSC video that comes off a DVD—or worse. And if you think the image on your TV looks bad, try blowing it up to 50 feet.
I caught The Power of Nightmares: The Rise of the Politics of Fear at the Pacific Film Archive last Saturday. It was terrific. I loved it. It’s a pity it’s not widely available in this country. But it was presented in video, and from my seat in the second row, it looked lousy.
This documentary was made for TV. It was intended, and originally shown, as a three-part BBC miniseries. It was not made as a theatrical experience.
But it still worked as one. Nearly 200 people laughed and gasped together. And when it was over, the director stepped to the podium and we gave him a standing ovation. That never happens in my home.
There are other opportunities to watch video in a theatre. Film Night in the Park starts in San Francisco’s Dolores Park May 14, and despite the title, no film will be run (most of the shows will be in Marin). The series consists entirely of classic and recent movies on DVD. Does that make it worth getting out of the house and forking over the $5 “suggested donation?†Perhaps. The opening night show is Some Like It Hot. I already own the DVD, but it’s always fun to watch it with an audience. (Full disclosure: Bayflicks.net is a Film Night in the Park sponsor.)
And 35mm film is no guaranty of quality. Check my Letters page to read about a recent bad experience at the Castro. And if you have any experiences, good or bad, to share, don’t hesitate to drop me a line at // protects email from bots user = ‘webaddress’; site = ‘bayflicks.net’; message = ‘webaddress at bayflicks dot net’; document.write(‘‘); document.write(message + ‘‘); webaddress at bayflicks dot net .
In other news, the Stanford is closed for renovations until early summer, and the Pacific Film Archive will be closed for most of May.
And we now know how long The Best of Youth will play at the Balboa. It’s last day there will be May 19th. Catch it if you can.
This isn’t a great week for the calendar houses. Not much new that’s worth a comment, let alone a recommendation. Maybe, now that the festival is over, now is the time to catch a movie where lots of things blow up. Or to note the two listings below:
Recommendation: Greed, Balboa, Sunday. Was Eric Von Stroheim’s original, 40-reel cut of Greed the greatest movie ever made? Or was it a colossal bore? We’ll never know. But Irving Thalberg’s massive recutting is one of the best serious silent dramas. Rick Schmidlin’s four-hour video restoration is even better, but as it’s not available theatrically (or even on DVD), we’ll have to make do with MGM’s theatrical cut. On a double bill with Old San Francisco, a mediocre 1927 melodrama that’s historically fascinating both for its racism and its early, pre-Jazz Singer use of sound. Part of The Reel San Francisco festival.
Noteworthy: The Last Waltz, Balboa, Wednesday. Perhaps the greatest rock concert movies of all time, but I can’t recommend it. The Balboa’s mono sound system is unlikely to do it justice. On a double bill with Janis. Part of The Reel San Francisco festival.
Bayflicks 