Regular Unreal TV readers know that this review site prides itself on avoiding being bloggy; an example is that sharing an opinion on "Citizen Kane" does not require details regarding the viewing of the film or what wine is appropriate to drink during this activity. The corollary to this is that the rare diversions fully into "Blogland" only occur only when your not-so-humble reviewer feels that doing so greatly benefits the common good.
The final bit of housekeeping before mucking about in the aforementioned dicey neighborhood is to mention that Sony Electronics did not provide one iota of direct or indirect benefit for this article and did not even have any notice of it.
A desire to remain on the outskirts of Blogland as much as possible is behind not sharing many details regarding the increasingly regular customer service issues at multipleexes. This is on top of the standard downsides of paying $10/person or more for "bargain" matinees, either spending at least that much on over-priced concessions or experiencing feelings of being a drug mule by sneaking in contraband.
An amusing aspect of the smuggling this was having a soda bottle fall out of a jacket pocket at the ticket counter; a less amusing anecdote involves being subjected to a tote bag searched and having Chex Mix discovered being considered finding several kilos of cocaine. One must wonder if theater chains are going to start training Milk Dud sniffing dogs.
This leads to going into a theater that almost always is either too hot or too cold and then goes too far in the opposite direction when the manager compensates. Introducing water vapor into the theater likely would create precipitation during this transition.
Additional joy comes in the form of fellow moviegoers gabbing throughout and creating a sea of glowing rectangles by using their phones just as constantly.
This overall experience repeating itself yesterday while attending a screening that inspired stating DAMON (not a typo.), that's a PAYNEFULLY (again, no typo.) HORRIBLE movie prompted this article about downsizing your film watching experience.
The point to all this is offering a solution that ties back to the disclaimer regarding Sony. Both disappointment regarding two mid-priced replacement televisions in the wake of an electric storm taking out an awesome Panasonic set before its time and a windfall prompted purchasing a 42" Sony 4K UHD television several months ago. Not very subtle hinting resulted in Santa leaving a Sony stereo 4K player under the tree earlier this week.
Most folks know where this is going, but the final word before getting there is that this seems to be a case in which Sony is the only one to master the relevant technology. The company has a warranted reputation for charging unduly large amounts for products that are comparable to that of the competition. The current sad truth is that every other video electronics manufacturer has cut corners, leaving Sony as the sole one catering to the upscale market. It is worth mentioning that personal experience with Samsung televisions and Blu-ray players has been particularly negative.
The aforementioned point is that biting the bullet and purchasing a roughly $600 Sony 4K UHD set and a roughly $149 Sony stereo 4 player is worth the ultimately savings and satisfaction regarding only enduring the cineplex in the rare cases in which the technical and the narrative quality of a film warrant doing so.
Size does matter to an extent. The minimal benefit from marginally larger screen size did not warrant the $200 cost increase regarding the Sony. Similarly, even a 42" screen watched from six feet away is comparable to watching a much larger screen from a couple of hundred feet away.
The general point regarding this is that the highly recommended transition is an inevitable development in the evolution dating back to televisions being common in homes. It also reflects our current society in which we do not have to walk out the front door to get every consumer good known to personkind and easily can have people who are promiscuous by profession or personality stop by to satisfy both your vanilla and more erotic desires.
Even Blu-ray discs look and sound very rich and have depth that is borderline 3D when played using the aforementioned equipment. On top of this, the roughly $15 price for 4K discs a few months after they are released a few months after hitting the cineplex make them a good alternative to a date night, let alone a family outing. You further see the film when you want to and as many times as desired literally from the comfort of your own home.
I am eager to hear the thoughts of the converted and of folks who are committed to having their over-priced soda and popcorn pried from their cold dead hands. Please either comment below, email me, or connect on Twitter via @tvdvdguy.
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