By Sofia Alfaro

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This piece of work reflects on the history of movie theaters as well as what the experience of seeing a movie in theaters is.

When I find myself wondering what I should do with my friends, my mind always goes to the movie theater. A few months ago I went to the Carolina Theater here in Durham with one of my friends to see a beloved childhood movie My Neighbor Totoro. As the showing got closer more and more people came in slowly and it reminded me of how fun going to the movies can be. As the lights dimmed, we anxiously waited for the movie to start.

The Carolina Theater opened in 1926 making it the oldest theater in Durham. When it first opened, it allowed Black viewers even though seating and entrances were segregated. The Carolina Theater was a focal point during the civil rights movement because it was the first movie theater in Durham that became integrated  in 1963.  Movie theaters were often in larger towns, making it more of a hassle to see a movie or motion picture if you lived in a rural area or smaller town. For those who lived in Durham however, it became easy to frequently visit movie theaters. The Carolina Theater still caters to minority communities as it hosts the biggest LGBTQ+ film festival, OutSouth.

Movie-going in the early 20th century was often tied into going to town which for some meant once or twice a week but for others only a few times per year. Before integration, the moviegoing experience was not as pleasant for Black movie theatergoers. To get admission into a theater they had to go through a “Blacks only” entrance like most segregated spaces at that time. That secondary entrance often led to the balcony which often lacked basic modern conveniences like air-conditioning or fans. 

The first movie theater to be open to the public was the Nickelodeon, which opened in 1905 in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. There were already theaters that were showing some motion pictures among their other content (stage plages, etc.), but the Nickelodeon was the first that focused only on showing motion pictures. The Nickelodeon was much more sustainable for the owner than vaudeville theaters where performers had to be paid and there could only be a few shows per day; on the contrary movie theaters could be open for most of the day similar to modern movie theaters where there are multiple movies played throughout the day. The founder of the Nickelodeon, Harry Davis had opened at least a dozen more theaters within months. 

The amount of movie theaters expanded dramatically over the past few years and technological advances–such as the progress of projection–helped create the moviegoing experience that we now know. An NPR article celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Nickelodeon said, “Within two years, there were more than 8,000 across the country, but already their days were numbered. Advances in projection allowed bigger screens, which meant more seats, and soon enormous movie palaces sprang up with full orchestras replacing mere pianos, and then sound replacing orchestras.” Going to the theater became more than just seeing a movie, it became an experience. 

While drive-in movie theaters are not as popular today as they were in the late 1900s, some still exist throughout America. The first drive-in movie theater was New Jersey’s Drive-in, opened in 1933 by Richard Hollingshead. A year later, Wilson Shankweiler opened Shankweiler’s Park-In theater which is still open today, making it the United States’ oldest drive-in movie theater. During the Covid-19 pandemic, there was a resurgence of drive-in theaters. When talking about box office revenue in 2020, a CNN article said, “Last year, from late March through mid-August, drive-ins generated 85% of North American box office revenue.” Even though mentions and actual happenings of drive-in movie theaters have decreased since the height of the pandemic, it is fascinating to see how something that had only been seen in old movies like Grease, became a reality,especially for members of Generation Z .

The pandemic was very impactful on movie theaters because the theatrical window drastically shortened during that time. The theatrical window is the amount of time between when a movie is released in theaters and when a movie is available for streaming. The pandemic wasn’t the first time that the movie theater industry faced a decrease in demand. During the 1960s, most American households had televisions, leading to people not attending movie theaters as much. Now that one can watch a movie a few months after it is released in theaters in the comfort of their own home, there is less of a need for moviegoing. Some ways that movie theaters have tried to continue to captivate audiences are creating a dine-in feature and adding IMAX and other viewing options that cost more than seeing a movie on a regular screen. AMC theaters have even had actress Nicole Kidman be in an advertisement shown before every movie. As of March 14, 2022, AMC was the top movie theater followed by Regal Cinemas and Cinemark.

Even though movie theaters have a rich history, every time I go to a movie theater I see fewer and fewer people. Last year very popular movies such as Top Gun: Maverick, Everything Everywhere All at Once, and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever were released as well as some movies that were heavily criticized such as Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness and Morbius. The decreasing theatrical window as well as Americans getting busier and busier every day make the moviegoing experience less pleasant. The movies being made don’t seem as good or original as they used to be and the most anticipated films of the year The Little Mermaid and The Barbie Movie are live-action movies. 

The film-watching experience has expanded and developed drastically over the years and it will continue to as technology advances and society changes. I watched both of these films and was impressed by the wardrobe and soundtrack. My favorite of the two was The Little Mermaid, and I enjoyed how this movie was able to convey Eric’s side of the story.

Opposed to live-action films, animated films are still loved by movie-watching audiences. On May 30 2023 the well anticipated sequel to the animated Spider-Man movie, Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse was released. The movie used 3D animation to its advantage, creating vibrant scenes that caught the viewer’s eye. For me, it was the most memorable movie that I saw in 2023.

Movie theaters are shutting down across the country but I would never prefer to see a movie at home than in a theater.

Process

I started this piece in my American Studies class and I wrote it because of my love of going to see the movies. I have updated since and it now includes opinions about more current movies.