"historically the movies have been cheap compared to concerts, major league sports and restaurants. Not so much any longer."
I'm not experiencing this. The cheapest concerts in my area are generally $40, with older popular bands going for at least $80. Sports games start at $20 for crappy seats for crappy teams during regular season, more like $100 and up if you want at least one of the good things (seat, team, playoff game). I'm all for bringing movie prices down and I think it will help (which may be Ebert's real point), but comparing them to other things isn't doing him any favours, even going back historically.
As for concessions, dear lord, I never buy food at the movie theatre. And I still think it's kind pricey. Well, at least the base price; you can easily buy coupons for Cineplex/Famous Players that reduces the original price by 30%.
And frankly, I can't recall the last time I was annoyed by the other patrons at the theatre. Is it because I only go to the latest showing? (Speaking of which, I would appreciate a return of 11pm and midnight showings... may not be as cost effective, but keeps up interest in theatres.)
So I think the winning arguments go to home theatres being way better, intense sequelitis this year, and as Ebert says lack of choice.
What concerts are you using as comparison? There's a world of difference between a major concert of a band that's been a household name for decades and a live show at a small local venue. If you live in a reasonably sized city with an active music scene then finding live shows in the $10 - $20 per person range is easy. The same is true for major league sporting events as well. I can go see a baseball or soccer game for about the same per person cost as seeing a movie.
"historically the movies have been cheap compared to concerts, major league sports and restaurants. Not so much any longer."
I'm not experiencing this. The cheapest concerts in my area are generally $40, with older popular bands going for at least $80. Sports games start at $20 for crappy seats for crappy teams during regular season, more like $100 and up if you want at least one of the good things (seat, team, playoff game). I'm all for bringing movie prices down and I think it will help (which may be Ebert's real point), but comparing them to other things isn't doing him any favours, even going back historically.
As for concessions, dear lord, I never buy food at the movie theatre. And I still think it's kind pricey. Well, at least the base price; you can easily buy coupons for Cineplex/Famous Players that reduces the original price by 30%.
And frankly, I can't recall the last time I was annoyed by the other patrons at the theatre. Is it because I only go to the latest showing? (Speaking of which, I would appreciate a return of 11pm and midnight showings... may not be as cost effective, but keeps up interest in theatres.)
So I think the winning arguments go to home theatres being way better, intense sequelitis this year, and as Ebert says lack of choice.