Recliners at the movies
Angelika, Arclight and iPic. You might not be familiar with these names now, but in the very near future, these theater chains will be opening luxury theaters in the region.
A new category of movie theaters has burst onto the scene in recent years. We’ve gone from dine-in theaters to theaters with full reclining chairs, premium alcohol and reserved seating. Soon you’ll get to pay even more money for the pleasure of watching a new Adam Sandler flick in a dark room full of strangers.
The new theaters are, perhaps, an ingenious idea. I can think of few people who enjoy the amenities of a standard modern multiplex. You either get the poorly maintained, cookie-cutter types or the loud, gaudy amusement park types made for a 10-year-old circa 1995.
Movie theaters already make most of their money from concessions, so why not turn a premium viewing experience into an add-on? If people can be conned into paying five extra dollars to catch Edge of Tomorrow in 3D, why not charge five extra dollars for La-Z-Boy seating?
The recent success of chains like Angelika suggests people will pay extra to not feel like plebeians. Perhaps it’s not so surprising that there is a large, not-completely-tapped market of moviegoers who want to watch a film in a theater that doesn’t make them feel like 5-year-olds.
On the one hand, the success of the premium moviegoing experience has had some positive effects for the competition.
Landmark Theaters recently outfitted its Bethesda Row location with wider, more comfortable chairs, reserved seating and more (expensive) concession options. AMC has experimented with auditoriums retrofitted with reclining chairs, such as Courthouse Plaza 8 in Arlington, Virginia.
More competition — as always — is a good thing, especially now when precious few non franchise theaters are surviving.
On the other hand, the whole notion of a premium movie theater experience is kind of evil. Film was meant to be a populist form: art for the masses. Film-going shouldn’t be elitist. A trip to the theater shouldn’t cost almost $20 or be divided into expensive and more expensive options.
Maybe the populism of cinema is an ideal that’s impossible to achieve. Hiring good projectionists and keeping the theater clean costs money that some places either cannot afford or will no longer tolerate. Perhaps it’s not surprising that the Arclight and iPic theaters will be opening in affluent sections of Bethesda.
At the end of the day, I’d still probably rather pay an extra five dollars and be an elitist than cough up an extra five to put on some dorky 3D glasses.
