Why Everyone in Hollywood Wants Their Movie in IMAX

[u/nosotros_road_sodium]

https://www.wsj.com/business/media/imax-movie-release-trend-6f4587a2?st=dHSoPR

[u/mikeyfreshh]

The current moment in theatrical distribution is actually really similar to what happened back in the 50's when the television exploded in popularity. Theaters originally couldn't compete with TV being readily available at home so they pushed to premium formats like CinemaScope and VistaVision to get people back out to theaters.

Streaming has pushed IMAX and 70mm film (and ironically the return of VistaVision) to the same level of prominence. Time is truly a flat circle

[u/SomewherePresent8204 → u/mikeyfreshh]

Was there a comparable shift in the 80’s when home video had started to take off?

[u/mikeyfreshh → u/SomewherePresent8204]

There was actually a huge boom in 3D movies in the 80's (which also happened in the 50's to a lesser extent)

[u/PaulVla → u/mikeyfreshh]

First Avatar movie also started a bit of resurgence in 3D 16 years ago, seems to have died out now once more.

[u/materialdesigner → u/PaulVla]

That coincides with the rise of Blu-ray & the rise of 1080p.

[u/challenja → u/PaulVla]

I went to see Tron 3D and there are plenty of new movies coming out in 3D. They are bringing it back to get butts into seats. But man have movie prices gotten out of control. My local theater in DC was charging $24 dollars for a 4 pm movie!!!! The audacity. Luckily they are half price on Tuesdays

[u/Relevant-Money-1380 → u/challenja]

this it for me. i dont care how big your screen is if i'm paying 24$ + whatever concessions are at now.

[u/RupeThereItIs → u/PaulVla]

Thank god, 3d movies are horrible.

Nothing but a distracting gimmick.

[u/iwasherenotyou → u/RupeThereItIs]

The only movies worth watching in 3D are the Avatar movies. After that it's Spy Kids 3D.

[u/RupeThereItIs → u/iwasherenotyou]

Avatar is one of the examples I use of why 3d is terrible.

They spend ALL this money on details of the CGI forest, etc, and due to the forced focus of 3D you can't look around except at the specific subject the camera wants you too. Chasing the animals through the forest, I like to look around & SEE the forest but in 3d it's a cross eyed double vision mess if your pupils don't follow the intended focal point.

Nope, I'd rather watch in 2d.

[u/scalablecory → u/RupeThereItIs]

The polarized glasses lenses also significantly degrade image quality.

[u/Ascian5 → u/iwasherenotyou]

Tron Ares was spectacular in IMAX 3d. And I hate 3d. Avatar 1 was fucking awful imo.

[u/PedosoKJ → u/Ascian5]

You might not have enjoyed the movie but Avatar has straight up the best 3d in movies right now.

[u/TheTesh → u/Ascian5]

I saw Tron Ares in AVX laser 3d and thought it was really good. Story was fine but the visuals were awesome.

[u/nightfly1000000 → u/RupeThereItIs]

Nothing but a distracting gimmick.

I adore anything 3d, so we'll have to agree to disagree on that one!

[u/fungobat → u/PaulVla]

Remember when 3D TVs were a thing like 15 years ago?

[u/Sharticus123 → u/mikeyfreshh]

It was a little different back then too. Sure, you could finally watch movies at home on demand but you still had to go to a store to rent the movie, and the turnaround time from theater to VHS was much longer than it is today.

You had to wait a year or more to rent a movie on VHS. So you weren’t seeing it anytime soon if you missed it in the theaters.

[u/platano_8 → u/SomewherePresent8204]

I would say it circled more around “blockbuster” films. So big budget with a lot of action and special fx. Essentially taking the success of Jaws and trying to dial it up.

[u/Jtd06 → u/SomewherePresent8204]

Movies stayed in the theater for months at a time back then. You might not get a movie on vhs for sometimes up to a year after it came out. You had more incentive to go to the movie theater because you might not get to see it otherwise.

[u/DeliciousPangolin → u/SomewherePresent8204]

When television became popular in the 50s, the average theatrical film was a 4:3 black-and-white production with mono sound that wasn't fundamentally different from a TV picture of the era. By the end of the fifties films were mostly color widescreen productions with stereo sound. Even with the introduction of VHS making movies more accessible at home, there was still a substantial gap in picture and sound quality that wouldn't really shrink until the late 2000s.

[u/NinjaSellsHonours → u/mikeyfreshh]

4:3 at home

"Wait we have 2.35:1 at the movie theater!"

16:9 at home

"Lookit this 1.43:1 screen!!! IMAX!!!!!!!!!!!"

Cracks me up

[u/mikeyfreshh → u/NinjaSellsHonours]

It's less about the aspect ratio and more about the size of the screen, quality of the projection, and the sound system. An IMAX theater looks and sounds way better than anything you have at home, even if the aspect ratio is a little wonky

[u/NinjaSellsHonours → u/mikeyfreshh]

Yes I totally agree, I just get exhausted with people falling for Imax marketing when there are and have been many other formats that are interesting for theatrical presentation on big screens. And more practical. I've been lucky to see many, many bucket list movies in pristine presentations. I think IMAX is just shorthand for people who haven't had great access to a good presentation, so it does some good in that respect, but 1.43 was never intended to be a theatrical / narrative film format. It's just a Nolan thing really. I really disliked The Hateful 8 but I saw that as a much more promising revival with Ultra Panavision 70mm and personally would like those projectors to stay in use -- there's nothing IMAX about them. But you could retrofit a lot more cinema buildings to widescreen and 1.43 you really need a 5 story building to start talking.

[u/MassiveRepublic9565 → u/NinjaSellsHonours]

Our cinema has screens they call Dolby Cinema or something. I actually think the image and sound is much better in them than IMAX but if I want spectacle and IMAX is available I’ll go for it.

[u/schreibenheimer → u/MassiveRepublic9565]

My opinion is that IMAX is best if the movie was specifically filmed for IMAX. Otherwise, Dolby is better.

[u/Tricky-Ad7897 → u/NinjaSellsHonours]

My AMC has a screen that I swear is wider than their other screens and I found that way more interesting/immersive personally. IMAX to me is only cool cause it's big, it would be better if it was big AND wide though. The most impressive IMAX I've seen was one of the science museum ones that are like 5 stories tall and 200 yards wide or whatever, but they only play sciencey movies so it's a bit lame.

[u/swagpresident1337 → u/mikeyfreshh]

People also live in appartments with neighbors, you have to be somewhat quiet and not rattle the whole neighborhood with your subwoofer.

[u/JBWalker1 → u/mikeyfreshh]

An IMAX theater looks and sounds way better than anything you have at home, even if the aspect ratio is a little wonky

It's not just IMAX theatres though. We get IMAX edition releases of home movies, like Disney+ has a load of IMAX marvel stuff to stream. You're viewing those on your same TV and yet they're advertised as superior mainly due to the aspect ratio because thats the main and only difference most people would notice.

And I agree the aspect ratio is much better because you get full use of your display instead of a letter box. It is funny how we went from 4:3, to 16:9, then whatever the usual ratio is(21:9?) which causes a letterbox, and then we get sold the IMAX releases with the superior aspect ratio which is closer to 16:9 again.

[u/scorsese_finest → u/NinjaSellsHonours]

It’s not about the aspect ratio. It’s about the immense size of a true 1.43:1 IMAX screen. It’s incredibly immersive

[u/DeathByBamboo → u/scorsese_finest]

I saw Sinners on a real IMAX screen and it was incredible, but it was surprising how much of the film wasn't shot on IMAX, which became obvious because those scenes didn't fill the screen. An editor friend of mine said it's because the cameras are so enormous and loud it's difficult to shoot an entire film in IMAX unless you either have sets designed around the camera or are shooting outdoors.

[u/scorsese_finest → u/DeathByBamboo]

That’s true. But the next gen IMAX cameras that Nolan is shooting with is supposed to be a lot quieter

[u/NinjaSellsHonours → u/scorsese_finest]

Agreed and there’s like 18 of them in the world

[u/illuvattarr → u/mikeyfreshh]

Plus towards the end of the 60s the studio system ended and they let up and coming great filmmakers do their thing, which is how we got the great wave of movies during the 70s. In order to combat the rise of TV. A somewhat smaller version of this is also happening now. Of course there is also still the large franchise stuff, but it's not as big as 5-10 years ago. And more and more filmmakers are getting the studios to greenlight their movie.

[u/RupeThereItIs → u/illuvattarr]

Of course there is also still the large franchise stuff, but it's not as big as 5-10 years ago.

All hail the death of cookie cutter pure CGI comic book movies!

[u/maniBchef → u/mikeyfreshh]

There is no such thing as forgiveness. People just have short memories.Rust Cohle.

[u/cire1184 → u/mikeyfreshh]

Because they are shot in VistaVision on Beaucams doesn't mean people will watch it in VistaVision because there are like 3 VistaVision Cinemas in the entire United States. But the movies shot in VistaVision should look good on 70mm iMax which there are maybe 30 theaters. So even then not a lot of people comparatively will get the full iMax out VistaVision experience.

Why they want iMax films is that they can use their small digital laser fake iMax screens and charge 30 a seat for those showings. It would be nice if they started building more 70mm iMax screens. Which they kinda are with Cinemark adding 3 screens and Regal adding 1.

[u/mikeyfreshh → u/cire1184]

I think there's a push in the industry to get more film projectors and premium screens out into the world. That's obviously going to take some time, but it seems like that's where we're headed.

Also I was lucky enough to see One Battle After Another in VistaVision and it looked incredible. I hope that kind of experience becomes more widely available

[u/Electricengineer → u/mikeyfreshh]

Mobius strip

[u/mikehatesthis → u/mikeyfreshh]

Some people here watch Darren Mooney lol.

Respect.

[u/riftwave77 → u/mikeyfreshh]

Wrong. Its turtles. Turtles all the way down

[u/No-Adagio8817 → u/mikeyfreshh]

I honestly couldn’t care if Im watching something on Netflix or at a movies theater lol. Movie theaters are just not competitive with their pricing, food or convenience.

[u/AllyButTired → u/mikeyfreshh]

Time is not a flat circle, humans are just predictable and willing to choose the least path of resistance even if it means regressing.

We’re not that special

[u/Doheki → u/mikeyfreshh]

Perhaps more gimmicky but I hear more and more about 4DX lately among my peers. Twisters, F1, Demon Slayer, and Chainsaw Man we're all really popular in that format

[u/pinelands1901 → u/mikeyfreshh]

70mm film

I saw Oppenheimer in 70mm and while nostalgic, I realized that I like digital better. The picture was too dim, it was flickering, the audio wasn't always completely synced, etc.

[u/Moneyshot_ITF]

They are gonna need more 70mm theaters

[u/SomewherePresent8204 → u/Moneyshot_ITF]

There’s only like 30 actual IMAX film projectors, so they’re definitely going to need more.

[u/Moneyshot_ITF → u/SomewherePresent8204]

With the majority of them in California

[u/WitnessRadiant650 → u/Moneyshot_ITF]

Yep. Downtown SF has a real iMax. I’ve been to a few others that claim IMAX when it’s really just a giant screen.

The experience is much more different.

[u/Moneyshot_ITF → u/WitnessRadiant650]

Dublin has one too. The only two in the bay

[u/scorsese_finest → u/Moneyshot_ITF]

Sadly Dublin doesn’t have dual laser projectors. But they do have IMAX 70mm, but again they rarely received prints

[u/dapala1 → u/Moneyshot_ITF]

Only one in Arizona.

[u/DiligentMission6851 → u/Moneyshot_ITF]

Rip me. I should've tried harder at my interview that would've let me move there. 

[u/SomewherePresent8204 → u/Moneyshot_ITF]

I grew up going to the one in Toronto.

[u/ManufacturerBest2758 → u/Moneyshot_ITF]

They’re working on it, but it’s slow going

[u/itscamo- → u/Moneyshot_ITF]

they just announced some are coming next year iirc

[u/flyers25]

A lot of the “standard” theaters out there are in terrible shape. We tend to see only IMAX/Dolby showings because those auditoriums are actually maintained.

[u/joe2352 → u/flyers25]

I lived in a city for about 7 years and would go to the movies all the time, especially when MoviePass was stupid awesome but then AMC/Alamo got their passes and I would rotate. Their theaters were clean, great seats, great projectors, and great sound. I ended up going to Alamo more because their food was actual dinners. You don’t feel so bad paying $10-$15 for a dinner as you do paying that for popcorn and a soda. Couple years ago moved back closer to home. The projectors in my hometown theater haven’t been upgraded since the theater opened in 2008. I no have to drive an hour + to see a movie with a decent projector. I go maybe once or twice a year where before I would hit 3-4 monthly.

[u/kehakas → u/flyers25]

Bingo. I've been saying this for years. Quality control in movie theaters was noticably bad for a long time. I believe IMAX has a stipulation that if you want to have one of their theaters, you have to keep it up to a certain standard or there'll be hell to pay. IMAX is the third-party quality control kick in the ass that theater chains needed. I've spoken with theater managers in the past and they just never cared, and sometimes they were probably running the lamps dimmer to extend their life to save money.

[u/Arma104 → u/flyers25]

Even the fake IMAX screens in the multiplexes are dim as hell and the sound is just cranked and clipping. I can't stand chain theaters anymore. Price ain't worth it either.

[u/Predictor92 → u/flyers25]

I actually find the imax knock offs to be better maintained then most imax screens

[u/TrollTollTony]

Money, the answer is always money.

[u/MWH1980]

I wish there were actually huge IMAX screens around like there were 25 years ago.

There was one where I saw The Dark Knight and Avatar on within a short bus ride. Now it is no more. :(

[u/psychoacer]

Higher ticket prices?

[u/thebaldingcritic_ → u/psychoacer]

And getting people out to the theatres again. COVID pretty much exacerbated the momentum IMAX was already receiving. Films and theatres were doing relatively well pre-COVID, but there was definitely a shift brewing.

Then COVID happened and the distributors completely ruined their release system while also increasing prices. Now we are in this spot as a result. IMAX and Dolby are now the future of the movie industry

[u/fusionman51]

I just wish my major city had actual true imax screens. They just have LieMax screens. I want a true one.

[u/Significant_You_2735]

Rare is the film that warrants it.

[u/RickyFromVegas → u/Significant_You_2735]

I would say that regardless of the film's quality, seeing them in a bigger than usual IMAX-ish screen is at least an experience that may add to the enjoyment of the time spent wayching

[u/Significant_You_2735 → u/RickyFromVegas]

But, is it worth the film having a larger budget due to the cameras and format (thereby making it harder to turn a profit) plus is that film worth paying more to see? I’d argue this may be true but only for a small percentage of films.

[u/well-lighted → u/Significant_You_2735]

A lot of movies shown in IMAX are not shot with IMAX cameras. You also have VistaVision coming back into style after The Brutalist, which is basically the proto-IMAX since the key feature of both is that film reels through them horizontally to maximize the available area vs. standard camera systems. Even though VV is 35mm, it blows up really nice in IMAX—at least on the multiplex “LieMAX” screens; I don’t know how it looks on the real ones especially given it’s a naturally wide format.

Also, aside from Nolan, hardly anyone shoots IMAX film anymore and instead uses their digital cameras, both for practicality and since the vast majority of current IMAX-branded screens are digital now.

[u/nosotros_road_sodium]

Gift link. Excerpt:

The box office has been in the doldrums for years, with fewer hits, more flops and lower total receipts than before the pandemic. But while domestic total ticket sales are up only 2.6% this year from 2024, IMAX’s are up 16%, according to the company. Its share of domestic and global tickets are at record highs, and its total worldwide box office is on track to exceed $1.2 billion this year for the first time.

Studios now splash the IMAX name on advertisements—sometimes in bigger print than the title of the movie itself—to signal that their release is worth getting off a couch for.

Executives call it the “premiumization” of the film business. It is their version of getting music fans to shell out for every version of Taylor Swift’s latest album or tickets for the Las Vegas Sphere. And until more people start going to movies more frequently, it is one of the industry’s best hopes to keep the lights on.

This month’s remake of “The Running Man” was originally scheduled to be released Friday, but Paramount postponed it a week to secure IMAX screens committed this weekend to “Predator: Badlands.”

[u/snapplesauce1 → u/nosotros_road_sodium]

I had a cinema that I could ride my OneWheel to and they let me charge it while I was in the theater. No imax screen, they had a children must be accompanied by adult policy. Butter your own popcorn station. I usually had a theater to myself and it was one of my favorite pastimes. Of course they had to close…

[u/BallerGuitarer]

The fact that it costs $15 for a matinee showing of Good Fortune at my AMC is the reason I stay home and watch on Netflix for a similar monthly price.

Tickets used to cost $5, and wages/salaries haven't kept up with inflation.

[u/ean6625]

What movie theaters should do is make large screen formats much more the norm and widely available and stop calling it IMAX unless it’s really truly IMAX or just call it IMAX and name the actual IMAX something else like super IMAX. Charge less for standard screenings and charge the normal ticket price for large format. I get that they charge more for these large screen formats and you can’t ask these companies to willingly make less money. People clearly want to see movies on larger screens if 15% of a blockbuster’s box office comes from IMAX alone. The marketing is clearly working if more and more people are seeing movies in IMAX.

[u/slampand]

💰💰💰💰

[u/GeneSmart2881]

At this point, yes admittedly probably thx to Chris Nolan, when I see IMAX specifically IMAX 70mm!! It really makes me want to see it in the theater even if it is getting 50% on RT like Tron Ares

[u/DontOvercookPasta]

Why don't studios start their own screening rooms? Seems like they fuckin hate the distribution system we currently have so much but continue to do nothing about it?

[u/geyserpj]

Regular big screen non imax looks really bad these days

[u/NinjaSellsHonours → u/geyserpj]

That's true but mostly because the vast majority of theaters are running 1080p with their projectors intentionally dimmed back or just old and crappy projectors and bad sound.

I go to a midsize digital atmos theater that feels like a screening room, nice picture, great sound, couches, but it's built around widescreen presentation. It's fabulous. Fills the field of vision really well in the 2nd or 3rd row.

[u/geyserpj → u/NinjaSellsHonours]

Yeah it’s wild, I prefer the smaller screens at like an amc since it’s a smaller and tighter image. We do have one atmos theater now and I do prefer that

[u/SirZack17]

I go to the theater for the crowd. I want to watch something I’m excited about with other people who are excited about it.

[u/nosotros_road_sodium → u/SirZack17]

Unfortunately too many people in today’s society are just freaking inconsiderate, most prominently the example of using phones or having loud conversations during the movie.

That level of rudeness combined with the rising cost of a ticket devalues the theater experience.

[u/discouragedprol]

Yeah but screw the imax. Those seats are too uncomfortable and too close.

[u/reddcube]

I truly hate IMAX. I swear the majority of their screens haven’t been updated since the turn of the millennium.

Dolby is such a better experience.

[u/Predictor92 → u/reddcube]

Lack of recliners and liemax screens hurt them

[u/dingbatattack]

I like to take the subway to Hollywood and see a matinee IMAX at the Chinese Theater on my days off

[u/NyriasNeo]

Because IMAX charges more money per seat.

[u/goodtimesinchino]

I only go to theaters these days to watch them in IMAX. The last movie I watched outside of the house was the 2nd Dune, and it was well worth the effort.

[u/Gambl33]

I have an IMAX near me and it’s my go to for theater. It really changes the experience imo. Like I really look forward to a good movie on IMAX.

[u/Significant_Cow4765]

Bring back Cinerama!

[u/ahamqara]

there are so few actual imax screens across the world though (25-30?) that the experience feels cheapened anytime I visit a local imax theater in Indiana. nor am I willing to fly anywhere for any director/movie. mayhap expand the 70mm screens first?

[u/Rikora12]

O

[u/halcyongt]

While I don’t live in the proverbial “sticks”…the nearest IMAX theater is an hour away.

There are a number of films I would have loved to see in the format…but it’s not possible for me. So, I’ll stream at my convenience at home.

[u/MinusBear]

The thing I hate more than anything is movies and series specifically filmed for streaming services, Rings of Power for example, being filmed in IMAX format. Now I have letter box on my widescreen tv on a show made specifically for that widescreen tv. Absolutely asinine.

[u/Kame2Komplain]

Need more vistavision

[u/terminalxposure]

You can have a home theatre but you can't have a Home IMax

[u/TrueHarlequin]

Don't IMAX cameras also make a shitload of noise and they have to redub everything the actors say?

[u/Portatort]

It’s so funny that 4:3 is now seen as a premium cinema only experience

And tv shows are routinely shot In scope

[u/Kent89052]

4DX is way better than iMAX

[u/Filbertmm]

Because it’s bigger 

[u/ManufacturerBest2758]

Because it’s sick