Home theater offers more control, less distractions

Spencer Patterson

Tuesday, May 11, 2004 | 2:27 a.m.

As the Sun's music writer, I frequently spend my nights watching live acts perform around town.

Given that schedule, perhaps it's no wonder I prefer doing the bulk of my movie viewing at home.

Attending a concert makes a lot more sense to me, and not just because I generally enjoy music more than film. Each concert is a unique experience, with the action unfolding live, right before your eyes and ears.

At the movie theater, you're simply watching a recording.

As a society, we don't feel a need to jam into auditoriums to watch television programs or listen to compact discs. Most agree those activities are best done individually, usually at home.

So why do so many people look at me as if I'm crazy when I tell them I'll just wait for the DVD release of whatever blockbuster happens to be on the big screen in a given weekend?

For me, watching movies at home is far more comfortable and affordable than the theater experience, to say nothing of the increased level of control I have with my home theater setup.

Last night, I watched "Kill Bill: Volume 1" from my couch.

I wore pajamas. I stretched out and put my feet up on the coffee table. Try getting that relaxed in a movie theater. You're lucky if the person in front of you doesn't lean his or her seat back into your knees for the entire film.

Halfway through the movie, I determined it was getting a bit chilly, so I got up and turned down my air conditioning. I know people who bring jackets to the theater in the summer just in case it's cold in there.

I watched my movie around dinner time, so I ate a couple of splices of pizza while I watched. I could have had a sandwich, a steak, or even a couple of beers, if I'd been so inclined.

At the theater, options are limited to popcorn, hot dogs and candy, all priced exorbitantly. A soda costs nearly as much as a matinee ticket, and if you want a refill, you'll need to exit the theater during the film.

Who hasn't had to use the restroom midway through a movie? At home, that simply requires a tap on the pause button. In the theater, it means pushing past the rest of your row, then missing part of the movie while you're away.

And who doesn't get annoyed by cell phones and pagers, crinkling candy wrappers and people who insist on chatting throughout a movie?

At home, I get to decide who watches the movie with me. And I don't have to rely on anyone else to be responsible about their phone; I know how to turn off my own ringers to prevent distractions.

I also don't have to worry about someone opening up a smelly tuna fish sandwich midway through the film. (That actually happened during a movie I attended once).

Don't you hate when you miss an important line of dialogue in the theater? Maybe the guy next to you was coughing, or still laughing over a previous joke. Either way, you didn't hear what was said, and it might have been significant.

At home, you can always rewind. You can also go back and watch a favorite scene again once the movie is over. I don't know any theaters that hand out remotes on the way in.

Speaking of dialogue, I've actually walked out of movies because the theater's center channel was buried in the sound mix (the wonderfully dialogue-heavy "Glengarry Glen Ross" comes to mind).

I strained to hear the dialogue during "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King" last winter over the sounds of explosions and clashing swords at one poorly equipped local theater. At home, those types of adjustments are easy to make.

In terms of cost efficiency, there's simply no debate. Theater tickets are $6 and up for matinees and $8-$10 at night. DVD rentals cost around $4 and allow for unlimited viewings by an unlimited number of viewers.

So if my wife and I want to see "Kill Bill: Volume 2," we can either pay $12-$20 for a pair of tickets -- not to mention the ridiculous sum for a soda and a snack -- or wait a few months and pay $4 to watch it at home two or three times if we choose to.

Ah, I can hear some of you saying, there's the rub: waiting. Some people need to see a movie when it first gets released, even if that means battling crowds and waiting in lines on a Friday night.

If you're one of those people, my system is not for you. Personally, however, I'm of the opinion that a good movie will be just as good six months from now when I can rent (or buy) it.

I wasn't old enough to see "Citizen Kane" or "The Godfather" in the theater, but I've enjoyed both every time I've seen them, at home.

Waiting means you have to avoid spoilers. Once in a great while ("The Crying Game"), that's impossible to do. More often than not, it just means telling your friends to keep quiet about endings.

Besides instant gratification, the movie theater's only real advantage is the obvious: the giant screen and (sometimes) giant sound.

That's why a couple of times a year, I break down and, despite my objections, file dutifully into a movie theater for the kind of action film that demands the big-screen treatment ("Saving Private Ryan," the "Lord of the Rings" triology).

Otherwise, I see no reason to watch a drama or comedy in a theater, the same way I would never go to the trouble of viewing an episode of "The West Wing" or "Seinfield" in a theater.

And don't give me any of this "communal experience" nonsense. I don't need other people to laugh to feel comfortable laughing myself (ever wonder why they invented laugh tracks for TV shows?). And I don't need some moron trying to hi-five me when something blows up in the next "Die Hard" installment.

Of course, the home experience improves dramatically with a true home theater setup -- a big screen TV (preferably widescreen) and surround sound speakers. But you don't have to drop thousands of dollars to create an adequate home setting.

And keep in mind, home theater will also add to your enjoyment of your favorite TV shows and sporting events.

A few weeks ago, I actually saw a movie in the theater. The sound was muffled, a situation made worse by a distracting couple sitting to my right. One of my friends left midway through the film to use the restroom, and missed the film's entire heist sequence.

A theater loyalist, he chalked the episode up to "bad luck." In the comfort of my home, luck never enters into the equation.