Related Posts
AP Photo/Michel Euler
Just about five months ago, when the United States officially recognized the COVID-19 pandemic as a major threat, a majority of businesses were forced to close their doors in order to reduce the spread of disease. There was no more prominent industry that had almost been completely shut down than the movie theater industry, where many of its major chains, including AMC and Regal, closed the majority of their locations and made it almost impossible for any new films to be released theatrically. While not all movie theaters became inaccessible to the public – in fact, drive-in theaters saw a minor resurgence in popularity as a safer alternative to traditional movie theaters – the industry was forced to contend with an alarming drop in revenue, one that would remain at an all-time low until the time came for theaters to reopen. Fortunately, at least for some, that time may have finally come at last.
On August 21st, 2020, the nation’s largest theater chain AMC will reopen over a hundred of its locations, with competitors Regal and Cinemark, as well as several smaller chains, opening either at the exact same time or within the timeframe of the next few weeks. The weekend will see one new theatrical release, the Russell Crowe action-thriller “Unhinged”, with larger blockbusters like “The New Mutants” and Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” set to premiere in the following weeks. In the meantime, most of the films being exhibited upon reopening will consist of popular library titles, ranging from more recent fare like “Sonic the Hedgehog” to mainstream classics such as the “Rocky” series. To further encourage potential moviegoers to return to the theaters, AMC has even offered to charge tickets on reopening day for only 15 cents, roughly what a ticket cost when the company was founded a century ago.
For those who thrive on the theatrical experience and have dreaded the months in which they have been unable to view a film on the big screen, this should come across as a sign of major relief. The theaters have actually tried to reopen on various occasions during the previous few months, but the lack of certainty in the pandemic being brought under control has forced them to change their plans more often than desired. With the reopening date so close however, and no announcements regarding yet another delay, one would think that the return to normality is imminent, and that one can finally go out to the movies as they had in the months prior to the beginning of the pandemic.
There’s just one problem though: the pandemic hasn’t ended. In fact, many states are still seeing high numbers of new cases on a daily basis. Many fear that if movie theaters reopen, there is potential for yet another rapid spike in cases, raising the notion that it may not be safe yet to reopen theaters.
To the credit of the major theater chains, they have seemed to acknowledge that the threat of the Coronavirus still remains, and they have laid out a series of standards that need to be met in order to ensure public safety. Many of these guidelines are familiar when it comes to businesses that were already allowed to reopen before movie theaters: the requirement of both customers and employees to wear face masks, social distancing procedures that keep people at least several feet apart from each other, the list goes on. All one needs to do is visit the website of whichever chain owns the theater they have attended the most frequently to find out just what exactly is being done to ensure that there is as little spread of the disease as humanly possible.
How will these changes affect the moviegoing experience? Apart from everyone in the building covering up their face, the most noteworthy change would have to be the lower capacities of theater auditoriums. With theaters restricting the number of people that can be in a given location during a specific period of time, while also enforcing their guests to sit as far away from each other as possible, watching a film on the big screen, for the time being, will feel like a significantly less crowded experience. This may not be a major concern for those viewing some of the older films that will be shown immediately following theater reopening, but should the measures remain in place when newer, more highly anticipated films come to theaters, the feeling of experiencing something new with a large group of people may not invoke the same feelings of excitement and awe.
While some may find these new regulations to be satisfactory, others are not as convinced, still believing that they should not take the risk and instead keep the movie theaters closed. In fact, there are some states that have mandated that movie theaters and other similarly-sized venues remain shut down until further notice. Most notable is the state of California, which passed a series of orders that prevent theaters from reopening until given permission to do so by the state government. California is far from the only state to impose such measures though; despite no longer holding the title of the state with the most Coronavirus cases, New York remains adamant about keeping its movie theaters closed. In addition, a judge in neighboring state New Jersey recently ruled that the state could keep its movie theaters closed despite the complaints of various chains that they were allowed to reopen under guidelines set by the state.
Because these states hold more movie theaters than most of the other states in the nation, thereby making them a significant percentage of where most chains receive their revenue, some may assess these developments as a sign that movie theaters across the entirety of the nation should not be so quick to open back up. Still, unless there is a major announcement at the last second, most of the nation’s theaters are set to reopen starting this weekend. Does this mean we’ll see the return of the movie theater for good? Or will new developments in the ongoing fight against the COVID-19 pandemic force theaters to close down once again? As in the recent past, only time will tell for sure whether this decision to reopen theaters was premature or not. At this point, all one can hope is for people and businesses to take the safest measures possible.
