of the reliable comforts of hard times. One of
them is the movies. For more than a century,
movie theaters have been a refuge, a communal
escape, a place for popcorn-chomping-
dreaming-with-your-eyes-open transportation
away from everything else.
A world without movie theaters, like the one
we’re temporarily inhabiting, has long been
foretold. It’s been predicted with every major
technological advancement in media, and
especially since the advent of streaming.
Cinemas, so inconveniently located outside the
home, are a dinosaur, analysts have said — one
that’s on its way out.
Now, we’re getting a glimpse of life without
movie theaters. Most see this as an opening for
streaming services, hastening their expected
takeover. But it has also brought a renewed
appreciation for the pleasures of going to the
movies and clarified their unique role in social
life. Isolation has only illuminated the power of
sitting together in the dark.
“It’s one of those things you can’t really
appreciate something until it’s taken away from
you,” says John Bell, president of the Tampa
Theatre, a 1920s-era movie palace. “This has
certainly accelerated a dystopian future look
at what the landscape could look like. But I just
innately believe that humans are social creatures
and, ultimately, they will want to gather again.
Streaming is great, it’s convenient. But it’s just
not the same.”
Nearly a month of shelter-in-place orders have
forced some to hanker for the sticky floors of
cinemas like never before. Sure, those people
texting a few seats over were always a nuisance
and the films weren’t always so great. But peruse