One of my grumpy-old-man complaints these days is digital tickets. I hate digital tickets because I love to keep ticket stubs. There’s a shelf in our house stuffed with zip-lock bags full of tickets from ballgames and concerts and lectures. And movies — lots of movies.
Right now, I’m sitting here looking at stubs from the Regal at Phillips Place, over next to SouthPark. On March 18, 2000, we saw the 10:15 showing of “Erin Brockovich.” Tickets were $4.50.
According to my stash, we saw “Bridesmaids” and “Ratatouille” there. We saw “Up In the Air” and “The Da Vinci Code.” We saw at least two of the Bourne movies there and a couple of the Harry Potters. We saw “The Prestige,” a small classic about dueling magicians, and “The Straight Story,” the David Lynch film about an old man who takes off on a lawn mower to see his dying brother.
You probably know why I’m combing through these particular memories right now. The Regal at Phillips Place closed for good the other day.
It wasn’t a historical landmark or anything. It was open for 26 years, starting in 1996. When it opened, it was known for having surround sound and stadium seating, which were both a big deal at the time. Now you can get surround sound on your TV at home, and most people seem willing to trade stadium seating for couch seating, especially when you can hit pause to go to the bathroom.
The movie business was in trouble anyway. Netflix and Disney+ and all the other streaming services can bring you almost every movie ever made, anytime. Hi-def TVs now cost more like a fancy dinner than a house payment. Then, on top of that, COVID-19 hit the theater business like a killshot. Only the smartest and most creative will survive.
Our household is rooting hard for the Independent Picture House, the new Charlotte theater showing alternative films. But this is one time when we’re also rooting for the big chains, the places that bring in the blockbusters and the Oscar winners.
Part of the reason the theater at Phillips Place is going away is that Regal Cinemas is in bankruptcy protection. It’s a sad thing to lose one of the few places where you can have a relatively cheap night out, and more than that, where people can gather for a common experience.
No matter how good your home setup is, there’s nothing like going to the movies. We’ve been back a few times as COVID-19 has started to become not quite such a menace. One of the great little moments in life is being in a theater when the lights go down just before the movie starts, and you’re there in the dark, waiting to see what comes next.
I hope, for the theater business, it’s a happy ending.
