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Earlier this year, Steven Spielberg tracked down Tom Cruise at the Academy Awards to thank the actor for saving Hollywood after Top Gun: Maverick played a major role in luring audiences back to movie theaters in the wake of the pandemic.
That tumultuous period may have made plenty of people reconsider if making the trek to a physical cinema was really worth the time and effort, and while Nicole Kidman and AMC may have gotten mocked for the infinitely memeable ad they created to try to drum up business, I’d argue it still managed to highlight the intangible magic that comes with watching a film in that setting.
Christopher Nolan championed a similar message when he unsuccessfully lobbied Warner Bros. to exclusively screen Tenet in theaters, and the financial fallout of that decision reportedly led to him issuing a number of demands to Universal before he teamed up with the studio for Oppenheimer.
That film and Barbie are set to engage in a box office battle for the ages when they both arrive in theaters on July 21st, and based on the great lengths Nolan went to direct a spectacle that could be his magnum opus, it seems like it’ll be worth taking the trip to see it.
Nolan is also one of many moviegoers who puts a fair amount of thought into picking the perfect place to sit while watching a movie in a theater.
I’m certainly not going to question the judgment of one of the most renowned directors currently working in Hollywood, but I have to say I was a bit surprised by the fairly controversial stance he shared when discussing that particular topic with the Associated Press:
“When I’m in a theater that’s Cinemascope ratio, I like to be right near the front, middle of the third row.
When I’m in a stadium, IMAX 1.43:1, then I actually like to be a little behind the center line right up at the middle. So, a little further back.”
I can only assume the 52-year-old has built up a solid tolerance for eye strain and neck pain over the years, as that certainly wouldn’t be my first choice.