3d Movies and the purchase of polarizing glasses

[Mark Mentzer]

With the advent of films such as "Avatar" and "Alice in Wonderland" I question the fairness of having to pay an extra $2.50 to buy the polarizing glasses over and over again. 

I did some research to see if anyone else is questioning the fairness of this extra charge and found only one blog. Here's a link to the discussion: http://www.blogbydonna.com/post/2008/08/Why-Should-We-Pay-Extra-For...

The theaters have "recycling bins" making it seem like your being green when, in fact, all they are doing is getting you to throw your $2.50 in the bin so they can clean them and sell them to you again.

The answer of course is CAPITALISM and GREED plain and simple. Remember the old red and blue 3d glasses? You didn't have to pay for those even once let alone every time you saw another 3d movie. But now you do. 

Why are so many of us such suckers to allow the greedy capitalist PIGS to rip us off over and over again?

Many people including Wanda the Faye are accepting of this practice which surprises me. What are your thoughts on this issue?

— Mark

[brujo]

You mean you don't see anything wrong already with purchasing the drivvel Hollywood foists on you? I think movies should be FREE. While we're at it, how can anyone justify paying 100 bucks to sit in the nosebleed section at a Stone's concert? I say we start doling out entertainment to people according to their need for it, and not charge them.

[Sal Paradise]

You're on the right track, but you don't go far enough. They should be PAYING us to watch them.

[Boothby171]

Guys, if you don't like it, don't see it!

Meanwhile, I make my business on people being willing to pay $100 for the nosebleed seats for the Stones.

BTW...don't blame just America for this, these concerts are just as big over in "Culturally Advanced" Europe. I worked on the analysis of the U2-360 tour. Insane, 80-some-odd truck, international tour. When the production guy came to see us to negotiate our contract, I said, "So, I guess this won't be a 'green' tour, then?" He agreed.

[Sal Paradise]

I was being facetious, Boothby. "If you don't like it, don't see it" is right on the money. The whole industry is driven by the profit motive, so this business of charging extra for a 3D movie shouldn't be such a surprise. It's not really a big deal. I'm actually a little more worried about healthcare and the economy than I am about this - call me a philistine.

[Mark Mentzer]

Sal, If you look at the big picture this is a big deal just as healthcare and the economy is. It's the same issue. Healthcare, the economy and this is all about CORPORATE GREED and trickle-down Raygunomics.

[Sal Paradise]

Mark, you can't swallow the elephant and choke on the gnat. The elephant is a multi-billion dollar entertainment industry that's fueled entirely by corporate greed. It's all about charging as much as the market will bear, always was. The fact that they charge a few extra bucks for you to see a super-deluxe version of the movie is just a gnat. If you want to protest something, protest the elephant. But that would mean swearing off movies, commercial music, professional sports, TV,...

Personally, I'll probably go see the movie and pay the extra few bucks - I heard it's great. ;-)

[Mark Mentzer]

Oh, I am protesting the elephant. I barely go to the movies. TV, well that is not a rip-off like the movies are. Commercial music I steal and have no qualms doing so after having read the book "This Wheel's on Fire" by Levon Helm of the Band. He tells about how he's been ripped off by the music industry. Robbie Robertson gets all the dough and the rest of the Band gets nothing. I have a friend "Allen Wentz" who was bass player in the band "Wild Cherry" of "Play that Funky Music White Boy" fame and he tells of similar stories. This is the music industry so F**k them. Professional sports bore the hell out of me anyway and is WAY TOO EXPENSIVE. I used to go to the Fillmore East every weekend and even though it was the 60s it was still affordable where today's concerts are completely un-affordable. These are a sign of the times. THE GREEDY RAYGUNOMICS TRICKLE-DOWN TIMES. So, I'll see the movie if I can see it in a regular 2D theater. I don't need the gimmick that is modern 3D. If I can't I won't see it until it's available on DVD which is how I view most movies these days and which is why the movie studios are going out of business.

[Sal Paradise]

That's all good, Mark, but then why the outrage over the glasses? It's just one speck of sprinkle on the entertainment industry sunday. Nobody's forcing anybody to go to the movies.

I probably ran into you at the Fillmore East back in the day - I was there just about every Friday night in the late '60s. A lot of times, I was one of those people standing outside and listening for free - I might have been able to afford it, but sometimes it was either the ticket or pot, and ... well, a fella's gotta keep his priorities straight, you know what I mean?

[Mark Mentzer]

I agree with you but, well, it's a long story.

You see, this all started out with an argument I had with Wanda the Faye. She, Naidre~Wild Tide and CWO3ROBBIE were having lunch together here in Tampa. Wanda lives here and I just moved here about a month ago and am living with Naidre. Anyway, Robbie was visiting and we had lunch. Wanda mentioned that she saw Alice and I mentioned that I hate that you have to pay for rental of glasses over and over again. I don't mind paying once but it's outrageous that you have to pay over and over again. Being that I had just seen Capitalism, A Love Story by Michael Moore I was even more outraged because I now knew the back story. So, Wanda was passively defending the capitalist pigs that are the movie studios thinking that she was defending mom & pop theater owners or something to that effect. Well, we argued and I invited her to put her POV up here. She said she didn't want to and I should so I did and the rest as you have read is history.

Fillmore East. Well, I always had enough pot and LSD to make my concert going even more enjoyable. So, I didn't have to hang out outside. How old are you now? I'm 56 which made me pretty young for the Fillmore crowd but my brother was 3 years older so I got to go to a lot of events I wouldn't have normally been able to go to otherwise including Woodstock.

[Westerly_2]

Toby - yes to that. The 3-D, though an extra expense, was a rollicking experience. I liked it. Years melted away. If you prefer, you can catch it in 2-D. Check the listings in the paper or online. After the time, it will tell you if it's offered in 3-D; if not, I assume the 2-D is being shown. (It's only a movie. Gosh).

[Mark Mentzer]

Toby and Westerly, Yes it's just a movie. And, of course I will not die from watching it or not. But, I do think that the outrage of being charged the same fee over and over again stems from the same place that the bigger outrages of the god awful healthcare we have in this country. It's a matter of grredy, raygunomics, capitalist pigs. Yeah, it's only a movie and is a luxury and not a matter of life and death but the same greed that will have us pay over and over again for the same item is the greed that's killing us with awful healthcare.

[Boothby171]

Good, then. DON'T GO TO THE MOVIES.

If enough people get pissed off, then the theaters and the production companies will change their policies. But unless you seriously want to recommend that the federal Government start regulating movie prices, what in God's name are you ranting about?

Of COURSE it's GREED. GREED IS GOOD. UNREGULATED GREED IS BAD. I'm willing to let the motion picture industry regulate itself when it comes to prices.