Widescreen: Why I choose my iPhone over the big screen
Two years ago, after a particularly infuriating trip to see "Avengers: Age of Ultron" that ended 15 minutes into the film due to projection problems, I asked if you would be willing to pay $100 to watch a tentpole release like "Avengers" in your home the same weekend it premiered in theaters.
Back then, I would have said yes. Today, I ask why bother?
This week saw the home release of "Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2," one of the summer's biggest hits, to digital platforms. (The Blu-ray and DVD release follow on Aug. 22.) Marvel's space-opera sequel had late-night showings on May 4 and was streaming on my television on Aug. 8. That's a window of 96 days. Last week, "Alien: Covenant completed its trip from your local multiplex to iTunes in only 75 days.
The prospect of waiting an extra 75 days to see a huge movie like, say, "Star Wars: The Last Jedi," may seem like an eternity. But for most movies? I'll gladly wait three months to watch under conditions I can control.
Last month, I went to "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" at a suburban movie house. I saw ghost images through the 3-D glasses, the picture contrast was too high and the sound was too low - except for the dialogue, which overpowered everything else in the mix. I paid $16.19 for the privilege of seeing Luc Besson's eye-popping sci-fi spectacle in these less-than-perfect conditions.
In three months, when "Valerian" is available digitally, I'll watch it on the 5½-inch screen of my iPhone 6 Plus (I know, I need to upgrade) with a pair of $10 Skullcandy earbuds in my dark living room. The image will be clear and bright, the sound will rattle my brain and I bet I'll enjoy it far more than I did on July 23 at the movie theater.
The theater experience already hurt by talkative, textative patrons continues to degrade. "The Last Jedi" deserves better in December. Heck, everything on the release schedule deserves better. (Well, maybe not that terrible-looking Charlie Sheen "9/11" movie.) The increasing quality of digital streaming and the further proliferation of theater-quality TV shows - did you see the last "Game of Thrones"?! - might spell doom for my frequent moviegoer card.
• Sean Stangland is a Daily Herald multiplatform editor. You can follow him on Twitter at @SeanStanglandDH.