I love me some entertainment, even when it’s something as laid back as watching a movie.
But I’m not talking about just flopping on the couch or cranked back in the La-Z-Boy with something streaming on the TV before you inevitably pick up your phone and just leave it on for background ambiance. Maybe you even popped in a DVD or Blu-ray. Physical media, remember that? With its far superior picture and sound quality?
No, I’m talking about going OUT to the movies. Yes, folks, it can still be done. By doing your simple due diligence in these different times we’re in, you can still enjoy the act of driving to a movie theater, paying for a ticket, throwing down for marked-up concession goods to ensure Big Multiplex turns a buck, finding your seats in the auditorium, and waiting for the previews to begin.
I’ve gone out to the movies maybe a dozen times since the pandemic started. Some may lose the colour in their face reading that, while others will nod their heads in agreement and approval. Hey, if this whole thing has reinforced one plain truth, it’s that sometimes we all have to have a little blind faith that the people behind the services and amenities we enjoyed before COVID are ensuring that we can still enjoy them now. After all, far too many businesses are holding on for dear life right now trying to weather this thing, so you can bet they’re doing everything in their power and then some to make sure the consumer’s experience is a safe one.
Places like movie theaters need our business, and I’m happy to keep giving it to them. The business model may have changed right now, with movie previews on TV hyping their release date in theaters AND on streaming services, but that’s just a sign of the times. As for me, I’m sticking with the theater experience, not only because I want these places to still exist when we’ve turned a major corner, but some movies just call for that kind of environment. ‘Godzilla vs Kong’ on a standard TV with all the distractions of home? Please, don’t embarrass yourself.
But it’s not just the movie theater experience that has changed, it’s the live event experience, which is all but extinct right now. In truth, I don’t know when we’ll ever return to the point where we can once again enjoy things like:
An outdoor, all-day music festival: Summersault in August of 2000 was my first true concert experience. It was held in Saskatoon on some land adjacent to what’s now known as SaskTel Centre (it’ll still always be Saskatchewan Place to me). Looking back on it now, man, what a lineup: Our Lady Peace, A Perfect Circle, Foo Fighters, Smashing Pumpkins. Thousands of people sharing the outdoor space, jammed close together, covered in mud, rocking out and getting caught up in the spirit of it all. I remember walking into an A&W with the group I was with, all of us covered in dried mud. Lots of soap and water in the shower that night.
Live professional wrestling: If you know me, you know I’m a wrestling geek. I’ve loved it all my life, dating way back to a time when larger than life superstars like ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage captivated young fans. Taking in live matches was always the better option to watching the shows on TV. Getting that first glimpse of the ring, hearing the entrance music, and watching this crazy and bizarre form of ‘athletic theatre’ take place is just so enjoyable that it’s difficult to put into words. You just have to be a fan to truly get it.
Live sports: I’m going to put myself in a vulnerable position by sharing this, but I’m not a hockey fan. Settle down, folks, I heard some of you gasping so hard that I fear a cool drink of water may not be enough. A 35-year old Canadian from the Prairies who grew up under the reigns of Gretzky, Lemieux and Messier who DOESN’T like hockey? Yes, it’s true. Well, it’s not that I don’t like it, it’s that I don’t really get anything out of watching it on TV. You’re watching this little black speck of a puck on your TV while they inevitably cut to “the experts” who tell us for half an hour what everybody’s doing right and wrong. Rinse and repeat. Watching a game live, though? That’s way better because it’s more immersive; you’re right there with the action. It’s not just hockey, either. I’ve enjoyed football games, basketball games, and I jumped on the Saskatchewan Rush lacrosse bandwagon a few years ago like virtually everyone else. Live sports just have a way of electrifying your pulse and making you feel like you’re intimately involved. TV just doesn’t cut it in that regard.
I don’t know when live entertainment is going to be a thing again. Will we ever be able to don the green once again, fill up the SaskTel Centre, and chant “GO RUSH GO!” with 15,000 other Rush fanatics? Will we ever be a part of live event history again, like many of us were when Garth Brooks staged his multi-night string of shows in Saskatoon in 2016? Will I ever see two grown men pretending to beat each other senseless, including one of those men football tackling the other through a table?
The short and frustrating answer is – I don’t know. Believe me, I want to know. We all want to know.
Life is just better when it’s live and not on a screen.
For this week, that’s been the Ruttle Report.
