Having walked through the labyrinth of red buses around Greater London countless times, every school student is well-familiarised with the look of just another film poster plastered to the sides of each and every double-decker– each poster screaming louder and louder for people to invest their interest in a cinematic experience. What hides behind these desperate sells is an industry teetering on the brink of change – and change, in this case, could mean catastrophe.
We can see the decline of the cinema industry everywhere – Cineworld, one of the most renowned and historically adored cinema businesses in the UK, facing £5 billion in debt as of June 2023, are facing immanent closures if they don’t find a buyer. Why? Crawley, Brighton, Eastbourne; all are cinemas considered by many to be of the highest quality and consistent appraisal by regulars - and now they are among the 130 cinemas at risk of permanent closure. The strike of the pandemic on film caused damage so rooted into the structure of the industry itself, that all cinemas are looking at a future threatened by the complete takeover of streaming services.
Rewind to 2020, and Marvel Studios have staged their first hybrid film release – Black Widow’s first-of-its-kind opening, with the film showing both on Disney+ and cinemas simultaneously. Marvel Studios’ plan to be inclusive to their lock-downed audience by opening the big screen to people sitting at home is considered by some, however, to be a backfire. The controversy stricken by financial complications may ensure this unorthodox release is a last-of-its kind, much to the relief of the cinema industry, which would otherwise be at risk of complete decimation by streaming services. But COVID was a window for Marvel Studios to open up a new avenue for alternative viewing – streaming - central to the rise of one of the most popular streaming services in the UK and around the world, Disney+.
So COVID was the blow, and now streaming is the wound – its versatility in providing new formats to filmmakers in addition to its much upgraded ease of access compared to a cinema visit make it perhaps too worthy an opponent for cinema, with the mentioned Disney+ gaining over 50 million subscribers within the 9 early months of the pandemic, with cinemas and Marvel Studios grinding completely to a halt in movie releases in 2020. Films are back in town, but the scars of a shifting industry remain.
But what keeps cinema alive for the people of Croydon, for the UK, and for the world? Box office numbers are looking stronger than ever, with Oppenheimer making 950 million USD worldwide and Barbie astonishing the world with 1.4 billion USD since release. Every day, we see more and more films being Netflix Originals or streaming-released. Perhaps the biggest wow-factor films are saved for the cinema; perhaps what saves the cinema is its irreplaceable cultural significance, that we all hope to continue in spite of whatever is to come for the industry. But above all, what keeps cinema alive is its indescribable magic – a culmination of luxury, anticipation, commune and the enticing thrill of what cinema offers that a home sofa can’t; deafening sounds, perfect picture quality and a fully-immersive escape into new worlds.
