Not a week goes by when I don’t visit a movie theater, but after a recent experience I’ve finally realized my favorite time to go.
In the age of streaming, I talk to an increasing amount of people who say they prefer to wait for new movies to become available on VOD platforms instead of heading out to see them on the big screen. Whenever I have an interaction like this, I always do my utmost best to encourage people to go to theaters, because if you love film, nothing compares to the theatrical experience. That being said, not every trip to movie theaters will be a winner, as I realized more clearly than ever this past weekend.
This weekend I saw two movies in theaters…
This past Friday night, I headed to theaters with a friend to check out Late Night With The Devil, a brand-new horror movie that’s been earning so much buzz amongst genre fans ever since it premiered at the South By Southwest Film Festival.
Starring David Dastmalchian as the host of a 1970s talk show, it’s a found footage film showing what happened when a possession took place live on air one Halloween night. It’s a fairly low-budget production, but I was amazed at how busy my screening was.
For example, there were plenty of empty seats in Dune: Part Two when I went one Thursday, but I couldn’t see a single one at this screening. I said to my mate it’s great to see the place so busy, and throughout the film, you could hear a pin drop. The entire audience was transfixed.
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On Sunday morning, on the other hand, I went to go see the new horror movie Immaculate starring Sydney Sweeney as a nun who suspects the convent she’s joined is harboring a shocking secret. I was the only person in the screening. Seriously, not one other person.
‘I’ve always wanted a screening to myself,’ I thought, but they do say to be careful what you wish for. It just didn’t feel right, and it’s changed my perspective on the best time to go to theaters.
My advice on best time to visit a movie theater
I’ve gradually grown to realize that there’s nothing like being in a packed theater, sharing the experience of a great movie with so many different people.
So, of course, the best time to visit the movie theater is when it’s busiest, but when is that exactly? On a broader scale, it’s the weekend. Looking into data from January to June 2022, DX reports that ticket sales for Friday through Sunday represented roughly half (52.29%) of the total weekly ticket sales.
I’ve been going to see a movie weekly for years, and from all of my experiences, I’ve learned that it’s never busier than it is on Friday night, or Saturday from the afternoon and into the night. The atmosphere is just so much better when you can feel the excitement of people en masse, cloaked in darkness ready to be wowed.
For Friday nights and Saturdays, the theaters are always busier, with most of the time I go on a weekday being relatively quiet.
I really enjoyed seeing Immaculate because the movie itself was great, yet I couldn’t help but sit there and wonder how much more I’d have enjoyed it with a packed audience, as I had with Late Night At The Devil. There were startling moments where I could imagine being surrounded by audible gasps, but instead, it was total silence. For horror, in particular, there’s nothing like being scared together.
One of the greatest benefits of the movie theater experience is enjoying the atmosphere that only a crowd can create, and if that’s what you’re looking for then Friday night and Saturday (excluding mornings) is the best time to book your ticket.
