OldBoy

i know some go out of their way sometimes to see a movie that is not playing near them or perhaps they just like a particular theater better than one near them.

i am seriously considering driving about 40-45 miles to my hometown to see Manchester By the Sea this weekend because it is not playing anywhere remotely near me.

Might do it for Rogue One as well, but that is more for this particular theater than the movie itself.

i mean this theater i will be going to is great, reclining seats, reserved and all that so it's not like it would be that big of a stretch and i have been there before and it is a great theater, as theaters go imo.

But, is that a little ridiculous? i really want to see this one, so...

fumanstan

I've never driven further then my hometown to see a movie, however i'm lucky that Irvine, CA and the surrounding areas has a crap ton of theaters including a University one that shows a lot of the indie/Oscar darling type of movies as well as an IMAX theater at primary outdoor mall, which basically covers all the bases even for limited releases.

dex14

Have you looked here: http://tickets.manchesterbytheseathemovie.com/ ? It should list some of the theatres it will eventually come to.

OldBoy

thanks for that. says 12/16 it will be playing near me, so not bad, couple weeks, but still...

bunkaroo

I've lived in the Chicago metro area most of my life except for 2 years in NYC, so I've never had to go crazy distances to see something.

I do recall driving up into the north suburbs from the west suburbs to see Before Sunset when it came out. It was only playing in two theaters and I didn't want to deal with going downtown so Highland Park was more acceptable.

mrhan

Same in the SF Bay Area.

The only problem is the traffic. You really have to plan ahead just to get anywhere on time.

devilshalo

I will travel 30 - 40 miles for a special screening. Living in Long Beach, I'd have to drive up to either American Cinematheque theaters or the Arclight Hollywood when they have guests doing Q&A.

rbrown498

When The Blair Witch Project came out in 1999, I and several of my friends were afraid that it wouldn't make it to our small town, so we drove 120 miles to the closest theater in which it was showing to see it. We had a blast, because it became more of an adventure than the usual 5-minute drive to the movies.

Brack

I drove from Cincinnati to Indianapolis to see The Dark Knight Rises in 70mm IMAX. My wife and I made a day out of it by going to the Indiana State Museum, where you got a discount on tickets if you also bought tickets for the museum. Since most Hollywood movies aren't being released in the 15/70 IMAX format anymore, it's probably something I won't do often if ever again.

Dan

Driven? Probably 45 minutes or so.

But once, when visiting a friend, we took the subway and a bus to get to a theatre really far away (probably 1.5 hour commute) to see Cronenberg's Spider followed by Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter.

Trevor

Have always lived within 20 miles of dozens of theaters, don't think I'd drive out of my way for any movie. A live show, sure, but not a film.

Hulkabrgr

Phoenix to LA to see Akira in 2001

Abob Teff

I have 3 AMC theaters within 20 miles/20 minutes of my house, one as close as 9 miles. Yet I will drive 30 minutes (26 miles) to Lincoln or 60 minutes (60 miles) to Bloomington for an IMAX show.

Both options are cheaper admission ($8 tickets in Lincoln and I still have my student ID from grad school so I get the student discount in Bloomington - $10 for 3D IMAX) as well as cheaper and better concessions. I don't do it to save the money though (I know, by the time I drive blah blah), I do it because of the far superior guest experience. AMC sucks major balls here and they don't care.

So, no Oldboy. Not ridiculous at all.

I would love to open a boutique theater (Alamo Drafthouse style) in Springfield ... Any backers?

asianxcore

102 miles to see The Host (2006)
77 miles to see Pan's Labyrinth & It Follows

Mike86

I drove four hours (not sure the exact mileage off hand) to see The Dark Knight Trilogy in IMAX opening day of The Dark Knight Rises.

Crocker Jarmen

I used to live in Niagara Falls and I remember taking a two hour bus trip to Toronto to see Chasing Amy.

Inhumans99

I would have thought I was farther away from this theater, Mann Grauman's Chinese Theatre, but I guess a bit over 14 miles is one of the longest distances I have gone to see a movie. I could have sworn that I was more than 14 miles out from Hollywood Blvd living in Arleta, CA several years back, but I guess not.

I suspect the heavy traffic always made it seem like the theater was farther than it is because it took a fair amount of time to get to the theater and find parking.

DynamicKnight

I used to live in a small rural area of the Cali desert for three years and the only theater around was small and crappy (but cheap), so whenever I wanted to see a big blockbuster movie I would drive over an hour to Palm Springs.

Why So Blu?

For me it's just 20-30 tops and that's usually to the Westside, which I hate going to, if I can help it.

Obi-Wanma

I used to drive about 30 miles to see 70mm IMAX on the giant screen at the Henry Ford Museum. I used make that trip pretty regularly with my wife to see pretty much anything that was released in IMAX, and we always felt it was worth it. Last winter they converted it to all digital picture that isn't even IMAX, they just call it the "Giant Screen Experience" now. I haven't been back since to check it out. They weren't getting very many major releases for quite a while before that, which is probably part of the reason they made the switch.

B5Erik

I drove 40 or so miles to watch Detroit Rock City.

I drive 40 or so miles to watch movies 3 or 4 times a year, but that's mainly because there is a Fuddruckers and a musical instrument store in the same mall/shopping area, so we make a day of it.

I drove that 40 miles to watch Shin Godzilla recently (closest theater it was at for that first weekend).

musick

according to Google Maps 19 miles is the furthest I have driven to see a movie (Hateful Eight 70mm)

oh and, what are you high?

majorjoe23

I used to drive and hour and 45 minutes once a month to see a movie in a college town. But that's because a riffing group I wrote for was performing my material.

mwbmis

Exactly, I've even made the trip over to Savoy a few times. It doesn't hurt that I am a field examiner for a living so if getting up and driving 60 miles to work doesn't bother me why would it to see a movie in Bloomington.

Last year, I also drove down to Ronnies to see the Hateful Eight in 70MM.

Geddlo

Long Island to New Jersey to see the first digital screening of Episode 1