IMAX Dismisses Gripes About Screen Size

High prices and few choices don't help: Roger Ebert

(NEWSER) - News that movie theaters had lackluster revenue in 2011 didn’t surprise Roger Ebert. He ticks off a list of the reasons why at his blog , including the lack of an Avatar-like blockbuster and usual suspects like too-high prices for tickets and refreshments. But also:

• Distractions: Loud talkers and people using their cell phones (with their bright screens) to text are getting out of hand.

From Kevin Spacey to Kevin Smith, something for everyone

(NEWSER) - The Sundance Film Festival opens Thursday: What films should you anticipate the most? The Daily Beast highlights 14 that are getting the most buzz:

• Margin Call: Set at the beginning of 2008’s financial meltdown, an entry-level analyst discovers a glitch in the system of the investment firm he works at. Kevin Spacey leads a cast that also includes Jeremy Irons and Demi Moore.
• Page One: This documentary goes behind the scenes at the New York Times, including a look at the problems facing the paper with the rise of Internet news.

And, yes, Jackass 3D makes the list

(NEWSER) - Cult filmmaker John Waters offers up his 10 favorite movies of 2010, and the list is as interesting as you'd expect:

• Domain: He describes his favorite movie of the year thusly: "A 40-year-old alcoholic aunt (played by Béatrice Dalle—'Betty Blue' herself!) and her gayish teenage nephew form a perversely close relationship by taking walks together. Lots of walks!"
• Enter the Void: "The best film ever about taking hallucinogenic drugs."
• Ricky: "If David Lynch and David Cronenberg had sex and one of them magically got pregnant, this film could be their offspring."

The great, repeatable lines have fallen off since the '90s

(NEWSER) - Think about it: When was the last time you, and everyone you know, went around quoting an unforgettable line from a movie? We all remember the classics—“Go ahead, make my day”; “You talking to me?”; “Hasta la vista, baby”—but such one-liners have fizzled out since the 1990s, which gave us “Life is like a box of chocolates” and “You had me at hello,” among others. Just one post-‘90s line (“My precious”) made it into the American Film Institute’s 2005 list of the top 100 movie quotations. More»

Summer movie revenue, on the other hand, is up

(NEWSER) - This summer saw the release of some beloved films, but that wasn’t enough to keep theaters packed. Even as studios and theater owners saw record revenues (thanks to an average ticket price of $7.88), attendance fell to its lowest level since 1997, Bloomberg reports. The number of tickets sold this summer is expected hit 552 million, a drop of 2.6% from 2009. Meanwhile, summer revenue will rise to $4.35 billion, an increase of 2.4%. More»