Discuss: How Far Should This Mobile Movie Craze Go?
Filed under: Distribution, Home Entertainment
Now that cell phones have fancy little screens that show funky little movies -- 'cept for mine, which just shows a cute cat and some text -- movies-on-phones is becoming all the more popular. People download flicks to watch on the go, and somehow decipher teeny tiny faces on a tiny little screen; it's the silly contrast to the obsession with big, super-awesome-high-definition TVs. Others, meanwhile, use cells to make mini movies, like Don McKellar's Phone Call from Imaginary Girlfriends.But now films are getting their release on the phone. The Hollywood Reporter posts that Sally Potter's Rage will premiere on cell phones through Babelgum on September 28, offering an "episode" a day for one week. Luckily, this film is a "series of interviews, as if shot by a schoolboy on his mobile phone over a seven-day period," where names like Steve Buscemi and Dianne Wiest talk about a New York fashion show -- so it's not exactly a strange way to release the film.
But it does open a can of worms: Can we expect future films to get released on our phones? Full features? I shudder at the thought -- at having to wait for installments of something that should be seen as a whole, at having to see what should be a piece of art on a tiny screen. We've already seen the world of cinema get terribly watered down, so could we possibly get a future where everyone watches movies on their handhelds? How far should this mobile movie craze go?
Jeremy Renner Wants To Be An Avenger
Directors We Love: Jim Jarmusch
Indie Roundup: 'Sweetgrass,' 'Clarkworld,' 'Broken Embraces'
Shelf Life: Fight Club_thumbnail.jpg)
Watch: Famous 'Matrix' Scene Re-Created with LEGOs
_thumbnail.jpg)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-03-2009 @ 10:38PM
Rhys said...
If i wanted to sit down and watch a movie, i dont want to have anyone around thats not watching it and i also want the biggest screen to watch it on that i can get to, other wise whats the bloody point. Kills the experience, Its so dum. You can barely make out a group photo on a phone.
Film on Phone is Fail.
Reply
9-04-2009 @ 6:37PM
Ryan said...
My iPhone screen has a far superior image quality to the SD TV I grew up watching and with good headphones, better sound as well. And the screens will continue to improve in the future.
Certainly I prefer to see everything in theaters when I can, but I still found WALL-E captivating, and Juno watchable on mobile. Facial expressions and action were quite easy to discern.
Reply
9-17-2009 @ 5:19PM
Debra Kaufman said...
First it's important to remember that there are other mobile devices in addition to phones - netbooks have made a big splash this year. We'll continue to see new mobile devices that may be better than a phone screen for watching content.
Like it or not, the U.S. will follow Europe and Asia in consuming an increasing amount of content on the mobile phone. RAGE is just the first of many mobile-distributed films to come....
Read stories about mobile content on http://www.MobilizedTV.com
Reply
9-27-2009 @ 6:31PM
Murat said...
There are so many crap films that I wished I watched on the train on the way home rather than dedicating a big chuck of my evening in front of the TV. That's one benefit at least.
Ok epic films will obviously look better at the movies or at home but mobile has its place. TV shows generally work better I think but why not movies? Not every film needs your eyeballs watching every little detail.
Reply