(Caution. Rambling ahead and unchecked spelling.)
I'm always amazed by the interest in a thread such as this one. Most of the people who reply are young, very busy people who are going to school or working or both. How do they find the time to go to the movies? Or for that matter, how do they find the money? Yes, I know, a real movie buff will find a way.

Personally, I don't see a lot of movies any more. Usually, my reaction as the cast roller begins to scroll up, is, "I can't believe I wasted that much time on that dud." (At my age, time is not something to waste.) There are good movies out there. Maybe one in three or four or five? But you have to wade through a lot of duds to find the good ones. You can't depend on reviewers unless you can find one whose taste is the same as yours. There is a wide range of different tastes in entertainment.

We don't have very many really tallented stars any more. Sure, there are people like Hanks and Streep. There might be a dozen of this caliber in today's movies, but most are middle aged. From time to time there will be a new tallent who pops up and we look forward to that. But it doesn't happen as often as needed and the tallent pool is getting thin. So many movies now star the special effects, or the director. Violence and distruction seem to be a popular money-making draw. One of my quirks is that I won't watch movies where all they do is blow up buildings and smash cars. Even if they are just digital images, that stuff makes me uncomfortable.

If you like cuss words, there are a lot of movies out there for you.

I find a lot of good entertainment that is better than movies. I like plays and other live shows. I enjoy traveling to places like Las Vegas and New Orleans. Theme parks are over priced, but fun. And historical sites always get my attention. You can't beat the Natchez trace, or Gettysburg for history. Such places are relatively cheap.

For expensive entertainment I go for cruises, my favorites being the Inside Passage to Alaska and the Panama Canal. Ironically, some of the best shows I've seen were on cruise ships and they also have "free" movies. Flying fish and dolphins are also good entertainment.

And if you can't afford a movie, a short auto tour is still cheaper. I like to drive through state and national parks, or historic districts of old towns like Savannah, Chattanooga, Philadelphia or Boston. Everybody is within a short drive of one or more historic districts.

But if all else fails, I go to a movie.
Howard