The manager's explanation of these scratched Harold Lloyd reels is plausible, but I suspect, from decades of theatrical experience and observation, that some projectionist misthreaded the films, destroying the audio tracks. As these things happen, few will inform a superior of the damages because a job is on the line. Then, if the management indeed does know of the problem, they more than likely aren't going to report the defects to the distributor because they do not want to pay for the expensive replacement costs. So, the defective movies go from theatre to theatre to disappoint audiences again and again.
A compounding issue is the movie studios book prints too close together. It's not unusual for one print to close at midnight Thursday in St. Louis, for example, and be on the screen early the next afternoon in Atlanta. So, if there's a bad copy in circulation, especially on the weekend, it's got to run! There's simply no time at the theatre level to catch any defects or order replacement footage before showtime.
Then, on Monday, more often than not, if the movie is only scheduled to exhibit a few more days, film buyers will instruct the theatre to make do. They can't be bothered to dial another phone call -- or they're worried they'll be made to cough up cash. See, since the previous theatre didn't complain, the studio might not believe this executive's story.
That's partially what happened in Atlanta, according to the manager. The film was delivered Saturday evening for a Sunday morning screening.
Regardless, whether due to skullduggery or incompetence or greed, the switcheroo fingered to congregating patrons is disgraceful.
There was no effort extended to me, my wife, or anyone else I noticed in attendance to make our inconveniences (or my 320 miles of travel and expensive gasoline) somehow compensated. There were no offers of complimentary movie passes (a nearly universal industry practice) or reduced admission pricing. No gesture of good faith.
I've checked the Landmark Web site daily during this Lloyd series and I have found no notices of print deficiencies or promises of make-goods to their loyal patrons. All weekend their site promised, as it does at this writing: "New 35mm Prints! Dolby Digital Sound!" Even after the theatre's irrefutable knowledge of the problems, management continued to entice the unknowing public to those screenings with false advertising online.
I'm done with the Lloyd fest, sadly missing "Why Worry?" and, perhaps, the finest Harold Lloyd comedy of them all, "The Kid Brother." I'm also done with this theatre. They'll exist in my simmering silence for a long time to come.
As a consequence, I will not be writing the high profile collection of articles lauding the comedies of Harold Lloyd I had specifically planned for About Humor and elsewhere. There are DVD releases coming, which this film series was designed to promote, but you won't hear any more publicity from me.
I urge you to see his films for they are among the best ever made, but I also urge you to avoid lining the pockets of parties who don't respect his presentations or his audiences.
Accidents do happen, yes, but why is profiteering from them in this manner somehow to be regarded as an acceptable business practice?
Finally, a comment from a spokesman for the Lloyd Trust has appeared on The Harold Lloyd Forum....
- "I'm sorry that the screenings were such a nightmare. It certainly is not our intention that the films be shown in silence. They are either to have orchestral soundtracks or live accompaniment. We were assured that the Castro problem was a fluke and wouldn't happen again. I will speak with Mike at Sony and see what's going on.
"Sony went to great expense to sync up the scores for these releases. I'm certain they want people to hear the scores. Thanks for the feedback. Again sorry for the problem."
Chuck Johnson
HL Trust
You and/or The Harold Lloyd Trust, Sony, and Landmark Theatres have done a haphazard (at best) disservice to the fans of Mr. Lloyd through the failure to stay on top of this problem and insist on perfection. The perfection of Harold Lloyd has also been failed -- and his trust.
Trust me.