Saturday, February 22, 2014

What Movie Have You Seen the Most Times in a Theater?

And how many times did you see it?

With the improvements in home theater systems and the window between theatrical release and home video getting smaller and smaller, it's less necessary to go see stuff multiple times in a theater anymore. But once upon a time, I would go see movies I really liked (and sometimes ones I didn't) over and over and over again -- even in the span of a single day. Erika and I probably saw the first X-Men and Spider-Man movies five or six times each theatrically. That's impossible to wrap my head around now.

So what movies did you go back to again and again?

46 comments:

  1. Just counting first run, I saw Silver Linings Playbook 5 times. If it's both first run and rep, Jurassic Park 8 times.

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  2. I saw Scream 4 times at that theatre that used to be next to Rokbonki! Not Scream 4. Just regular Scream. Times 4. Then I would go on the fairly new internet and have discussions about it with people in chat rooms. lol

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  3. I was 8 years old in 1977 - so the answer will be pretty obvious. It's quite possible that I saw Star Wars between 10 and 15 times in the theatre (I honestly lost count at some point). One time, my friend and I went to an early matinee showing. We saw it, and then on the spot decided to wait in our seats and see it again (you could do that in those days and the theatre didn't say boo). I know Pauline Kael didn't exactly love Star Wars (she ended up loving Empire), but she still had the perfect metaphor to describe it - a Cracker Jack box with nothing but prizes.

    What I love most about Star Wars, even now, is how simple a story it is. Before Lucas got bogged down in prophecies and midicholrians, Star Wars was just about a kid from the sticks who gets a shot at the big time - and comes through. What 8-year-old kid (especially one from Idaho) could resist that?

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  4. Pulp Fiction, Scott Pilgrim vs the World, and JJ Abrams' Star Trek Babies are all tied at 4x each. Honorable mention to Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, because even though I only saw it 2x, they were both on the same day.

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  5. I'm lame. I actually don't think I've seen any movie in the theater more than once unless it's with different people, or it's something that just gets shown in a theater every year. To that last point, I've probably seen Casablanca, Gone With the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, and possibly a few other classics at least 4 times each in a theater that typically plays those movies once a year. I probably saw the 2009 Star Trek 3 times in a theater, too. That stands out in my mind.

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  6. Pulp Fiction is number one, but Jurassic Park and The Fellowship of the Ring are in the conversation.

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  7. Emperor's New Groove 9x in the theater.

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  8. Much to my chagrin, I saw The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Roland Emmerich's Godzilla 6 times apiece in theaters. You know how kids are.

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  9. Speed Racer - 11 times
    Inglorious Basterds - 9 times
    Kill Bill Vol. 2 - 7 times

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  10. Avengers, The Dark Knight and Space Jam, 3 times each.
    1st 2 Dark Knights were back to back.

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  11. I saw Lord of the Rings: Return of the King 5 times.
    I saw There will Be Blood 4 times.

    More recently I saw Spring Breakers and Inside Llewyn Davis 3 times.

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  12. Unfortunately going to the movies has always been a rare occasion due to how expensive it can be, so I don't see as many films in the theater as much as I'd like, or as many times as I'd like.

    With that said, I've seen The Dark Knight and Man of Steel in theaters three times, while films like Rango, The Avengers, and Star Wars Episode III come to mind as 2-time viewings.

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  13. I saw ET four times as a kid, which was a wonderful experience. I also had the lunchbox, Trapper Keeper, and folders.

    I saw The Fugitive four times (and probably ten more times on TV). No lunchbox this time.

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  14. Starship Troopers. 4 times. So much fun each time.

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  15. The summer that National Lampoon's Animal House was released, my friends and I saw it every night for about two months, so roughly 60 times? I can perform it for you...

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  16. The record is Star Wars at 8, many movies 5 or 6, but I saw Silence Of The Lambs 4 times in 8 days, and The Serpent And The Rainbow 3 times in 2 days.

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  17. Jaws and Jurassic Park.
    I think I saw Jurassic Park at least four times in the theater during its first run. Made quite easy as it was screened at a local $2 theater that played mostly older films and second run features. How they landed that coup of getting Jurassic Park I still don't know. How could a high school freshman not take advantage of that.
    The AFI Silver theater (near home base) often exhibits Jaws around the fourth of July and I try to make it when they do. So I have seen Jaws (70mm mind you) at least half a dozen times in the theater.

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  18. I think it would have to go to Casino, I saw it four times upon it's initial release. That was the last movie I remember seeing more than once in a theater, The original Star Wars trilogy, Star Trek II, and Raiders of the Lost Ark would be up there but I can't remember. Casino would probably beat them on time alone though. I do have vague memories of my mom dragging me to Grease a lot in the late 70's. If it was movies I paid for myself then Casino and Batman Returns for 4 times. Shit, this is hard, I think I saw Blade Runner when ever it was re-released just to remind myself I'm not sure how I feel about it. Plus I saw all of the first five Star trek Movies at the Cinerama in Seattle in one day so that might push Star Trek II over the top.

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    1. I forgot about Dark Knight, I did see that four or five times too.

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  19. Indeed its true with the short turn around from theatres to DVD I almost never see movies twice in the theatres (also life gets in the way) last time I did I saw Dark Knight-once on regular screen and once on IMAX. My record is tied for 4 times with Titanic and Iron Giant, one movie made me cry cause you know "Superman!" and the other movie made me cry after I realized I paid four times to see it, I'll let you guess.


    While not an official full length movie I know for a fact I have seen MuppetVision 3D at Disney's Hollywood Studios over a hundred times (used to work there). That show is so good I still laugh a little bit any time I happen to catch it.

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  20. In the summer of '96 I moved to NYC and my shitty studio apartment couldn't handle AC (would short-circuit the fuse) so going to movies was an escape from the heat. That's my bullshit excuse but, seriously and just between us, I was so in love with "Independence Day" that I saw it at least 40 times (probably more, but I lost count after 40) in theaters both in the city and Upstate NY. I can't fathom that right now, I was such a dumb punk back when I was 23! :-P

    "2001: A Space Odyssey" is second with about a dozen screenings (two of them 70mm), followed by Cronenberg's "The Fly" (about six or seven times) and, from my youth in El Salvador, four times each for "E.T. The Extraterrestrial" and "Disney's The Rescuers." After that just a bunch of flicks I felt like seeing twice of thrice (which in Gotham is a not inexpensive proposition): "Blue Jasmine," "The Lone Ranger," "Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace," "Possession," "Annie Hall," "Psycho," "Akira," "Annie Hall," "The Avengers," "The LEGO Movie," etc.

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    1. My bad, one of those two "Annie Hall's" was supposed to be "Titanic." Sorry, Leo. :'(

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    2. Jealous of your 2001: A Space Odyssey screenings too. I watched it yesterday inspired by Adam and JBs conversation and it's now officially a movie I LOVE. The only 2-minute stretch of that film that isn't PERFECT (for me) is the conversation between Dr. Floyd and his daughter - is there any real purpose to that scene other than for what must have been a funny gag at the time - the $1.70(!) charge for the call?

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    3. The real purpose I think was to show how casual it has become in the future something that back then (direct person-to-person long-distance call) was a pretty big deal. It also humanizes Floyd a little, which is good because in every other scene he just embodies emotionless professional white guy to the tilt. Plus the little girl is Kubrick's daughter, Vivian (the one that filmed daddy abusing Shelley in "The Shining" making-of documentary). So there.

      Welcome to the "2001" cult, Sol. Get ready for a lifetime of people you introduce the move to telling you they don't get it, they fell asleep watching or that it's a pretentious piece of shit. But you'll know better. :-)

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    4. One of the things that makes 2001 (and many of Kubrick's movies) so great, is that it's incredibly "artistic" without being pretentious, though I can see how it could come across that way to the uninitiated. But yeah, count me in the cult, man - I think there are a lot of different ways to experience and even interpret 2001 and for whatever reason I've finally found the combination that gives me a major movie-boner. I could watch it again tonight (but I won't - think I'll save it for the next theatre opportunity).

      And yeah I kind of thought of that immediately after I posted the comment - it humanizes him and acts as a nice contrast to all the super serious, top secret, most-important-discovery-in-human-history stuff that follows. Cool bit of trivia re Kubrick's daughter - and I've been meaning to watch that documentary!

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  21. Jurassic Park x3.

    Tom - very jealous of all those Jaws theatre screenings - my all-time favourite movie and I have YET to see it in the theatre - someday...

    Okay, back to the hockey game.

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  22. I was totally a Star Wars kid. (Still am, really.) Between '77 and '80, I counted 21 times seeing at the theater. About twice a year during this time, they kept re-releasing in theaters "for a limited time," so me and my friends immediately rushed to theater to see it again.

    You can't really see movies multiple times in theaters these days, because unless they're mammoth hits, they're in and out of theaters in two weeks or so.

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    1. Wow! That's awesome! I completely agree with movies nowadays, it's not worth the price seeing it multiple times unless the film changed your life, which is not a whole lot of movies these days.

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  23. Independence Day and Men in Black: 4 times
    Enemy of the State and The Thin Red Line: 3 times
    yeah, I (don't) know...

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  24. The closest theater to me when I was a kid was about 25 miles away, so I couldn't really go to the movies everyday. The first movie I ever saw multiple times was The Dark Knight, which I saw at least once a day for the first week it was out, and maybe 2 or 3 times the rest of it's run. All-in-all, I think I saw it 12 times in the theater. Interestingly, I've seen no other movies more than twice in a theater. This year I only made it out to Gravity and Wolf of Wall Street twice.

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  25. Well I have seen many animated/children's films multiple times due to taking my younger siblings to the cinema (the fact I have seen Justin and the Knights of valour more than once is horrifying). This has been so rewarding with Frozen, which I've seen about six times now. I saw The Guilt Trip three times. I definitely took the opportunity to see my Queen at the cinema, and it turned out to be a beautiful film. I have seen a few films twice such as The Hours and Life of Pi. I tried to see each film in the Harry Potter series at least twice, especially the last one! Harry Potter and the deathly hallows part 2 I actually got to go once for free, once paid and once in the Imax. As for older films, if I could I would be at the Prince Charles cinema and the BFI Southbank all the time, I think it would be hard to get me out of the cinema! But at the moment I'm not very rich so it is a treat for me to go, so the ones I have seen I have only seen once. Each of those experiences I have treasured though!

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    1. Gabby, are there no "bargain" or cheap second-run theaters that show months-old movies over in the UK (London specifically)? Many places in the States (NYC not included) have them and they're a great way to catch movies on their way out at decent prices while on the big screen. I've seen "Frozen" twice and I'm seriously considering going for a third. "Frozen" and "The LEGO Movie" are just what the doctor ordered to make 90% of animated kid flicks (including, sadly, the latest batch from Pixar) look like the insulting pieces of crap they are.

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    3. The Prince Charles cinema offers lifelong membership, so as soon I can afford that I'm going to go for it! It really is worth it as it is far more affordable with the membership. I have recently bought my travelcard for this year, which means it will be cheaper for me to get there.

      I'm hoping this summer I'm going to be able to take advantage of the amazing opportunities we have in London to see older movies. There are pop up cinemas in parks, palaces and beautiful national trust houses ect (http://www.londontown.com/London/London-Outdoor-Film-Screenings)

      Oh please go again! I love Frozen way too much! I'd love to discuss it if you like over at twitter @GabbyFerro01 or let me know your thoughts on my review: http://gabbyferro.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/frozen-2013-celebrating-difference.html

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  26. Pulp Fiction. 9 times. Dollar theaters are the greatest.

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  27. Empire Strikes Back 10
    Phantom of the Paradise. 7 (4 all in the same day)
    Ken Russell's Tommy. 6

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  28. I've never seen a movie 4 times but I've seen Terminator 2, Titanic, Gladiator, and Star Wars Episode 3 three times. It was all with different groups of friends. Different times as people are saying.

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  29. I saw visionary director James Cameron's Aliens five times during the original release when theaters offered $2.50 Tuesdays. Also watched The Fly five times (I think). These days I seldom go to the same movie more than once unless taking a different group of people; usually just wait a few months for the disc.

    Similar but different scenario: upon initial home viewing of The Matrix and Drive (2011), I subsequently (some might say compulsively) watched those movies for 5 and 7 consecutive nights, respectively. Sometimes more than once the same night. Did not see either movie in the theater. The Matrix was actually a Blockbuster VHS rental. It prompted me to buy a DVD player and, of course, The Matrix DVD.

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    1. Also saw VDJC's Terminator 2 a bunch of times, but don't really remember how many.

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  30. I saw Pan's Labyrinth four times and Slumdog Millionaire three times. Still love those movies.

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  31. Wow. I guess we all know the movie that REALLY inspired repeat visits.

    I saw Pulp Fiction 6 times, never with the same person/people. If you were my friend when that was out back in the fall of '94 and you told me you hadn't seen it, I took you and that was that. Obviously, there were no complaints.

    Second place goes to Fight Club (even though it was mostly the 2nd run, dollar theater) - I saw it opening week but a couple months later it popped up in a town that was 40 miles away, and my cousin and I took a good friend so he could see it on the big screen. He lost his shit, and on the ride home we decided another friend HAD to see it. We went the next night, and on THAT ride home we just said "screw it" and vowed that we would go the next 2 nights as well since it was gone after that. So, 5 total viewings for Fight Club (we were in our mid twenties and it, y'know, spoke to us and stuff) and roughly 300 miles.

    There's quite a few I saw 3 times. Everything from Boogie Nights to From Dusk Till Dawn, Sin City to The Avengers, Saving Private Ryan to Hellboy II.

    Also in high school I saw Costner's Robin Hood opening night with my girlfriend and the next night with my parents. The very few times that has ever come up in conversation now that I'm older, people invariably ask "Wow...do you regret that?" My answer is always the same: "Not really."

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  32. Joseph Average ChristJune 17, 2014 at 8:40 PM

    In 2003, I saw PHONE BOOTH some 10 times in theaters... but those viewings I paid sometimes sat twice through it was it was an eighty minute film and you could do that back in the day...

    I saw THE DARK KNIGHT RISES 8 times... paid for each viewing.

    And just recently I've seen MALEFICENT ---- 10 times now... Paid for each. Twice on Digital Imax, 3D.

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