"The unique thing about a theater is that you share the emotion of a movie with other audience members and empathize with them. It is both the most personal and collective experience. I think that is a powerful distinguishing feature that other mediums cannot offer. Of course, you can access movies through other channels, but I believe the best way to define a new film is the theater experience." (Christopher Nolan)

A peculiar phenomenon occurs whenever a film by director Christopher Nolan is released. Audiences debate the optimal screening format and hunt for the best seats in the auditorium. It is the devout attitude of cinephiles (a French term meaning movie enthusiasts) who wish to fully enjoy the film in the manner intended by the director.

As soon as the new film The Odyssey was released, scalped IMAX tickets began circulating on online secondhand trading platforms. Prices soared, starting at 2 to 3 times higher and reaching over 5 to 6 times at the peak. This is hardly surprising. An IMAX ticket frenzy has always unfolded whenever a Nolan film is released.

However, in South Korea, viewers cannot fully watch The Odyssey in the screening format intended by Nolan. The Odyssey was filmed entirely with IMAX 70mm film cameras for the first time in movie history. Currently, there are no theaters equipped with IMAX 70mm film projection facilities in South Korea.

This limitation is not unique to South Korean theaters. There are only 41 theaters worldwide equipped with an IMAX 70mm film projection system. The United States has the most with 25, followed by Canada with 9, the United Kingdom with 3, Europe with 3 (Belgium, the Czech Republic, and France), and Australia with 1. Not a single country in Asia has one.

Ultimately, local audiences can only experience The Odyssey through digital laser projection (IMAX Laser). Because digital IMAX screens in a 1.90:1 aspect ratio, the top and bottom portions of the image are cropped compared to the original. Among domestic theaters, the only screening room that supports the 1.43:1 aspect ratio is the IMAX theater at Yongsan CGV (often called "Yong-a-mac"). However, even this location is a GT Laser theater, not a film projection room.

With Yong-a-mac considered the optimal theater to watch the film as close to Director Nolan's intentions as possible, The Odyssey recorded a streak of sold-out shows from the early days of its release. Consequently, scalped tickets for Yong-a-mac priced at up to 120,000 won even appeared.

Passing through COVID-19 and the pandemic, the film industry fell into its worst slump, and even after the COVID era came to an end, the theater downturn did not recover. The rise of OTT services as a powerful substitute can be seen as the primary cause. However, it is the "theater" that is failing, not "cinema." While "cinema" is synonymous with "movies," they carry similar yet distinct meanings.

The defining characteristic of cinema is that it can only be realized within the space of a theater. When films that showcase the true power of cinema are released, audiences actively seek out screening rooms while checking for the proper format. It was that way with Dune, it was that way with Avatar, and the same goes for The Odyssey.

IMAX achieved its all-time best performance in 2025 with global box office revenues reaching 1.28 billion dollars. Special screening formats such as ScreenX, 4DX, and Dolby Cinema also showed upward trends in revenue.

Prior to COVID-19, South Korea was considered one of the most movie-going countries in the world (ranking 1st with 4.12 viewings per capita in 2013, and 2nd with 4.25 annual viewings per capita in 2017). Going to the movies was a hobby for the entire population. However, following skyrocketing ticket prices after COVID-19 and the rapid rise of OTT, going to the theater has become a matter of weighing opportunity costs.

Now, visiting a theater means an irreplaceable experience for audiences. Of course, not all movies are watched in special format theaters. It is limited to cases where works that maximize the cinematic experience are released.

Witnessing the craze for special format screenings of The Odyssey makes one re-realize the power of "cinema." Director Nolan's insistence on IMAX filming stems from his firm philosophy regarding cinematic immersion, aesthetic completion, and theater-centrism. As he says, this is an exclusive experience native to theaters that OTT services or home TVs cannot offer.

The Odyssey drew 290,000 viewers on its opening day alone. It is the highest opening score among Director Nolan's works. Audiences are expressing high satisfaction with Nolan's cinematic aesthetics, which reinterpret classical works and myths from 3,000 years ago, sharing praises in unison.

"This is cinema."

 

(SBS Entertainment News, Reporter Ji-hye Kim)