

It’s not everyday a giggle-inducing scandal is uncovered, especially in Sony’s homeland of Japan. But attendees of viewing for Kara no Kyoukai over at a Sendai cinema did exactly that.



As it turns out, some Japanese movie theaters have completely transcended the use of film projectors in favor of PlayStation 3s. The audience that was watching Kara no Kyoukai was unexpectedly interrupted by the appearance of the PS3’s XMB, warning the projectionist to stop messing around and recharge their Sixaxis controller.

As word spread through 2ch-watching blogs, it turned out that a number of theaters actually rely on this method, and for one particular reason. The flicks were being played off the PS3 hard drives, not Blu-ray players. It’s hard to say then whether these movies were even obtained legally, but we suspect it was merely a cost-saving measure on the studios’ part. Even more surprising was that the quality was indistinguishable from typical film stock.

And who knows. Maybe American theaters will start doing the same. We just hope they keep their controllers plugged in while they’re at it.

[Source]