I’ve written a response to the Opinion Editor’s rebuttal of Jamie Grady’s comments on last week’s “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” I feel as though there are many points that need to be clarified, as the rebuttal was a very negative and petty reply to Grady’s plea that people visit the Langer films and form an opinion for themselves.

Here’s my shocking take on the matter, get this. I’m a student, and I agree with Jamie Grady’s response. The movies are far better being screened at Taylor Little Theater than at the PAC or anywhere else on campus. This isn’t only because of the upgrades to the venue (new speakers, a larger screen, a new HD projector, and a Blu-Ray player), but also because of the venue itself.

Taylor Little Theater is smaller, but who truly cares about that? When movies were being screened in the PAC (and trust me–as a film lover and a Film Studies minor I frequented them) there would be numerous rows of empty seats throughout the entire venue.

What made this worse is that the sound could not properly fill the great amount of empty space that the PAC provided, and produced a large echo that was not conducive to a proper screening experience. You had to strain your ears to decipher most of the dialogue; something that you shouldn’t have to do in any movie theater.

As well, the PAC’s digital projector was not properly configured, and consistently displayed the wrong colors. Anybody attend last year’s screening of The Help and wonder why the pool was a bright green? Yeah, it’s because of the insufficient and improperly calibrated projector. There’s no way that the PAC was a better venue in any aspect, even in size. Films were never sold out—never even close, therefore leaving no fathomable reason for a larger venue.

I directed Mercyhurst’s student film Cheering Up Dewie last year. Guess what—we decided to premiere the film in Taylor Little Theater because it was decidedly the best film venue on campus, and this was before any renovations had been made. We filled over half of the theater’s 250 seats; something I believe the new film series has yet to do, namely because there’s more than enough space.

For the Opinion editor to blatantly discourage free thought is disgraceful. What’s more disgraceful is her open insult to one of Mercyhurst’s most beloved entertainment venues. Taylor Little is a fantastic venue not only for films, but also plays, comedians, classes, and more.

I haven’t heard any student outcry against moving the film series to Taylor Little Theater. In fact, the inclusion of this situation as last week’s “Bad” seems more like a desperate last-minute grasp at content to write about.