H and I had gone to see one of the largish movies of the last ten years or so, a matinee in a nearly empty theatre. I want to say--TTT? Something of that ilk. It was very low-key, and he didn't get into it much at all. I wanted to see it again and coerced him into coming along. The theatre was mostly full, and the electricity in the theatre enhanced the experience four- or five-fold. It was an audience geared for the experience though, and not some thinky dialog-is-important plotty cough-and-you-lose film.
We tend to save the theater experience for Die Hard 4, Avatar, PotC and the like. And The Girl With...etc. for the living room, the big screen, and no interruptions.
Despite my lingering unhappiness with the content of the recent Star Trek movie, it was great fun to see it in the theater opening weekend: the entire theater sparked when we heard Leonard Nimoy's voice for the first time.
I have no idea where to put this, and I want to share. Relevant to the interests of many of us, and movie-derived--
White Knights-Lose my Breath
When you go to the Roxie for the noir fest, it is a social scene as well.
But that's not typical. I can see how people probably have unexpected interactions with each other when they're in the audience for a concert or a sporting event. Movies seem like a different kind of experience.
Actually the Roxie events are not maintaining the crowds they once did. As the programmer noted in his interview, he had excellent turnouts for his Pre-Code shows in the 90s, but he doesn't think he can pull that same crowd now. The original viewers are in their 30s and the younger ones aren't interested in anything that's not hardcore noir. (His Neo-Noir, Not Hardly Noir series failed to pull the audiences.)
Anyway, Rep theaters are disappearing too, so this kind of experience is getting more rare.
My friend Theresa used to organize her entire vacation schedule around the San Francisco Film Festival. Two weeks of non-stop movie watching, seeing lots of things which never received a stateside release. She talked fondly of sitting in line with other cineastes from around the world. Kind of a nightmare scenario for Ple.
But I do think the communal aspect of filmgoing is still a draw, and think more places ought to model themselves on the Alamo Drafthouse. Which has some very very cheap movie nights early in the week. I also miss the UC Theater in Berkeley which had a strong program in Hong Kong films that would pull a lot of crowds. And my local rep house, the Red Vic, has started doing a kid-friendly early Sunday matinee with cheaper prices and cheaper popcorn. That drew a full house for The Muppet Movie.
We went to see Win Win last weekend, and at one point the whole theater clapped. I love when things like that happen at the movies. I highly recommend the movie too.
We went to see Win Win last weekend, and at one point the whole theater clapped. I love when things like that happen at the movies.
Me too, sj. It's so fun! Or like when you could feel the entire audience jump out of their seats at that moment in
Deep Blue Sea.
You know the one.
Just started watching The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. What a fabulously irritating Eustace.
One of the things I miss most from my pre-parent days is going to the movies - we used to go three or four nights a week. Now I'm lucky if I see four a year. We've got a pretty great home theater setup, but it's not the same.
When they get a little older, Jess, you can go back to the movies. It just won't be the movies you want to see.
On AVClub they're interviewing Randy Newman about specific songs he's written. The interviewer's lead-in to a particular song seemed apt...
*****
AVC: There are two kinds of people: People who weep during the “When She Loved Me” montage, and people who lie about it.
AVC: When you’re dealing with a moment like that, where the movie essentially stops and the music takes over, how specific is the assignment? Is it “There’s a two-and-a-half-minute piece that needs music,” or is it “Write us a song and we’ll—”
RN: “She’s gonna be telling about her life and her disappointment with her relationship with her owner as a child, and they grew up.” That was the assignment. I knew what the length of it was, and I knew a girl had to sing it.
AVC: Did they have a girl in mind at that point?
RN: Yeah. John Lasseter’s a tremendous fan of Sarah McLachlan. She was terrific. She did very well.
AVC: Do you write differently when you’re composing for a voice like that?
RN: Yeah. It’s like writing for a different instrument. I have a blues-oriented voice. That’s what I sound best on. She has a different kind of contralto, or whatever the hell she has. Soprano. It’s a voice that can hold notes, so I can write with that in mind. I think I can sing it, but it’s funny.
