I took Pipsqueak to a matinee of "Up" today, and I was reminded why I don't go to the movies anymore. First, your wallet is assaulted by the ticket price and concessions. You want HOW MUCH for a small popcorn and soda? Surely, you jest.
But the biggest reason is the theater itself. Televisions screens are getting bigger and movie screens are getting smaller. I was thinking as I sat there, "I feel like I'm sitting in some one's living room except I have no leg room and I can't hit the pause button if I have to pee."
When I was growing up, there were no multiplexes. They started going in when I was a teenager, and then it seemed cool because you had CHOICES. Still, it didn't compare to the feeling of a single screen movie house with the screen that was two stories tall and so wide that when there was a close up, it looked like you could drive a small car into the actors nostril. It was thrillingly large. Oh, and the price... my mom would give me $1 on Saturday. I could buy my ticket to the matinee and a small popcorn. If I scrounged around in our living room cushions before I left, I might come up with enough change for "an orange drink" which was served in the lobby in a paper cone. You weren't allowed to take orange drink or any drink in the theater.
That same theater that I went to as a kid in Bellows Falls, Vermont is still running after being renovated at least twice. Someday, I'm going to take Pipsqueak to a movie there, so she can experience the big screen for real.
As for "Up", it was great. It made me laugh out loud, and I loved that talking dog much more than a grown woman should love an animated character. Ed Asner's voice as the old man was spot on, and Disney Pixar really now how to put together a story. I'll be seeing it again... at home... on DVD... with my bag of Orville Redenbacher and the pause button.
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2 comments:
We go to see a movie (The Daver and I) a couple of times a year. It always costs more than a frigging steak dinner.
Oh, that was a fun trip down memory lane! The Falls Cinema! The last time I went there was to see Titanic about 10 years ago. I can't remember what time of year it was, but the theater was so hot that when all the people were flailing about in the water, we were wondering, "What in heck are they complaining about???"
As to price, I'm right there with you. Every once in a while I have to go just to have the "theater experience" but I'm more than content at home in my recliner.
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