Films/DVD Asylum

Posted by petew on September 03, 1999 at 18:26:49:

I don't get out much. The last film I saw was "Fear and Loathing" at a noon Saturday showing (weird time of day to come out of the movies--especially that movie).

But a few months ago they built a 24 screen place less than a mile from my house, and last night at around 10:20 PM I went to check it out. Being a weatlthy man, I had an entire $5 in my pocket, so I fished for change under the seat and came up with $7.38. There wasn't anything to see. Twenty-four screens: I don't remember all the titles but it was something like 10 screens of Batman XXIII, 5 screens of Steven Segal, 3 screens of puberty farts and T&A, 4 screens of "Please Runaway and Kill Yourself Bride", ...and then there was "the Muse", which at least had Stone in it (I like to watch).

The teenagers were hanging around racing their Mustangs up and down in front of the doors, smoking, fighting and drinking, and banging their skateboards against every railing, wall and seating surface. I forgot there was no school today. It wasn't pleasant. There was nothing to indicate what they were charging for a ticket, and the times of the shows were too small for me to read. I asked for a ticket from a girl of 12 behind the window (seemed dum for a 12-year-old) and handed her the $5. she said, $7.50. I said, "Seven-Fifty!?!" and took my five back and left.

Today I went to the washing-machine/air conditioner store and looked at the HDTV's and DVD players. I forgot to bring my glasses. I don't know anywhere where I can get movies out here in the 'burbs--so it's stupid for me to get a DVD player. I went home and put the Weather channel on, and saw that Dennis is not comming up here to water my tomatoes and restore my lawn. The only good thing about the last 24 hours is my wife's pesto and Steve McCormack called about installing Jensen transformers in my amp and putting balanced inputs on for me. Yea, I'm still fighting the ground loop, and I'm this || close to ordering the preamp on the cover of this month's Stereophile (I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take it any more!).

If it wasn't for this page, I wouldn't remember what a movie was. Tell me again formerly Steve, what was it like, to see the light against the screen? How many cell phones went off? How many personal conversations going on between the car-crashes? Is it even worth it anymore, for an old fart like me? Is it really time for me to spring for the roll-down screen and the ceiling projector? You know, in the "old days", it was really nice to be in the movie house with a mature audience, one that reacted appropriately to the film, and kept quiet most of the time. Alone in a crowd. That's the way to see a movie.