Friday, December 26, 2008

Celbrating the Christmas Movies

Yes, it was definitely Chase hell, but not for a LOT of people.
I'm 47 years old. I've been to a few movies. I sat in the balcony at the Tampa Theatre and watched as Chitty Chitty Bang Bang flew straight at me at that movie's opening. I was there when 4 movies meant a megaplex (though that word hadn't been invented yet.) I remember going to the movies for half a buck.


I saw Smokey the Bandit 1 and 2 open (yeah #3, even though it was in 3-D didn't catch my interest as Burt Reynolds skipped it, may he RIP, but Jerry Reed as the Bandit?)
Any way, I've been to some movies. You'd think I'd know a thing or twelve about the movies and I do, I know when to buy and how to use the all-day pass, I know you don't even have to smuggle in water, all you need is a water bottle, but I didn't know that there are a lot of losers who spend all day at the movies on Christmas.
In my 47 years I have never been to a theatre that was as crowded all day long as the theatre was yesterday, and I can speak on this because I was there from 11 - 7. Er, wow, that's 8 hours at the movies, of course I think 1/2 of that was at the Curious Case of Benjamin Button (in the movie the character aged in reverse, I wasn't that lucky, I left that movie much older, hello, do they still edit movies? If you can't say it 3 hours, maybe a rewrite is in order?)

It was wild, every movie was crowded, there were lines to get in. Curiously, the longest lines were to see Sean Penn in Milk. I didn't think that would be a big draw, particularly in a state that overwhelming voting against giving gays any basic rights. Perhaps this movie should have come out of the closet before the November elections where Florida's amendment 2 got stomped like a Nark at a Biker Rally (l love that line.)

So it was crowded which I quickly found out meant I had a choice; either be at my movie before the ticket start time and catch all of those annoying commercials and previews or sit up front.

I was a little late for the start of Doubt, so I slid in to the second row, and couldn't handle it. I remember sitting up front as fun when I was a kid, as an adult it meant motion sickness. I had to slide out of that and into Adam Sandler's Bedtime Stories. It was a typical Adam Sandlar movie, stupid, but not in a funny way. I imagine it was ok if you are 10. But if you are 10 you aren't reading this so let me save you some time, he gets the job, knocks out the bad guy, saves the school and gets the girl. Just saved you 90 minutes.

Of course switching from Doubt meant I was off-schedule and ultimately I would only get to 3 movies, but hey, life moves pretty fast when you are at the megaplex and you have to be able to adapt. Which I did.

Next was Frost/Nixon. It was slow, it was historical, I really liked it. Go figure they portrayed Nixon as less than honest. But I certainly learned a thing or three and for a history teacher that's not a bad thing.

The last movie was the ever-long Curious Case of Benjamin Button. It was ok. It would have been good as a two-hour movie.

There you have it. It was 7:15 on Christmas Day 2008 before I even saw a person I knew. The first person I said Merry Christmas to was Jon Snader. A nice guy, he's someone my ex-wife used to do aerobics with. This is not how I ever pictured Christmas going. But, then I had a nice if not entirely "comfortable" meal with Ali's family. I made a quick side trip on the way home to drop off a couple of gifts and I was back in time to watch the Santa Clause triple feature (I, II, and III, the Escape Clause.)

10 comments:

Chase Squires said...

can't believe you did this sober.

Dr. Maguse said...

can't believe you didn't invite

Arlene said...

Could be that some of those "losers" you saw at the 'ole AMC were Jewish and had nothing better to do until they had to light their Hanukkah candles?

Or... you are right...they were losers.

Anyway, I bought an all-afternoon pass once. Got two movies in on that one. One even starred With her spoon.

Hope that your New Year's Eve is better. Happy 2009!

Star said...

I think we're going to Doubt if we can find a movie theater in this god-forsaken place. Check that...movies is all there is do to here. That and cow-tipping, but it's far too cold for that today.

superdave524 said...

Spent Christmas day with the ex, her husband and my kids (technically, they're the ex's, too). Not entirely comfortable is right. Couldn't take a nap after eating. Anyhoo, I rented "No Country for Old Men", George Carlin, and "Step Brothers". I recently finished reading "The Road". Cormac isn't a happy fellow, is he?

Chase Squires said...

Wow, The Road, gripping book ... and holy crap, not one single enlightening moment in the entire damn tome ... amazing.

Mr. Matt said...

Chase, yeah, I thought about bringing a flask, but well, I hadda drive.

Mags, I didn't know you were still around, or I'da MADE you come with!

Arlene, All these folks at the movies were Christians and all without family, like me, but my night prolly ended better than any of those others!

Star, I was gonna go see doubt today, but I think I'll do it Sunday instead, anything to keep me away from the Stadium and the bucs.

Dave, I thought all your exes lived in Texas. No?

Dr. Maguse said...

I spent my day cleaning! Bah, humbug!

Star said...

Turns out, it wasn't Doubt we wanted to see...it's "The Unborn" and its not out yet anyway.

SD: I bought "The Road" for my brother for Christmas. Not an uplifting gift? I loved that book.

superdave524 said...

...that's why I reside in Tennessee. Actually, Ange, I don't have but the one ex.

Star, I thought The Road was one long atheist anthemn: There is no point; there is no good; there is no God; there is only survival. I thought C.S. Lewis addressed that nonsense several decades ago in the space trilogy (Out of the Silent Planet; Perelandra; and, especially, That Hideous Strenght). 'Course, I could be wrong.