Category Archives: Music, Film, Theater

Movie Theaters

Much has been said in the media lately regarding the drop in movie theater attendance by the American public. Reasons given include: awful movies; expensive tickets and concessions; competition from DVDs, home theaters, and video games; cell phone users; advertisement and preview glut; rude patron behavior; etc. I bet the list could go on for many people.

Yesterday, we went to see March of the Penguins. It was highly recommended, and some said we had to see it in the theater for the full-scale effect.

The movie was great–but not overly so. Worth a theater ticket? (and the popcorn I have to get?) I’m not so sure. But each time (and they’ve been few) that I’ve gone to the theater here, I’ve understood more and more the reasons people are not going as often.

I think I’d rather watch things at home where I can control the environment–sure I don’t have a cavernous room with a 30-foot screen and 7-channel Dolby Digital, but…

…It still seems more enjoyable. Probably the next big thing to drag me to the theater will be the next Harry Potter movie. After that, the Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. After that? Who knows…the list gets smaller every year.

I wonder if theaters will become the exception, as DVDs become the rule?

Narnia

At the Star Wars movie the other day, we happened to see the teaser trailer for the upcoming movie: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

The Chronicles of Narnia are perhaps some of the best books I have ever read. I read them as a young child, and reread them again a couple of years ago. They are wonderful stories in their own right, but they are so full of rich symbolism and meaning that they are eminently more enjoyable now.

My wife read the series after me and loved them as much as I did. She had tears in her eyes during the trailer. She wants to see it NOW. (It will be in theaters on December 9)

I hope the movie is a faithful rendering of the book. The creatures and effects are being done by WETA (of LOTR fame), so it will be spectacular in that regard. It’s also being shot in New Zealand. I think it’s a nice coincidence (?), given that Tolkien and Lewis were wonderful friends for much of their lives.

Something fascinating that I learned in biography of C.S. Lewis by A.N. Wilson is that Lewis is credited for pushing Tolkien to finish Lord of the Rings.

I just hope that they eventually decide to do all of the books. The stories are amazing, and the images I see in my head are only possible now with the magic of computers. The children they’ve picked for this movie look solid, too.

We’ve also been very fascinated with Lions as a result of the books.

Star Wars Epsiode III: Revenge of the Sith

Leticia and I went to see this movie this Friday, and we loved it.

Apparently, Spielberg and many others cried during episode 3 of Star Wars. It is a very moving, very sad tale of the demise of the Jedi, and Anakin and Padme in particular.

I’ve read that many people don’t like it. I don’t understand why. I think it’s because of “old fogey” syndrome–a tendency to romanticize the past to be greater than it was, and to denegrate the present as not living up to it. I could be wrong, but that’s how it seems to me.

I loved the fighting, the drama, the music, the introspective scenes, and all the rest. It is easily the best of the current three, and may be as good as the original, IMHO. Although, I didn’t think that Episodes I and II were all that bad either. I think there are fundamental differences in the types of stories that needed to be told, and George Lucas pulled it off pretty well.

People like to complain about Hayden Christensen. I don’t think he’s that bad of an actor: he was exactly what the part required (and very similar to Mark Hammill, it seems). I think the problem is Natalie Portman and Hayden Christensen together: they don’t mesh on-screen at all. Natalie doesn’t seem quite comfortable in the role. However, her final scenes in Episode 3 were absolutely wonderful.

It didn’t make me cry, but it was close. If we didn’t know that it was all going to turn out OK in the end, I think this movie would be even sadder and harder to watch.