My all-time favorite movie experience was when I when I was taking a film class in Paris during June 2005. The syllabus was rigorous and the class met 2-3 times a day to watch movies at theaters around Paris. We saw everything from Old Hollywood Westerns to the newest French flick. After awhile, I couldn't keep track of what the next feature presentation was going to be and I would show up, take my seat, and let myself be surprised.
Most of the theaters we visited were tiny, single screen theaters. There was no concession stands (except you could always buy a coffee from the ticket seller!) and no lobbies. As my favorite food is popcorn, I begin to deeply miss the mega-plexes of the US. Finally one afternoon, I showed up at the address of the theater listed on my syllabus and I was delighted to see a giant concession stand selling Popcorn!!!! I bought the extra large size for myself, took my seat in the theater, and chomped loudly on the buttery goodness in my lap.
Unfortunately, the movie turned out to be a silent film, with a live accompanist improvising a score on a grand piano. And not just any silent film; it was Battleship Potemkin. Battleship Potemkin is a 1925 Russian film depicting the oppression of czarist Russia. In one poignant scene, civilians are massacred by the government. And here I am crunching on my popcorn. But I couldn't help it! After almost a month popcorn-free, I wasn't going to let manners prevent my indulgence!
After the movie, a French man turned around and ranted at me about my noisy chewing. I asked "English?" in reply, and he stomped off in a huff. I understood him just fine, and so did my professor and classmates. We burst out laughing and finished off my popcorn together. It was a great ending to a great movie!
I want to hear about your favorite movie viewing experience. What memory stands out in your mind?
By the way, MPR recently did an hour-long program on this very subject. To listen, you can download the podcast here: http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2009/09/25/midmorning2/
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You seem to go to much more interesting movie theatres than I do. When I go to movies my fellow movie goers always seem to be sitting there half dead. Sure there might be group laughter but not gasps or cheers.
ReplyDeleteI think my most memorable movie experience was when I saw Open Season here in Crookston with my boyfriend at the time. The theater wasn't particularly full and most of the other patrons were small children accompanied by adults. One scene in the movie the deer gets hit by a truck and I thought the expression on his face was so hilarious I burst out laughing... very boisterously... no one else laughed. Through out the film I probably laughed harder and louder than anyone else in the theater. Since I was also almost 20 years older than 80% of the group I would laugh at things 4 year olds just don't find funny... The BF was very embarassed by the end of the film.