Movie Time

So I decided to give myself a treat and go see a movie and I chose to see Hitch at a nearby mall. The tickets cost about the same for a matinee as they would in Woo and the soda and popcorn....way cheaper. I got a medium sprite and popcorn for about $2. Very nice. The movie theater I went to has been around for ages and they offer regular seating or balcony seats for a slightly higher fraction. The problem with the latter seats is that they built them way too high so you feel like you're watching from above rather than directly at the screen, a problem I encountered the last time I was here and watched Gladiator. "On my signal, unleash Hell." Obsessed with that movie to this day.

Anyway, when you buy your ticket at the window, they actually have a seating chart in front of you that they mark, so you can see what's open and what's not. They also have "love seats" for couples, I'm assuming it's seats that don't have the arms in between. So I was assigned my seat, very nice, dead center and not many people around. When you walk in, the place is really dark, such that an usher has to lead you to your seat with a flashlight. Once seated, I looked around, the chairs are very nice and comfortable, the place is spotlessly clean and you won't find gum stuck under your seats or encounter a sticky floor as they wipe the place down after each show. The pre-movie music is the same fare of modern hits, some country (lol) and loads of oldies. Then the screen comes to life and it's a picture of the Kenyan flag waving proudly in the wind and suddenly the national anthem starts. All around me people stood up, I hastily dropped my popcorn and stood as well, trying hard not to smile as I gauged the situation. I didn't know they still did that. I vaguely recall that happening when I saw my big picture, E.T. but I didn't know it was still practised. As soon as it was over, the usher continued to show people to their seats while conversations picked up from where they were dropped. I sat down, still smiling hard and trying not to look like an idiot. It just struck me as incredibly hilarious. Anthems at games, events, yes, at the movies? Slightly strange, no?

So the curtain goes up and the screen jumps right into a preview of Mr. & Mrs. Smith (pause: I'm drooling over Mr. Smith) then 10 other previews follow afterwards. The movie was supposed to start at 1.10 and it did indeed, just the previews anyway, whew no dreaded commercials. At about 1.30, the previews changed to oh no, commercials. Nothing like "Hot Bod!", mostly advertising for pharmacies and LG electronics. The commericals end when the screen is launched into yet another set of previews, 5 this time around. By now I had made a serious dent in the popcorn I'd bought and realized I was out when my fingers scraped the bottom....all before the movie started which it did, at 1.50 p.m. Know I know why so many people were coming in late. Ah well, I'll still get there early to get good seat and the AC is a welcome relief after the humidity and heat that's enveloped this place.
Laters!