Featuring: “Gone with the Wind” and “To Kill a Mocking Bird”
Written By: Mike Felder
Trash and popcorn strewn about, uncomfortable seats, sticky floors, and worse of all the nasty smells! These were movie theaters as I remember them when I was a kid. It has been years since I have graced the presence of a retail chain of movie theaters. With time things do change, and I was delighted with a new environment backdropped by an all-time classic film. Thanks to Turner Classic Movies we now have something called Fathom Events! Allowing us to experience films the way our parents and even grandparents once experienced them. Being my second time at a Fathom Event allowed me the chance to compare experiences.
Thinking back to when I was a kid, movie theaters were something of a joke. The floors were a disaster! All kinds of trash all over, empty candy boxes, popcorn bags, half full drink cups spewing and leaking out. Of course, the floors were so sticky it took you a little over two weeks to walk off all the gunk on the bottom of your shoes. You would find just about any way to wear it off sooner, but it never worked. You just went around and stuck to just about every floor, everywhere. The popcorn and all the rest of the snacks were so damn expensive. Tickets were just as expensive, that by the time you were done with a movie at the theater, you could have bought a decent meal out for two. Not even mentioning the seats were so uncomfortable that you darted straight up and made a b-line for the door as soon as the credits started to roll. God help any person left behind in the chaos we call a crowd. With these kinds of experiences, it was no wonder why it has been years since I have been in a retail chain theater.
Following bad experiences as a kid and having no film ambition in my late teens and very, very, early twenties, lead to a prolonged absence from the theater in general. After a friend got me interested in films, I started to visit indie movie theaters. Even from there I saw new releases. They were a much cleaner version of the theaters I knew as a kid. Thank God, they didn’t have those same nasty smell’s either. Fast forward to today and for the second time in a month, I have gone to retail chain that is featuring a certain event. I am completely blown away with how amazing the theater is presented!
For the first time in a very long time, on the last day of February of this year I stepped into a retail chain theater for an event film. I was knocked back. Being accompanied by a companion, she showed me what chain theaters looked like now. I still couldn’t believe it. When you enter the theater the smell of popcorn hits you, and it is mouthwatering. You can’t help but get yourself some popcorn. Although it is still kind of pricy. In the theater there were lounge chairs, that had push button foot recliners. Half of the seats in the theater had been reduced so that these recliners could be brought in. The new recliners were much wider than the old seats I remember, as well as much taller backs. Once you have yourself seated and situated, you start to get this feeling of being in a private screening room. It definitely is a very stark difference from my previous experience as a child. These same experiences and feelings were with me tonight at ironically the same theater the last event was at. The most wonderful part about this whole thing is that the event is put on by Turner Classic Movie and they call it Fathom Events!
Turner Classic Movies has partnered with participating theaters to bring you classic films on the big screen one more time. I am sure it is different in other cities. You may not even be anywhere near a participating theater. But if you are, then you should check out the schedule and make the effort to go see at least one. Fathom Events allows movie goers to experience films that their parents and grandparents enjoyed and experienced. Seeing a movie on the big screen, whether it’s the first time or it’s just one of your favorites, is something no one ever forgets. So far, I have seen a far-reaching crowd of quite a few younger people and of course a crowd of people ranging from all ages at both Fathom Events I have attended. Thanks to Fathom Events I have been able to see two great classic films back to back. The first on Feb 28th, featuring “Gone with the Wind” and then just this evening March 28th, featuring “To Kill a Mocking Bird”. Giving me an opportunity to compare events.
Both events were equally as enjoyable as the other. The only difference being the seat selection and the film of course. With “Gone with the Wind” our seats were more towards the front and it made it more difficult to watch the movie because we were right on top of the screen. However, with “To Kill a Mocking Bird” my girlfriend and I’s seat was farther back and much more enjoyable to watch. The lounge chairs made the viewing so comfortable that it was exactly like I said, feels like a private screening room. The crowd had different faces but the same style and mix. Again, at both events there seemed to be an awful lot of younger people. Which makes me happy because if we turn out younger people and get them to attend these events, they will continue to offer classics on the big screen! And that is something I would love to see.
From a turned off experience as a child to now is a miraculous transition I must say. I am glad it took me as long as it did to step foot back into a commercial theater. If I had stepped back in to one maybe even three years ago, I may have never wanted to set foot in one again. But thanks to my girlfriend and Fathom Events and TCM I have come across a whole new experience and appreciation for commercial theaters. Being able to experience events back to back let me see what to expect at other events. It seems these events will be inviting, comfortable, and above all fun! Being able to see both these classic films on the big screen has giving me a chance to experience something my grandmother has. Now I have something to talk to her about when I visit her next. As a suggestion to anyone who has the chance to attend one of these events. Go! Because I sure am. They can expect me for many more of these!
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