In our little town, there's quite a bit of cultural activity, and no shortage of things to do, so this is not meant as a gratuitous swipe at semi-rural life, but the movie theatres, to coin a phrase, suck. I'm sure that there is a population base around here to support an "artsy" theatre, showing challenging or foriegn films, but this doesn't seem to be the opinion of our local theatre owners. There are a grand total of two theatres within a reasonable driving distance, neither of which is really worth the trip. The one in town is nice enough as a building, but the sound system is rank awful (one tinny MONO speaker behind a ragged and smeary screen) and they seem physically incapable of projecting a film in focus. The alternative, however, is a small "multiplex" one twon over that, while technically competent, seems physically incapable of showing a good film. Each week, they seem to pick the five worst films in general circulation and show them to cinema's bread and butter target audience: 15-year-old local boys.
Which is why I try to get to Vancouver (six hours drive away) every few months to go on a binge of first run movies. In the past week, I've managed to catch "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest", "A Prairie Home Companion", "Superman Returns (IMAX version)" and "V for Vendetta". A good, hearty helping of summer movie, methinks. I'll be back next time with reviews, but reflecting on it now, maybe it's a good thing that our theatres have lost me as an audience member. Summer movies are, after all, junk food, the kind best enjoyed as a binge.
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