On Saturday we went to the movies for the first time in awhile. To give you an idea of how many months it has been, the last movie we saw in a theatre was The Incredibles.
About a month or two ago the local theatre mailed us some discount coupons to advertise that they had finished remodeling. There were two for a complimentary popcorn, one for a large Pepsi for the price of a junior, and a fourth coupon for discount admission ($5.50 each instead of the $6.75 (ridiculous) they now charge at matinees (and this isn’t even the “expensive” Sony theatre!!)). I put the tickets aside on the off chance we got in the mood to see a movie. Good thing I did, because I doubt we would have gone otherwise.
The theatre had begun to look really worn and was in desperate need of a remodel, but we hadn’t really noticed it so much until we saw all the nice changes they had made. All the marquees were digital, there were two additional ticket stations added, the walls were repainted, and the carpeting was replaced. In addition, they moved all the drink dispensers out from behind the concession stand so people could get their own, plus get free refills, and they added a nice little cafe area outside the arcade.
I was pleasantly surprised by the whole experience. Even the complimentary popcorn was much larger than I had expected. The theatre wasn’t very crowded since it was the first showing of the day and the movie had been out for awhile, so there were no annoying people to ruin the experience.
In fact, the worst part of the experience was the actual movie: Fever Pitch. I had high hopes since I like both Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore, but I just wasn’t sensing any chemistry between the two. I turned to Joe at one point in the movie and whispered, “I can’t help but feel that this would have been much better if Adam Sandler had the male lead”. I guess after seeing him and Drew paired up in The Wedding Singer and 50 First Dates, it felt to me like they belonged together.
Despite the enjoyable experience, I don’t think we’ll be back to the movies again for awhile unless they send more coupons. I still can’t believe they want almost $7 a person for a matinee. Although we might have to fork over the cash if we want to see the last Stars Wars movie this year.