Family Film Day

I’m at the last Family Film Day at the Regal Cinema enjoying the peace and quiet of the movies. Of course anyone who has been to a family film day knows that is not the least bit true. I think more theaters ought to get in on the action of having free family films at 10AM on Wednesdays during the summer. Then people young and old alike can go to watch some newer children’s films and some old favorites.

Right now I am waiting to watch The Muppets Take Manhattan. I’m sure that I saw it in the theater when I was a child, I just don’t remember it. Sometimes it is a joy to go to the theater and watch a favorite movie with a group. I may find the film amusing, but it is so much better to watch children rocking and singing along to ‘I’m Gonna Always Love You’ with Baby Miss Piggy. At times the movie seems tedious for the kids, but they really get into the musical numbers especially the one with the rats which I have just realized has no words to it, just scat. Huh, I like the visuals so much I never noticed that there were no words to that song before.

Of course the noise level in the theater is a little high but that is to be expected when the majority of the audience is less than three feet tall. Perhaps that is why I like it, for once I feel tall in a sea of little kids. Again, I probably look like some weirdo sitting here by myself with no munchkins in sight and only my notebook to keep me company. But such is the life of a film reviewer.

A family film day is good business for the theater too. I don’t see a lot of teens buying concessions since they probably blew all of their money on the ticket, but here at family day I see lots of parents with drinks and popcorn for the little ones. The theater doesn’t even need a full staff; since the movie is free there is no ticket counter. Thus all of the staff can focus on revenue producing concession stand activities and not waste time on distributor paying admissions. Licensing is minimal since all of the movies they are showing are third run or later films. They have two theaters going so they can offer either a G or a PG movie which appeals to a wider age group of children.

The PG movie is Elf which I am tempted to go to since I haven’t seen it, but the spell of Muppets on the big screen in one of their classic outings is not to be missed. After all, I have seen a Muppet Christmas Carol, and Muppet Treasure Island, and Muppets in Space and I know that none of them have the magic, the songs and dances, the charm of the first three Muppet Movies. Perhaps it is because Jim Henson is no longer at the helm, or perhaps it is because Frank Oz is no longer associated with the Muppet productions, whatever, the Muppet universe seems to have lost its way of late and seeing The Muppets Take Manhattan is my way of revisiting the Muppets of old.

Of course the most important achievement of these morning family movies is that they are introducing an entirely new generation to the movie going experience. This is ever more important with the entertainment landscape littered with so many options. Once there were only books, radio, and movies to entertain, the golden age of Hollywood. Now there is television, cable television, books, movies, radio, the Internet, and game systems to contend with the movie industry needs to try harder to get out the message that there is no comparison to going to the movies. Especially when it will probably cost twenty dollars or more a film by the time these kids are old enough to go to the movies themselves. Of course there is cross marketing, the kids were glued to the NBC cartoon advertisements before the film, so the benefit is spread around a bit. Now if I can only avoid all of the coughing and the kiddie germs.