Filed under: News, Reviews, Contests | Tags: Carrie Rollwagen, Christian Bale, John Dillinger, Johnny Depp, movie review, Public Enemies
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MOVIE REVIEW :: BY CARRIE ROLLWAGEN
This weekend I went to the theater (Carmike Cinemas, at The Summit) to see Public Enemies. I liked the movie a lot … unsurprisingly. With Johnny Depp and Christian Bale, I kind of expected to. In addition to really hot men, Public Enemies had beautiful costumes and sets, plus a plot that kept me interested for over two hours.
The movie chronicles the career of bank robber John Dillinger and his gang of thieves as they pillaged banks across America during the Depression. Among other things (like whiskey, round sunglasses and a girl named Billie), Dillinger loved going to the movies, and theaters factor prominently in the film.
I’m guessing Dillinger was attracted to movies for the same reason I am. It’s hard to beat the escapism of a dark, pleasantly chilly room, snacks, and a good story told by great looking actors. I like watching movies at home from Netflix, too, but going to the theater is just a totally different experience.
Or, at least, it should be. It seems like there’s been a general decline in the movie-going experience. Credit card machines are abysmally slow (I guess to give those talking Fandango puppet bags a reason to exist) and it inexplicably takes ten minutes to scoop popcorn into a bag and press a button for Coke. Once inside the theater, temperatures are getting warmer, and we’re expected to watch as many Sprite commercials as previews.
I’m probably a die-hard moviegoer, but I doubt many people are, not when a ticket and snacks cost more than $20 and the inside of the theater feels a lot like the living room. Maybe high prices made sense when going to a theater was the only way to see a movie, but now we can wait just a couple of months and buy the DVD for that same price (actually, probably cheaper).
Maybe it takes so much money to run a theater that prices have to be that high, and the service can’t improve. Or maybe theater owners are robbing us, just like Dillinger robbed those banks (okay, not just like—they don’t use guns, and they don’t look as great in a suit). Either way, it seems to me that movie theaters are going the way of the fedora and falling out of fashion. For my sake, I hope I’m wrong.
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Some New Trend 
Agreed and Agreed. I saw Public Enemies this past weekend and definitely give it two thumbs up. I especially melted for the fabulously cheesy dialogue. It was pretty much everything a gangster movie should be.
And I’m also all about the movie theater, but you’re right, the rising prices and excessive commercials (though I live for trailers) is making it exceedingly difficult for me to convince friends that it’s worthwhile. I’d even go if the selection is crap, even at the risk of adding to the list of “embarrassing movies I’ve paid to see.” That’s right, I paid to see I-Robot.
Comment by Krista July 7, 2009 @ 11:58 pmI’ve just created a post on my blog http://dougbond.wordpress.com regarding which Johnny Depp movie’s are people’s favorite’s. I loved “Public Enemies”, but it was hardly his best movie…actually, I tend to think that some of the least seen movie’s he’s made are perhap’s some of his best…”The Libertine” come’s to mind. In any case, let me know what you think and if at all possible, post some link’s on my blog to some interesting Johnny Depp info…alway’s a fan of JD! Thank’s! :)
Comment by Omnesion July 12, 2009 @ 3:35 pm