There is a scene in an episode of "Seinfeld" (1990-1998) where Kramer (Michael Richards) runs a movie theater that is showing "Spartacus" (1960).
In response to hearing that, George Costanza (Jason Alexander) asks Kramer “Why would I spend seven dollars to see a movie that I could watch on TV?”
“Well, why go to a fine restaurant when you can just stick something in the microwave,” Kramer fires back. “Why go to the park and fly a kite when you can just pop a pill?”
Yes, it’s true. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981), (it is not called "Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark" regardless of what the front covers of the DVD copies say) has been on cable television so many times over the past three decades that it might make one ask the exact same question grumpy George asks Kramer.
Why go see three-time Oscar winning director Steven Spielberg’s 1981 adventure classic starring Harrison Ford in theaters for a one-week only engagement on IMAX screens beginning Sept. 7 in celebration of the film’s first-time release on Blu-ray Sept. 18 along with "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" (1984) and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" (1989)?
I get into an insulting mood when such negative Nancy's ask that so here, I go.
“It’s because the film’s being shown again after thirty years on the big screen, dummy!”
It’s the same reason why I saw "Citizen Kane" (1941), "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" (1971), "Giant" (1965), "The Godfather" (1972), "The Exorcist" (1973), "Grease" (1978), "Apocalypse Now" (1979) and "The Shining" (1980) on the big screen over the years.
I don’t know if I’ll be able to truly tell the difference between the 81’ print I saw 31 years ago and on cable over the years and the cleaned up digital print of "Raiders of the Lost Ark" whereas Spielberg said on movie talk when the giant boulder rolls down after Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) if I’ll “see it in full size” and will feel it in my stomach.
Those aren’t the things I’ll be looking for when I see it. What I will be looking for and what will most definitely happen during either the early Monday morning or afternoon showing is the feeling of nostalgia.
I got that same feeling when I saw the 1997 special edition of "Star Wars" at Dallas’ Northpark I & II theater which closed in 1998 and was torn down soon after. Seeing that Rebel Blockade Runner being chased in outer space by an immense Star Destroyer in Star Wars brought back memories of the first time I saw the film in August 1977 with my parents. It was what movies are supposed to do – take us into a whole new world for a couple hours – something a majority of today’s motion pictures fail miserably at.
Movie theaters back then were different as well. They were not the 30 screen multiplexes we got today where kids could play arcade games in the lobby. When a major blockbuster such as Raiders was released on June 14, 1981, it was not on 4000 plus screens across the country like 'The Dark Knight Rises' was shown in opening weekend in July. The number of screens Raiders was shown in was 1,078 back then and its opening weekend gross was just over $8 million while the budget was estimated to be $18 million. Compare that to the over inflated budgets of today’s box office bombs ('John Carter', 'Battleship') that fail to draw in the crowds.
Now if someone can just convince producer George Lucas to please drop the “Indiana Jones” from the film’s title and call Spielberg’s movie what it was called 31 years ago when it first came out, "Raiders of the Lost Ark."
©8/20/12
In response to hearing that, George Costanza (Jason Alexander) asks Kramer “Why would I spend seven dollars to see a movie that I could watch on TV?”
“Well, why go to a fine restaurant when you can just stick something in the microwave,” Kramer fires back. “Why go to the park and fly a kite when you can just pop a pill?”
Yes, it’s true. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981), (it is not called "Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark" regardless of what the front covers of the DVD copies say) has been on cable television so many times over the past three decades that it might make one ask the exact same question grumpy George asks Kramer.
Why go see three-time Oscar winning director Steven Spielberg’s 1981 adventure classic starring Harrison Ford in theaters for a one-week only engagement on IMAX screens beginning Sept. 7 in celebration of the film’s first-time release on Blu-ray Sept. 18 along with "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" (1984) and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" (1989)?
I get into an insulting mood when such negative Nancy's ask that so here, I go.
“It’s because the film’s being shown again after thirty years on the big screen, dummy!”
It’s the same reason why I saw "Citizen Kane" (1941), "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" (1971), "Giant" (1965), "The Godfather" (1972), "The Exorcist" (1973), "Grease" (1978), "Apocalypse Now" (1979) and "The Shining" (1980) on the big screen over the years.
I don’t know if I’ll be able to truly tell the difference between the 81’ print I saw 31 years ago and on cable over the years and the cleaned up digital print of "Raiders of the Lost Ark" whereas Spielberg said on movie talk when the giant boulder rolls down after Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) if I’ll “see it in full size” and will feel it in my stomach.
Those aren’t the things I’ll be looking for when I see it. What I will be looking for and what will most definitely happen during either the early Monday morning or afternoon showing is the feeling of nostalgia.
I got that same feeling when I saw the 1997 special edition of "Star Wars" at Dallas’ Northpark I & II theater which closed in 1998 and was torn down soon after. Seeing that Rebel Blockade Runner being chased in outer space by an immense Star Destroyer in Star Wars brought back memories of the first time I saw the film in August 1977 with my parents. It was what movies are supposed to do – take us into a whole new world for a couple hours – something a majority of today’s motion pictures fail miserably at.
Watching Raiders again will remind me of how when the film first came out, videocassette recorders were still in their infancy. Mom and pop video stores were beginning to show up all over town. There was no such place as Blockbuster Video where one might be lucky to get their hands of a major title provided the stores ordered over 100 rental copies.When movies back then were released on VHS videocassette the retail price, if you felt like shelling out your money at that time was $79 bucks for a new copy. Very few titles were released at sell thru. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" was the first VHS title I got as a Christmas present in 1983 from my grandparents along with our first hulking silver Sears VCR that whenever I had to take it in for repairs was so heavy one could get a hernia lifting it.
Movie theaters back then were different as well. They were not the 30 screen multiplexes we got today where kids could play arcade games in the lobby. When a major blockbuster such as Raiders was released on June 14, 1981, it was not on 4000 plus screens across the country like 'The Dark Knight Rises' was shown in opening weekend in July. The number of screens Raiders was shown in was 1,078 back then and its opening weekend gross was just over $8 million while the budget was estimated to be $18 million. Compare that to the over inflated budgets of today’s box office bombs ('John Carter', 'Battleship') that fail to draw in the crowds.
There is something else about seeing 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' again that shows just how much movies since then have changed versus the stuff being churned out by Hollywood today. The films I saw of yesteryear such as 'Airplane' (1980), "Animal House" (1978) and "The Poseidon Adventure" (1972) for example, were all movies I couldn’t wait to see again and often do whenever they are on cable today. The one and only movie I saw more than once in the last ten years at theaters was "Star Trek" (2009).That’s a feeling I just don’t have viewing today’s films. Just the idea that Spielberg is now considering perhaps putting "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" (1977) for IMAX according to Movie Talk only makes me drool at other possibilities of what it would be like to see such oldies I don’t get tired of seeing again like "The Towering Inferno" (1974), the Star Wars trilogy (1977-1983) and NO not the special editions, and even Spielberg’s own "Saving Private Ryan" (1998) shown in the same format. I got hope that maybe as popular as IMAX is getting to releasing old classics like Raiders could be the start of a trend.
Now if someone can just convince producer George Lucas to please drop the “Indiana Jones” from the film’s title and call Spielberg’s movie what it was called 31 years ago when it first came out, "Raiders of the Lost Ark."
©8/20/12
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