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Midnight movies are not for everyone. It is that strange breed of young,
urban hipster who frequents all-night diners and indie movie houses who
enjoys a good midnight movie the most. Midnight movies are typically not
mainstream blockbusters, unless you're seeing the special first showing of
the latest Harry Potter flick. Nor are they the indie films that are played
at smaller theaters. Midnight movies are the movies that came out ten or
twenty, even thirty or forty years ago and have since gained a cult
following. This following consists of people who have seen the movie so many
times that they know the plot and many of the lines by heart. These people
are not only willing to see the movie again, but they're also willing to pay
$8 if it's on the big screen. That's where The Clay Theatre's midnight
movie series comes into the picture.
The Clay has been playing midnight movies for years. They are all cult
classics and they all draw the same kind of crowd, varying only in numbers.
This year they have shown such classics as "Pulp Fiction,"
"The Goonies," "Harold and Maude," "The Princess
Bride," and "Rushmore." In the past such titles as "Army
of Darkness," "The Warriors," and "Dazed and Confused"
have been among their eclectic assortment of well-loved films. Sometimes
there is a long line outside of the theater, as there was for "Army of
Darkness" and this mostly depends on how many devoted cult members the
movie can attract, not necessarily on the actual merit of the film.
Fortunately, there is always parking around at that time of night which is a
good thing considering how infrequent Muni tends to get in the wee hours of
the morning.
Although the movies they play are almost always guaranteed to be good,
the best thing about seeing midnight movies at the Clay is the weird crowd
and the activities that the theater plans for the pre-show on Saturday
nights. The same guy goes up on stage every Saturday night during the series
and talks about the series and has everyone cheer if it's their first time
there, and then has everyone cheer if they've been there before. Then he asks
for volunteers and the games begin. Another guy who works at the theater
invariably comes up on stage at some point to be a part of the games. For
example, before "Harold and Maude" the second guy came up on stage
dressed as an old woman and the theme of the games was to "seduce
grandma" (the themes are usually related to the movie that they will be
showing). The games then consisted of several tasks that the competitors must
complete with eliminations after each task. In this case there were four
competitors. The first task was to retrieve a large piece of cardboard on
which was written "Viagra" which was supposed to represent Viagra,
from the back of the theater. The second task was to chug two bottles of
"Ensure" and the final task was to give "grandma" a
lapdance. All in all it was very amusing to watch, but you have to wonder why
people put themselves through that kind of humiliation willingly.
So, in conclusion, midnight movies are not just about seeing your
favorite movies on the big screen, although that remains the major allure of
them. They are also about the weird sense of community you get from crowding
into a theater at the witching hour with a bunch of hip, urban youngsters
with the same taste in movies as yours: culty.
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