I actually grew up going to this theater, before it was owned by the strip mall king, mr. Pollack (peep his sweet photo at the theater's web site). It wasn't always a discount theater, but has been since I was in middle school (movies were $1; 50 cents on Tuesday - I keep mistakenly calling this a "dollar theater" to this day).
I hadn't been to the theater in some time, but did recall its incredible arcade selection - Mike Tyson's Punch Out? Yeah! GNR Pinball ? Say what!? Anyway, some of the games have been taken out, apparently to make room for the creepy life-size renditions of movie stars like the Blues Bros. and Johnny Depp's pirate version. I came to know this information when I heard about them playing Can't Buy Me Love (that's right, the 80's movie with a geeky Patrick Dempsey) for FREE on a Wed night. A quick stop at the Vine right down the street for a shot and a beer and we were ready.
We arrived and the service was quick and friendly, the sound was fine, the air conditioning was pumping and we had a great time. I'm returning tonight for a cheap date with the BF. Hooray cheap movies!
Reminders:
CASH ONLY - there's an ATM inside at least, but I'm sure it charges an arm and a leg and then some.
KIDS EVERYWHERE - when you have five kids, I understand that you can't exactly take them out to the movies very often, or at all - hell, I get pissed spending $10 on a ticket just for myself - and so a discount theater is sure to be a wonderful thing to a parent. But it sucks for me. I would think twice before seeing a kid-oriented movie here, esp. in the summer or on the weekend.
YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR - Naturally, it's a little messy and the carpet's stained, but come on, you're saving like $7 in ticket fees and another $5-10 in concession prices, so I look the other way when stepping over that spilled 84-ounce soda that no one seems in a hurry to clean up, or the not-so-piping-hot popcorn, or the paper towel ridden bathrooms.