Summer Movies Fast Approaching

Just three weeks from the big summer blockbusters and while the rest of the economy is in the toilet, Hollywood ticket sales continue to baffle. Most weekends since the start of '09 have been record setting or record breaking. Who would have thought that Fast and Furious 4 would bring in 70 million dollars domestic? Having not seen ads for the film, I thought they just re-released the first one. Get ready for astounding numbers from summer films as Americans continue to look for escapism.

Summer movies kick off May 1 with Wolverine, but never fear, the weeks leading up to the tentpole films are jammed packed with good entertainment. This week is the first Hannah Montana feature film, not concert film; It should score big. Also Seth Rogan is back in Observe and Report. Next week Russell Crowe stars in the political thriller State of Play and Zac Efron is 17 again. The last weekend in April brings Jamie Fox and Robert Downey JR in the Soloist, probably the most adult/ cerebral movie we're gonna get for a while.

May 1 Wolverine shows up, followed by Star Trek on May 8, followed by the much anticipated Angels and Demons (pre-quel to Davinci Code) on May 15, the memorial day weekend's double play of Terminator Salvation and Night at the Museum 2. May closes out with the first animated summer movie, Up. How can you possibly keep with this much exciting stuff? Never fear, Cinema Showdown is here!

Cheap places to see movies
Who can afford $10/ ticket plus another 14 for popcorn and drinks. You're topping $35 for a date night. Factor in babysitter and gas money and this night out is almost unaffordable- almost.
We hardly ever see night movies anymore. First of all the crowds are impossible and have no respect for other audience members, secondly it's just too darned expensive. The Traders wait for Saturday or Sunday morning and catch the shows for $5. The other great thing about that is as good as it might smell, 10:30am is just too early for popcorn. Theatres that serve real food have the best deals. The AMC Fork and Spoon in the Tower Shopping Center and the Movie Tavern on LaVista offer $5 movies until 5pm. The first showing is around noon because they do sell food and make their money off burgers and pizza. The Movie Tavern has deals on Saturday morning for family films, $10 gets you a movie and all you can eat pancakes. AMC theatres have an early bird special Fri-Sun and holidays $6 for a film before noon.

Our favorite deal is the Starlight Drive in. Seven dollars per person, kids 3-9 are a buck, babies are free, and you get a double feature. Best of all the drive in is an experience. Come early, bring a grill and cook out. Bring your own beverages of any kind, though they frown upon glass bottles. Bring a playpen and stick the little ones in it. BYO anything, except pets. The drive in experience has greatly improved since we've been going. Just about everyone is nice, and if you run out of ketchup, need napkins etc, ask a neighbor. It's a communal thing, and it's very unique and loads of fun. Especially if you are hosting a birthday party or slumber party, a buck for a first run film and a pizza goes a long way to happy kids.
The Drive in is on Moreland ave, south of I-20. Come early, or you'll wait a long time to get in. Bring blankets and pillows and enjoy 2 first run films. Come willing to meet new folks and you'll have a grand experience. Bring cash, they do have an ATM, but it goes faster if you bring cash. A little warning, the bathrooms tend to run out of supplies after the first film. BYOTP is not a bad idea.
And please be courteous and clean up after yourself.

We know many communities and churchs have family movie nights. Please let us know if you know of any of those. Our goal this summer is get you the best in dirt cheap or free entertainment! Be sure to catch our radio show on Radio Sandy Springs 1620 am, streaming live on Thursday nights at 7 and you can download podcasts on radiosandysprings.com.