I honestly don’t know if they were around before this or not, but I clearly remember the very first time I went to a midnight screening. It was for the most anticipated movie of my life…. Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. I was so pumped about seeing this movie that I drove thousands of miles from the city I was living in at the time (Saskatoon Saskatchewan) to go back to my home town (The Toronto area) so I could watch the movie at my favorite theater. Yes… I really am that big of a Star Wars geek.
Now keep in mind… I had never been to a midnight screening before, so I remember wondering if going was a good idea. I mean… this was the NEW STAR WARS MOVIE!!!! Did I want to risk being sleepy while seeing it for the first time? Was I going to be a zombie walking out of the theater?
Needless to say I was fine, and since I had taken time off work to go back to Ontario, it’s not like I had to work the next day, so it all worked out just fine (except for the movie itself that is).
Soon, a few other “big” film started opening on Thursday night at midnight… not many but a couple here and there. There was still a big novelty about it. When a movie would have a opening midnight screening, it gave it a sense of being an “event”. It was a big deal. This must be a special movie… cause it’s opening at midnight (at least that’s the impression they wanted you to have).
Gradually, more and more “bigger” films started catching on to this too. It got to the point that if even a remotely big film was opening, you’d just assume there was a Thursday midnight screening.
But the other week I went out to catch the midnight screening of “District 9”. I didn’t even check to see if it was playing or not, I just knew it would be. But what was surprising was that when I got to the theater, I noticed that EVERY SINGLE MOVIE OPENING THAT WEEKEND was having a midnight screening. ALL OF THEM.
– District 9
– The Time Traveler’s Wife
– The Goods; Live Hard, Sell Hard
– Bandslam
Yes… even BANDSLAM had a midnight opening. So basically, every film out there will have a midnight screening (not at every theater… but somewhere).
It’s now just a part of my Thursday ritual. I just assume that on Thursday night at midnight, I’ll be going to the theater… to see… something.
Personally, I like the midnight screenings for a couple of reasons:
1) It’s a convenient time. Think about it… I don’t generally have too much going on at midnight on a Thursday.
2) Unless it’s a major release, the theaters aren’t very full. Oh sure, still have to go an hour early to get a seat for Transformers 2, but most films aren’t anywhere near full.
3) Even if I DON’T go do the midnight show, it lessens the crowd a little bit for Friday. Using the Transformers 2 analogy, since soooo many people went to see it at the midnight show, that means a little less craziness for those of us who saw it on Friday (still insane… just a little less insane than it would have been).
4) It frees up my weekend more (since there is one less movie to see).
Obviously there is a major drawback about midnight screenings for most people… it’s a work/school night, and getting home at 2-3am when you’ve got to get up in 4 hours isn’t very appealing.
But what about you? How do you feel about midnight screenings? Do you remember the first one you went to? What are your pros and cons? Do you see just BIG films at them… or even smaller ones?
