The hubby and I strolled out on a warm evening to see the new Mad Max film. Not my usual genre, but I SO loved the original Mad Max movies when I was a 20-something that I had to see the latest installment, and I have a huge crush on Tom Hardy from his days as Heathcliff in "Wuthering Heights", so I was already tempted when we saw that it was playing at the Cinemagic theater. That was the clincher.
The Cinemagic is just one of several wonderful old movie theaters in Portland that show first-run and second-run movies at a discounted price. They also serve DELICIOUS beer and food. I've long-loved the Laurelhurst Theater, the Mission, the Bagdad, and the Academy. And for one thrilling period in my late 20's I worked at Cinemagic!
I remember what a thrill it was to go into the little projectionist cubicle over the theater, how those ENORMOUS projectors and film trays dominated the space, how complicated it was to thread the film onto their never-ending series of wheels and cogs, how the little space smelled: of machine oil and hot film with a little sweat and popcorn thrown in. AND...how exciting it was to, when the time was right, to turn down the house music while at the same time dimming the lights, starting the projector and pushing the button to open the sparkling golden curtain in front of the movie screen. So much fun.
So it is always great to return to Cinemagic and sit in those creaky old seats and watch a movie. And Mad Max did not disappoint! Tom Hardy was hot,(literally hot in that awful wasteland with no water), Charleze Theron was hot, and the action was fast. Great visuals, heart-pounding chase scenes, etc. With a tasty IPA beer in hand in the cool, dark confines of a classic old theater, it really was Cine-MAGIC!
XOXOXO DR
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