Matinee
Oh, to the love of cinema. To the magic of moviegoing experience. To the lost art of the cheap theatrical spectacle of B- movies. This film right here is literally paying homage to cinema itself and i couldn’t help myself but enjoy it.
When someone asks me what cinema means to me, the main reason is escapism. Any film I watch gives me an escapist fantasy feel that makes me lose my sense of reality for however long the runtime is and so when I see those teens have that childhood wonder of experiencing movies in theaters, I can’t help but have genuine nostalgic memories about the general moviegoing culture.
Something about the theaters being the communal emotional space of paranoid people really struck me as something beautiful and should be revered with utmost pride. In the midst of the Cold War, the theater in that coastal town of Florida becomes a key integral part to escaping real-world chaos. Oh! the magic of cinema
Oh! Joe Dante, the director that you are. I’m always drawn to meta cinema as a filmmaking approach for a couple reasons but the main one is that it deepens my emotional connection to cinema and this Matinee made me fall in love with it on a first-time viewing experience. And can someone please make a real feature-length version of MANT!
I also liked the colorful visual style of this film. The color palettes used were impeccable. The warm yellows made the town look alive and vibrant, basically romanticizing a remembered past. Oh the nostalgia and the memories.
One of the most beautiful films I’ve ever watched. The direction was amazing . John Goodman with one of the finest on-screen performances ever. He basically devoured the film performance-wise. The support cast brought a unique charm to the film and made me watch in awe.
Matinee has become one of my favorite films of all time. I’ll rewatch it again soon just to relive the same experience I got from watching it the first time