With a little bit of nostalgia and a big helping of quality picture and sound, the favorite movies of the past are coming to life again on the big screen.
Flashback Cinema is the latest addition to Portage 16 IMAX's long line up of movies currently being shown. Now in addition to your normal summer fare, legendary movies from yesterday will be making appearances every week.
"As a company, we are always open to finding new ways to bring the enjoyment of movies to our patrons," says Portage 16 IMAX Manager Kevin Morgan. "Flashback Cinema is not a new idea, as many times we and other theater chains have offered older features again on the big screen either through a re-release from Hollywood or a local program of some type. The difference this time is the consistency. Flashback Cinema is designed to be a continual program showing a “classic” feature every Sunday and Wednesday at 2 PM and 7 PM."
Some of the classic features expected to show up on the big screen include favorites such as Clue and Ghostbusters. While features are scheduled six weeks at a time, the possibilities for other blasts from the past are still there.
"Flashback Cinema is meant to be a continuing program. We will schedule the features six weeks at a time. We are partnered with a group that is choosing the films and creating the advertising to get the word out about them," says Morgan. "As a fan, I am excited about what features may be coming down the line. I had the opportunity to speak with the people in charge of the films and I put a bug in his ear for a few titles I want to see on the big screen. I am hopeful that Die Hard and Jaws both make the list at some point. I was too young to see either of those in the theater and the big screen experience for those would be great."
While the allure of seeing these old classics on a big screen and with state-of-the-art sound may sound like it appeals only to film fanatics, Morgan stresses that moviegoers of all ages can enjoy what is being offered.
"Flashback Cinema will have a different appeal to different types of moviegoers. There will certainly be the retro fans that just love the movie and watch them anytime and anyway they can," says Morgan. "There will also be first-timers experiencing the movie as a new experience. There will be parents bringing their kids and kids bringing their parents. The one thing they all have in common will be a love of the big screen experience. Even if you have seen a movie a hundred times, it always looks bigger, sounds better, and is more fun with others."
And in the end, that's the reason we end up watching movies or in the case of these movies here, re-watching them. It's the experience of cheering for your favorite heroes, wincing when the villains you love to hate enter the screen. It's every kiss, every punch and every joke that gets shown on screen, imprinted in our minds and remembered as a cinematic legend. It's thrilling and it's fun, something that translates across ages, diversities, and genres.
"Each of these films strikes a chord in the culture. They have the staying power that so many movies do not. I don’t know if anybody can truly say why one movie hits that mark while others fade away, but I believe the experience of how you saw it the first time is what makes the difference," says Morgan. "An average movie can be elevated quickly when the experience grows beyond the theater through word of mouth, quoting your favorite lines, and those little inside jokes with your friends. These movies have proven themselves to do that."
- October 15 & 18 - Clue
- October 22 & 23 - Ghostbusters
- Ocotber 29 & November 1 - The Shining
- November 12 & 15 - Back to the Future Part II
- November 19 & 22 - Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone
- November 26 & 29 - Home Alone
- December 3 & 6 - White Christmas
- December 10 & 13 - The Polar Express
- December 17 & 20 - Elf
- December 24 & 27 - It's A Wonderful Life
- December 31 & January 3 - Die Hard
Click the title of the movie to purchase tickets.