Lights! Camera! Popcorn!

Back in the day Mark and I got really creative with plans for celebrating the New Year. Our annual date every January 1 became a movie marathon where we’d spend hours on end at the theater to take in five or six showings ... and eat lots of popcorn! The idea fell by the wayside at some point, and we haven’t ventured to the big screen for the long haul in some time. This year, however, we decided to resurrect our brainchild to welcome 2010.

The whole approach is a puzzle of sorts since we first have to figure out what we want to see, when each movie begins, and how long it will last. The tricky part is then stringing them all together so there is no overlap, and making sure that in between shows we don’t end up loitering long in the lobby yet have time to dash to the bathroom. In the past we’ve actually seen several shows at several different theaters; talk about synchronicity! This year, however, we decided to stay put at Celebration! North, also home to an IMAX theater. After a bit of juggling, we came up with a game plan for four movies and dinner at Chili’s. Great way to ring in the New Year, no?

I must first comment on theater ticket prices these days. Holy. Crap. Do people really readily fork over exorbitant amounts for entertainment these days … or have I just become frugal? Since I know all the bells and whistles to renting movies for a song, I now patiently wait until they are available on DVD and watch in the comfort of my own home with the refrigerator at arm’s length. We dropped nearly $75 for two movies at matinee prices, one at the IMAX, and an evening showing! And let’s not even talk about concessions. It’s a good thing we never had children or we would have had to hand over our first, second AND third born just to purchase popcorn and sodas.

So what did we see? Four of the best movies this holiday had to offer: Invictus, Up in the Air, Avatar, and Sherlock Holmes. All were unique, yet equally engaging ... even though we ended up sitting in the front row to see Avatar. In 3D. At the IMAX. That one made me a wee bit woozy. But after the hype of it being 20 years in the making and the most expensive movie ever produced ($300 mill), it was a must do. It did not disappoint, and I highly recommend seeing it no other way. Wait. Correct that … make sure you arrive early enough to nab a seat in the back! And it goes without saying that it wasn’t at all difficult to stare at (read: drool over) George Clooney, Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law displayed on the big screen in living Technicolor. *heavy sigh* I loved all the films and would be really hard pressed to chose a favorite. Nonetheless, I’d have to say that Invictus made the most impact upon me with its blend of entertainment, social message and history lesson.

The movie is named after a poem by William Ernest Henley, a favorite of Nelson Mandela, who was especially motivated by its last two lines. Though written in 1875, the verses are still powerful today and send a message of taking responsibility for one's destiny. Invictus is Latin for “unconquerable” or “undefeatable.” Definitely more food for thought on how to approach 2010. Coincidence or fate?

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Invictus by William Ernest Henley

OUT of the night that covers me,

Black as the Pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance

I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance

My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears

Looms but the Horror of the shade,

And yet the menace of the years

Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments the scroll,

I am the master of my fate;

I am the captain of my soul.