So I finally got around to seeing KILL BILL VOLUME 2 last night. I've been so hella busy lately (I know, it's the 34th time I've used that excuse) that it's been hard trying to get out and see anything. Honestly, I can count on one hand the number of films I've seen theatrically since 2004 began, and it's killing me. Most nights during the week I work a second job, so the only time I have to run errands is on the weekends. And on top of that, weekends have been pretty booked too, and if they're not, I generally just want to take the opportunity to veg out and play some old 8-bit NES games.
But back to the subject, I went to see the film at Atlanta's very own Plaza Theater on Ponce De Leon Ave. The Plaza is a really old theater stuck in the middle of a strip mall. It only has two theaters, one of which seems like an afterthought, shoved upstairs in a cramped room. But lately, it's where I've seen most of the movies that have come out lately. Now, a couple of years ago, the Plaza was Midtown's bastion for piddly little art films. Want a stuffly little French drama? Go to the Plaza! Well, that's not the case as much anymore. Within the last year or so, the old Midtown Regal theater where I saw such blockbuster popcorn flicks like MINORITY REPORT, SPIDER-MAN, and TERMINATOR 3 on opening night has been sold to a theater company called Landmark. Landmark quickly promoted itself as the "Midtown Art Cinema", but was still showing stuff like DELIVER US FROM EVA and THE HULK. But after a facelift and a few months later, it really is an arthouse theater. But it isn't just some hole-in-the-wall theater with two screens, it's an honest-to-goodness 8-screen mini-multiplex that plays documentaries and European comedies and has had THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE in rotation for like six months now. But as a result, it's cornered the market on art films in the northeastern side of the city. So the Plaza has reverted to playing more mainstream fare such as STARSKY AND HUTCH and ELF. Other theaters that leaned toward the artsy side, like The Tara Theater on Cheshire Bridge, have also started moving toward the mainstream side of things. But still, the Plaza and Tara have tended to avoid the big-time popcorn flicks for the most part. Nowadays, when I want to really see a big piece of fluff, I have to drive to the suburbs like Decatur or Norcross (or worse yet, hit one of the theaters in Buckhead.) Definitely interesting to watch the demographics switch around so much.
And on another note, the last film I saw at the Plaza before last night was THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, almost two months ago. Problem is they still managed to play the same trailers they did at that time last night. This gets a little ridiculous when you see some of the things they're advertising as "Coming Attractions." I mean, isn't SECRET WINDOW well on its way to DVD by now?