Towering Inferno, Last Emperor, and Death of a Cyclist

Day 290: Towering Inferno, Last Emperor, and Death of a Cyclist

I never win anything. At least, that's the story I tell myself. Then, 18 months ago, I had the good fortune to be the 10,000th person to "like" the Michigan Theater on Facebook. Not only did they extend my membership for a year, they also gave me a Michigan Theater reusable grocery bag with three artsy films in it on DVD: Towering Inferno, Last Emperor, and Death of a Cyclist.

Like many gifts, this was wonderfully exciting in the moment, but then I began to realize that the likelihood of my ever watching these DVDs was slim to none. Virtually every movie that isn't copyrighted can be watched for free. With a little time and effort, even new movies can be watched for free, if you're willing to wait for interlibrary loans. Or, for $4, I can stream anything without waiting. I have absolute control over my movie-watching pleasure, and I love movies.

We had a little taste of the bad old t.v. days in our condo on Captiva: no DVD player, so we just watched the movies that were on t.v. Home Alone and It's a Wonderful Life, two holiday classics, take three hours to watch when they deliver six minutes of commercials (at elevated volumes) every 14 minutes. Remember?

There's some sentimental value to being forced to watch the same things year after year. My family watched The Wizard of Oz each year without fail. The commercials made it a little less scary, but it was still pretty scary. My father would break up the tension by putting on a pair of fuzzy slippers and singing "Oh-Ee-Oh" at the top of his lungs, just like the Wicked Witch's flying monkeys, except for the farting noises. The Grinch, Frosty, and Charlie Brown all have a place in my heart.

But on balance, what we pay for Netflix streaming is well worth $7.99. No doubt, without commercial-free streaming, I would never accomplish my goal of watching every single Star Trek episode and movie ever made. And that's worth a lot, don't you think?

Movie-watching is a cornerstone of my marriage. We have been seeing a free movie on the first Monday or Thursday of the month at the Michigan Theater ever since the kids were old enough to leave at home. It's a built-in date night, and it means we get to see movies we might not ordinarily choose. Every Friday, we stream a movie at home and eat pizza. Up until just a few years ago, this was a sacrosanct family ritual. Now it's just me and Rich.

Today is my little brother's birthday. I hope he loves movies as much as I do, because I wrapped up these Michigan Theater prize DVDs and gave them to him. Karl has the right idea for birthday giving: each year, a single trade paperback, thoughtfully selected. Thanks to him, we've read and enjoyed everything from Moneyball to The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. I don't believe that Karl has Netflix streaming, so hopefully he'll get more use out of them than I would. I know he loves independent movies.

Happy watching, brother.