OPINION: Triple threat

In my first column, I talked about how in high school I would spend my weekend going to the movies, watching three movies in a single day sometimes. I haven’t participated in an extended theater binge like that since high school, until last weekend.

On a decision made before I went to bed at 2 a.m., I decided to relive a pre-pandemic part of my life. I set a schedule for three action movies that would benefit best from the big screen and drifted off for the night.

Bright and early Saturday morning, I set out at 8:30 a.m. to the Cinemark theater up in Jordan Creek Mall. I love supporting the local theaters, but for a binge, a theater with 20 screens would be the best choice.

With $8 matinee tickets and recliner seats, it’s a place that truly is a hub for the magic of movies. Screenings start as early as 9:30 a.m. and as late as 11 p.m., you could easily watch five movies in a row if you could stay alive the whole way through. I’m sure spending upward of 15 hours in a movie marathon wouldn’t be appealing to most, but I’m weird and couldn’t imagine a better time.

It’s cheaper for me because I go to the movies alone and don’t typically buy concessions. Going to the matinees also gives a decent cut of the ticket price, along with Cinemark’s version of a monthly subscription which waives the online ticket fees and gives you a monthly free ticket, which I used that day on the one full price ticket in the evening. I love the movies, but I’ll at least try to be frugal.

The first movie was “The Fall Guy.” The big screen ended up being the best choice, especially with how fun “The Fall Guy” ended up being.

A stuntman has to navigate the increasingly hostile underbelly of a film set while trying to reconnect with a lost love, who happens to be the director. It’s chaotic, filled with action, and leans away from the romantic part of the movie but importantly doesn’t forget it.

Yes, there’s the main draw of the movie with mind-blowing action set pieces, but there’s a heart to the movie that elevates everything around it. Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt perform miracles to keep the emotional core afloat to its spectacular ending.

As a love letter to the technical parts of filmmaking, “The Fall Guy” succeeds, especially in regards to its stunt work. Director David Leitch has been doing stunt work since 1997, knowing exactly how to make the action work effectively and still leave room for fun. I may be hasty in saying it’s my favorite movie of the year so far, but it’s certainly the best big-budget Hollywood film so far. If every studio were this willing to let loose, I couldn’t be pulled out of the theater.

After a 30-minute break, I was back in the theater for “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.” Another excellent movie, although this one felt more like a sure bet. It’s nothing against the movie, but “Mad Max: Fury Road” was phenomenal back in 2015, I had no reason to think “Furiosa” would be different.

What I really appreciated was the theater environment. “Mad Max” has always loved cars and engines, it’s kind of the point of the franchise. So imagine how exciting it is to feel the audio systems in that theater working overtime to establish a vibrating rumble through the audience, a revving engine that gave life to the entire movie.

I enjoyed “Furiosa” more than “Fury Road,” which I wasn’t expecting. The scale of the movie draws you in, watching Furiosa, a girl kidnapped into the apocalyptic wasteland, slowly grow into a road warrior. The edge of “Mad Max” has always been about the world, dirty and rabid for resources, and the slower pace allows for the dynamics to breath quite effectively.

After that, I went out for dinner with my parents, and then returned for the last movie of the evening, “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.” I talked about the modern trilogy before, and while I did enjoy this new entry, I do wish it lived up to the quality of the previous three.

Perhaps I was tuckered out from watching three action films in a row and needed some more variety, but I’m confident in saying that I don’t think my opinion would have changed much. I do hope that if “Planet of the Apes” were to continue it would be in self-contained episodes similar to “Kingdom,” although I’m sure simply creating a new trilogy would be the studio’s current intentions.

I made it through the day and arrived home at 11 p.m., exhausted. I don’t know if I have the mental fortitude to do something like that again, especially if the movies were poor in quality. The marathon is mentally taxing rather than physically, although not moving your muscles for so long will still feel draining.

What sticks in my mind is knowing that my love for the theater is still there. Even today, I’m wondering if I could squeeze a trip this weekend, although certainly not for more than two. It got me interested in local theaters as I skim weekend listings for something exciting.

The summer box office is reportedly off to a rough start with most movies underperforming, I’d argue due to the current economy and shifts in how most people are consuming movies. However, the magic of the theater feels more alive than ever to me as the best way to watch movies. It’s true now and it’ll be true forever.