# What old movies would you pay to see in a theater? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 7, 2013, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648 "2013-02-07T23:08:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/41 "2013-02-08T17:51:12Z")
> [@Tara57](#): > > Ten or fifteen years ago, I saw wonderful classic movies at the Alabama Theatre. That’s where I saw _The Godfather_ when it was first released in the Spring of '72. Beautiful theater! ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/42 "2013-02-08T17:57:29Z")
I don’t really consider having truly seen a film until I’ve seen it on the big screen, and while the number of films made before my birth that I’ve seen in a theater numbers in the hundreds, there are still plenty I’d love to catch. So really, unless I think the movie sucks, there really isn’t any I wouldn’t pay to see. For me, the OP’s question is just…strange. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/43 "2013-02-08T18:15:46Z")
> [@Mooch](#): > > If I ever come into incredible amounts of money I will open up a small theater that only shows older movies I want to show. And beer. And if you do open that theater, I would prefer if you didn’t gussy it up and make it pretty with plush seats and gold trim on the ceiling. I would far prefer the old theaters of small towns, with the crappy wooden seats, the cement floor, the mono speaker and the sound of the film running through the projector in the background! Also, be sure to show the really cool trailers of other films of that particular era…I particularly liked the ones that had text splashed into the previews, with that rather shrill, excited voice of the announcer saying things like, “Never before seen on the big screen!” and “Not for those with a weak heart - doctors will be in the lobby!” and “With a cast of thousands!”. Many of those trailers were far, far better than the original films! ---
**Author:** ![PapSett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@PapSett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PapSett)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/44 "2013-02-08T18:28:05Z")
> [@Lasciel](#): > > Never happen in a million years, but I would give up organs to see Star Wars (before it was ANH) on the big screen. > Just for shits and giggles? Jurassic Park. Get ready for shits & giggles then, because they are re-releasing Jurassic Park i 3D, this spring I think. I CANNOT WAIT!!! ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/45 "2013-02-08T18:43:16Z")
Just a few miles from my house there was the “RetroDome,” one of those ugly dome movie theaters that was made into an old movie showcase. They just closed up shop after four years. Unfortunately, I only made it there for _The Goonies_. I brain-farted away a chance to see _Jurassic Park_ again (I saw it 11 times on its first run). They’re looking for a new place, so when they open back up I have to make it there more often. I saw lots of movies listed here on their marquee, like _Raiders_, but not _Lawrence_. For that, there’s the Stanford Theater, a few blocks from where I work in Palo Alto. They only show movies made before 1961 (give or take). I see lines around the block for some showings. Right now they’re doing a Hitchcock retrospective. Just recently I saw _Sleeping Beauty_ at the Walt Disney Family Museum. Their sceen isn’t gigantic, but Eyvind Earl’s artwork was still spectacular. ---
**Author:** ![Mrs.Cake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/2acd7d/32.png) [@Mrs.Cake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrs.Cake)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/46 "2013-02-08T18:49:30Z")
I’ve been fortunate enough to see a lot of old movies at revival theaters, but ones I would love to catch and never have are the Ealing comedies with Alec Guinness, and “Arsenic and Old Lace”. I would also love to see _20,000 Leagues Under the Sea_ on a huge theater screen again. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/47 "2013-02-08T20:07:52Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Raiders of the Lost Ark You guys missed your shot at Raiders less then 6 months ago. It was released on IMAX for one week last September nationwide in about 300 theatres. [(see here)](http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Raiders-Lost-Ark-IMAX-Run-Extended-32974.html). ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/48 "2013-02-08T20:11:17Z")
> [@Lasciel](#): > > Just for shits and giggles? Jurassic Park. Go see it in 3D IMAX [in about 60 days](http://www.slashfilm.com/jurassic-park-3d-re-release-gets-one-week-only-imax-engagement/). ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/49 "2013-02-08T20:13:23Z")
I’d take my father to see Avatar, just for the 3D experience he’s never had. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/50 "2013-02-08T20:51:14Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > Just a few miles from my house there was the “RetroDome,” one of those ugly dome movie theaters that was made into an old movie showcase. They just closed up shop after four years. Unfortunately, I only made it there for _The Goonies_. I brain-farted away a chance to see _Jurassic Park_ again (I saw it 11 times on its first run). > They’re looking for a new place, so when they open back up I have to make it there more often. I was very sad to see the RetroDome go. I kept telling myself I wanted to go see a movie there (like when they did the singalong “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” but never got around to it. And now they’re gone. I hope they find new digs soon. As for me: \*Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory Jurassic Park Star Wars \*(the original) \*Raiders of the Lost Ark One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest \* ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/51 "2013-02-08T21:14:45Z")
I just popped onto the Sunshine Landmark theatre’s page here. The midnight movie for this weekend? _ **The Godfather** _. :eek: I guess watching a classic until 3 am is one way to deal with Snowpocalypse… ---
**Author:** ![FrankJBN](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f0a364/32.png) [@FrankJBN](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FrankJBN)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/52 "2013-02-08T21:40:00Z")
I’ve visited the Stooge Museum outside of Philadelphia where they have a small theater. (like the size of a rich guys private viewing room maybe) One of the big thrills for me was seeing the B&W shorts on the semi-big screen. I had seen the last incarnation of the 3 Stooges on movie screens as a child, but never classic trio in their [comparative] youth. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/53 "2013-02-08T22:03:15Z")
So many movies I’d love to see on the big screen, whether its again or for the first time … virtually all of the ones I watch on TCM and AMC when I’m in Canada. In Moscow, there’s a cinema near the Kremlin called the _Illuzion_, and old word for a cinema. They have a huge collection of old English- and German-language films, mostly brought back after WWII. When I was here as a student, I spent many an evening at the _Illuzion_ watching Orson Welles, Charles Boyer, Ingrid Bergman, Leslie Howard, et al. on the big screen. In 1990, they showed _Casablanca_ at the _Rossiya_, touted at one time as the world’s largest cinema (I believe it’s now a multiplex). I went to see it with my Russian friends, and was completely blown away: the screen was fucking HUGE, and I was able to appreciate the beauty of the cinematography like I never had before. The black-and-white images positively glowed, showing me once and for all why they called it “the silver screen.” You simply can’t watch a movie in a theater the same way as you do on television. Not long ago, I watched _It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World_ on TMC with my teenaged daughter. She loved the movie, but all I could think about was sitting in the cinema with my dad and brother back in 1963, seeing the movie for the first time on a wide screen in brilliant color. It almost breaks my heart that she’ll probably never be able to watch it (or many other films) the same way as I did. One final thought: the movie I would like to see most in a packed cinema right now is _Wait Until Dark_ with Audrey Hepburn and (_shudder!_) Alan Arkin. If you’ve seen the film, you know why. ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/54 "2013-02-08T22:43:42Z")
[Bruce Crawford](http://www.omahafilmevent.com/bcrawford.htm) brings classic films to Omaha twice a year and screens them for charity. We have seen West Side Story, Jaws, The Godfather, Animal House, It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad ,Mad World and American Graffiti on the big screen for twenty bucks a ticket. Bruce gives us a pretty good value for the money. He always has actors from the films as guest speakers, and he has raised a lot of money for local charities. ---
**Author:** ![carlb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carlb/32/5930_2.png) [@carlb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlb)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/55 "2013-02-08T23:31:05Z")
This thread made me go check out the Music Box’s web site, and February 15-28 is a [70mm Festival](http://www.musicboxtheatre.com/collections/music-box-theatre-70mm-festival). The movies to be shown are: [ul] [li]_Vertigo_[/li][li]_2001: A Space Odyssey_[/li][li]_Chitty Chitty Bang Bang_[/li][li]_Lord Jim_[/li][li]_Lifeforce_[/li][li]_Playtime_[/li][li]_The Master_[/li][li]_West Side Story_[/li][li]_Hamlet_ (the Kenneth Branagh version)[/li][/ul] and I won’t be in Chicago then. Grrr… But, seriously, any Doper film buffs ought to get their tickets now. It’s a great theater. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/56 "2013-02-09T00:41:18Z")
Oh jeez, how could I forget? The second best old movie in the theatre experience? The Third Man in Vienna. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648/57 "2013-02-09T00:55:53Z")
> [@carlb](#): > > This thread made me go check out the Music Box’s web site, and February 15-28 is a [70mm Festival](http://www.musicboxtheatre.com/collections/music-box-theatre-70mm-festival). The movies to be shown are: > [ul] > [li]_Vertigo_[/li][li]_2001: A Space Odyssey_[/li][li]_Chitty Chitty Bang Bang_[/li][li]_Lord Jim_[/li][li]_Lifeforce_[/li][li]_Playtime_[/li][li]_The Master_[/li][li]_West Side Story_[/li][li]_Hamlet_ (the Kenneth Branagh version)[/li][/ul] > and I won’t be in Chicago then. Grrr… > > But, seriously, any Doper film buffs ought to get their tickets now. It’s a great theater. I’m in the city too, and I heartily agree — and I thank you for posting this and letting me know. Last year at the Music Box, I saw several screenings in the Chaplin Festival, including one of my all-time faves, **City Lights**. What a great moviegoing experience. Also saw the original **Alien** at the same theater. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-old-movies-would-you-pay-to-see-in-a-theater/649648.md?page=2)