Jabcat Goes To The Movies

Jabcat owned a VCR once, but that was fleeting, a brief moment in time during which the machine (VHS) was rarely used and quickly dumped. Currently there is no, repeat no, DVD player or DVR in his home (e.g. no TiVo). Why? Is he a Luddite? Hardly. Jabcat is technologically savvy, writes a blog and gets excited every time a new gadget hits the market. But he eschews these particular devices (not to mention PPV and VOD) because he loves going to the movies. He loves the smell of popcorn and the rush of excitement when the lights go down. He salivates at the sharp giant screen and crisp booming sound. The enticing previews and excited crowd send him into a tizzy. The way people talk about the film when they’re shuffling down the aisles and heading to their cars gives him warm fuzzies, day or night.

I’m not saying Jabcat never watches movies on TV. If his eyeballs catch an interesting film title when scrolling through the onscreen menu, or his overactive finger freezes on a film fave or meant to see while zipping through the channels, he’ll stop, take a peek, maybe settle down and spend the next 90 minutes on the couch. Nothing wrong with that.

But he prefers the big screen. Don’t we all? He has no need to wait for the DVD release or TV rights. Even if a movie is released day-and-date (or close thereto) for viewing elsewhere, Jabcat doesn’t care. He wants the real thing. So he gleefully pops off the couch when showtime nears, hauls his butt through the door and braves the real world (until his butt is planted on a plush chair and the lights go down). 

I know what you’re thinking. It’s fine to love going to the movies. Do it as often as you want. But what if Jabcat misses a film he really wants to see? Or yearns to see a film again, to watch it on the small screen as many times as he likes? These are legitimate concerns, and it’s understandable why other people, busy with their lives, concerned with ticket prices, wanting a movie library of their own, give in.

Jabcat is a different breed. Even though he sometimes fails to see a new release that interests him because his life is busy, or has concerns about the cost, he makes do. To be perfectly honest, on rare occasion, when a film is truly great or touches him deeply, he’s been known to break down and buy the DVD. But his small collection of golden discs perch sadly on a shelf, unopened, still wrapped in their original cellophane. I guess they’re waiting for the day Jabcat sells out and buys a DVD player. 

Don’t hold your breath. If Jabcat wants to see a movie more than once, he finds time and hurries back to the theater before they swap it out. If he misses a film, or craves another viewing, he waits patiently and rejoices when it’s on TV. Redbox and Netflix tug at him, but he resists. They are merely substitutes, after all, lesser Gods that might tempt him on a cold or rainy night to stay home when he could be doing what he really loves. Going to the movies.

Tagged as: Film, Movies