Going Attractions: The Definitive Story of the American Drive-in Movie (2013)

Once a vibrant part of American culture, drive-ins reached their peak in the late 50s with almost 5,000 dotting the nation. Although drive-ins are experiencing a resurgence, today less than... See full summary »

Director:

April Wright

Writer:

April Wright

Stars:

Charles Bruss, Riley Cooke, Roger Corman

Cast

Credited cast:
Charles Bruss	...	Himself - Drive-In Historian and Preservationist
Riley Cooke	...	Himself - Amusement Park Drive-In, MT
Roger Corman	...	Himself
Dennis Cozzalio	...	Himself - S. California Drive-In Movie Society
Bob Deutsch	...	Himself - Outdoor Movies
Matt Dillon	...	(archive footage)
Barry Floyd	...	Himself - Stardust Drive-In, TN
Barb Frankhouser	...	Herself - Super 322 Drive-In, PA
Bill Frankhouser	...	Himself - Super 322 Drive-In, PA
Paul Geissinger	...	Himself - Shankweiler's Drive-In, PA
Patricia King Hanson	...	Herself
Richard M. Hollingshead III	...	Himself - Son of the Inventor of the Drive-In
David Hudzik	...	Himself - Garden Drive-In, PA
Jennifer Sherer Janisch	...	Herself - Co-founder of drive-ins.com
Sam Kirkland	...	Himself - Sky Vue Drive-In, TX

Storyline

Once a vibrant part of American culture, drive-ins reached their peak in the late 50s with almost 5,000 dotting the nation. Although drive-ins are experiencing a resurgence, today less than 400 remain. In a nation that loves cars and movies, why haven't they survived?

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Plot Keywords:

car | outside | nostalgia | teenager | entertainment | 

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Taglines:

In a country that loves cars and movies, why haven't they survived?

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Genres:

Documentary | Family | History | News

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 June 2013 (USA)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

85 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director April Wright visited 49 states (all but Alaska) to make the film and visited almost 500 open, abandoned or former sites of drive-ins.

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Connections

Featured in Cake (2014)

User Reviews

"And now...on with the show!'

The birth, the boom, the death and the (slow-building) rebirth of the drive-in movie theater, chronicled in this fun, if thin and low-keyed documentary from writer-producer-director April Wright. Outdoor theaters began to crop up in the U.S. in 1933, but it was in post-WWII America that Hollywood and the automobile made for the perfect marriage. In the 1950s, teenagers used the drive-in as a good excuse for getting out of the house with their friends, while in the late '70s many screens were turning to X-rated titles to turn a profit (which, along with many other factors, is credited here with killing the drive-in, if temporarily). Communities are shown turning out for the new era of the drive-in experience, while owners and aficionados wax poetic about the days of loading the kids in the car and seeing a double feature for a dollar on a Friday night. Entertaining memories and an avalanche of photographs (which go by at too-fast a clip, some too fuzzy to see and some repeated) make the happy/sad history of the drive-in theater a nostalgic journey, particularly for those who were around at their peak. **1/2 from ****