I grew up in a small town in Northern Ireland and have lived my whole live in some part of the UK, so the idea of a Drive In movie theatre is one that does not have a place in my life. With that said, it is remarkable that the images and idea of one can strike such a sense of nostalgia and "good old days" in me – which says more about the influence of American culture on the rest of the world, but for those in the film it is a real experience and a real part of "America" as they see it. The film doesn't really explore the roots of this, with the fusing of movies and cars – two very big aspects of the white picket fence nostalgic view of real America, but that it doesn't explore this is not an issue because this is a film that is more about nostalgia than it is about anything else.
In doing this it could have been cloying, or false, or just sentimental over a fantasy, but where the film manages to avoid all this is that it makes it very much about the people. Roger in particular is a kindly old grandfather of a man, and this comes across in his love of his work and his theatre; likewise Sharon, Joyce, Michael and others all come over as interesting characters and the film makes it easy to like them. It is hard to describe but the film itself manages to capture and deliver the sense of gentle simplicity that also generally serves as the base of nostalgia – so it sort of justifies it, or gives it flesh by the way it makes it clear that perhaps it is not all some old idea that is no longer practical. The warmth of the people and their relaxed manner in front of the camera is part of this, but so are the simple images – the bold colors, the families in simple clothes enjoying themselves as units, it all works together well.
There is some material in the film about the challenge of updating to digital or going out of business, and there is a film to be seen on that subject, however here the film draws you in with the warmth of the current situation, the nostalgia of the base ideas, making it a warm and personable short film.
In doing this it could have been cloying, or false, or just sentimental over a fantasy, but where the film manages to avoid all this is that it makes it very much about the people. Roger in particular is a kindly old grandfather of a man, and this comes across in his love of his work and his theatre; likewise Sharon, Joyce, Michael and others all come over as interesting characters and the film makes it easy to like them. It is hard to describe but the film itself manages to capture and deliver the sense of gentle simplicity that also generally serves as the base of nostalgia – so it sort of justifies it, or gives it flesh by the way it makes it clear that perhaps it is not all some old idea that is no longer practical. The warmth of the people and their relaxed manner in front of the camera is part of this, but so are the simple images – the bold colors, the families in simple clothes enjoying themselves as units, it all works together well.
There is some material in the film about the challenge of updating to digital or going out of business, and there is a film to be seen on that subject, however here the film draws you in with the warmth of the current situation, the nostalgia of the base ideas, making it a warm and personable short film.