Reopening cinemas

BY NESTOR CUARTERO

JUST A THOUGHT: Happiness is the best cosmetic. – Karen Duffy

MOVIEHOUSES BACK: Are movie houses back in operation?

I keep on reading posts on Fa­cebook that our colleague, Mell Navarro, has been en­joying himself watching movies at SM Marilao in Bulacan.

Only a small number of people are being ad­mitted, says Mell.

According to SM vice-president for communi­cation Millie Dizon, cin­emas in MGCQ areas are now open.

At the other end of town, at SM Mall of Asia, movies are being screened ev­ery now and then at its open-air concert grounds. I hear a similar drive-in theater operates in SM Clark

Premiered in MOA recently was Peninsula, sequel to the world­wide thriller hit, “Train to Busan.”

DRIVE-IN THEATER: Showing films in an open-air setting calls to mind America’s drive-in the­ater. It was a popular entertain­ment fare among young people in the 1940s, 50s and 60s.

Teenagers would go on Sat­urday night dates by checking in to a drive-in theater. There would be stalls on the side where they could buy soda, hotdog and popcorn.

They would choose designated parking for their cars from where they could watch the movie. A large outdoor movie screen stood in the middle of the parking lot.

At its peak, it is said that there were as many as 4,000 drive-in the­aters across the US in the late 1950s.

New trends in en­tertainment, like the emergence of cine­plex, home theater, digitalization, social media, among oth­ers, killed the drive-in concept in watching movies.

FIFTY PER CENT ONLY: When are movie houses going to open formally in the country?

While no confirmation is yet in sight, Liza Diño, FDCP chair, says she will, however, call on the pub­lic to follow strictly government protocols against COVID-19.