I just saw Rescue Dawn last week, great film! Refreshingly excellent departure from all the recycled mainstream crap. But dang I wish I knew it was going to the National, would’ve waited to see it there!
For anyone who hasn’t seen it I HIGHLY recommend it, and it’s actually a perfect film for the National. The sad thing is that when the occasional rare GOOD movie does actually make it’s way into a theatre (usually in limited arthouse release) nobody goes to see it. Did Paris, je t'aime (another excellent film) bring in loads of business? I doubt it

Roadshow posted Jul 25: “Too bad the Royal projectionist didn’t know how to handle a roadshow. I remember him opening the curtains onto a blank screen for the overture and entracte.”

Well the Royal Theatre is operated by management, because the projectionist is on a Limited Service type of contract. So modern theatre automation is set-up to lower the lights and open the curtain once the start button or timer is pushed. The Royal Theatre contract had them watching over the Royal and the Monica 4 and management ran the shows.

yeah, too bad the Royal projectionist didn’t know how to handle a roadshow. I remember him opening the curtains onto a blank screen for the overture and entracte.

I’m not much younger than you, but if my budget allowed I would schlep over to the National at Midnight (on public transportation yet) to see something I really liked…

but it seems pretty clear that the owner is only allowing it to stay open until he finalizes plans to demolish it. If it closed there would be another outcry, another online petition, etc.
this way people figure its fine, then it could suddenly close and be demolished within a week

Alan’s right. I don’t visit this site everyday (sometimes even every week) and I didn’t know about the Exorcist shows until they were over. It was announced Wednesday for shows happening on Friday and Saturday. It was almost like the showtimes were set up and someone just expected other people to do the work and spread the word.

And regardless of the showtime, the rules still stay the same… you have to show the right films. Trainspotting and Fight Club are great films, but they aren’t the right film’s to get people into Westwood on a Friday Midnight. I mean, Repo Man might be a great midnight movie, but not for the National. Leave that for the Nuart.

So, here’s my Monday morning quarterback suggestions.
1) Set up a website, even if it’s just a single page with the schedule of what’s playing now and what’s scheduled to play. If nothing else, it gives other sites something to direct people to (and I have to imagine, if you were showing a cool film, sites like aintitcoolnews and various other sites and forums would be willing to link to a main schedule page). I don’t check out cinema treasures everyday, but I do often check the Arclight and Cinemateque websites. If The National had a page, I’d bookmark it.

2- Figure out the online ticketing thing. The Crest can do it and The National should too. It’s very easy, when it’s 11PM on Friday night, to blow off a midnight show that you were previously gung-ho about. If I had the ability to buy tickets when my enthusiasm is greater, I’m likely to. And it’s not at all convenient to drive down to Westwood to pick up my tickets ahead of time, so online means more sales, earlier.

3- Remember, The National’s heyday was the late 70s and 80s, so remember that when you’re programming the films. Pulp Fiction is a great film to see in a theater, but not right up front. You need to build awareness and (I think) that’s by playing films that play to The National’s huge presentation and history. Play to its nostalgia and grandeur, because that what those of us that are here are interested in. The list I provided is missing many great films from the 70s and 80s, but that’s because I don’t think they’ll cause the kind of excitement you want The National to provide. The Breakfast Club is an awesome movie, but it wouldn’t do much for me to see it at The National. Conversely, A View to a Kill is not necessarily a great Bond movie, but it would be so much fun to see that at The National. If you want to show The Breakfast Club (or Trainspotting), I would wait until you’ve had some success and there’s more of a built up audience aware of the shows and coming back to the theater on a continuous basis.

4- Like Alan said, have a plan. Like I suggested, pick films that you can help along at first. Do a Batman/Superman style comics festival and advertise it (more than just a few days before the first shows) at comic book stores frequented by the very same people likely to be excited about such shows.

5- As an addendum to #3, don’t expect the college to make midnight shows successful. They vanish every summer and they’re not going to be as dependable overall as hardcore movie fans from all over Los Angeles and the Valley. Whenever I go to a movie at The Village or the Bruin, the audience is not made up of students, even during the school year.

6- Don’t feel compelled to play by the rules. As I stated earlier, if there’s nothing first run of value to play during regular showtimes, then you couldn’t do any worse to throw in some revival shows in between other bookings. If you’re only selling 50 tickets a show to something like Sicko, is 50 tickets to a showing of Top Gun more or less profitable?

I hope this isn’t a blame game but, yes, I agree that we who talk so much about wanting midnight shows are to blame if we didn’t show up and support them (which I had not as of yet but was planning to several times in the upcoming weeks.) I honestly wasn’t sure the whole thing was real (not being able to see any word of it in the paper or on the marquee) until it was too late to catch the Exorcist.

But, truth be told, while we could all vow to spread the word as much as possible (and I have and will continue to do so), the truth is that there aren’t anywhere NEAR enough people on this list to make this a money-making venture for the theater! The showings NEED to be listed in the papers, preferably as far ahead of time as possible and flyers at trendy spots and places where film enthusiasts might be would be a big help. I bet a lot of businesses in Westwood would post signs or give out flyers in exchange for some free admissions or some free return advertising. We used to do those sort of cross promotions at the U.A. Westwood all the time!

I hope it isn’t really too late but my advice would be to form a game plan before jumping back in. Come up with a strategy for getting the word out BEFORE you start running the films again! Also, as has been said, take advantage of the National’s uniqueness as one of the last single house movie palaces and book films that will really show the National off to it’s best advantage! Big spectacle movies are what suits the National and sci-fi and fantasy films always tend to have a loyal following. Any CHANCE of getting any of the Star Wars or Indiana Jones films in there? With proper advertising, those would definitely sell out!

Best wishes,

Alan

Mark Campbell,

I know everything you don’t and more about the National in regards to it’s status as of now.

I think your comments were right on target, Cliff. The National’s advantage over all the other screens that do revivial is that it is a theater WORTHY of playing big spectacle films! “The Exorcist” was a great choice but almost nobody knew it was playing!

I was surprised on your list, Cliff, that you didn’t put Terminator and Terminator 2 back to back, an obvious choice and a rare example of a great movie with a sequel that is, in many ways, even better.

My only question for you, Cliff, is – Howard the Duck has a large following? Really? I can’t remember the last time I heard anyone mention that film with anything other than contempt! Personally, while I never thought it was a great film, I never thought it was AS bad as it’s reputation made it out to be. But I haven’t seen it in 20 years! Labrynth was a much more satisfying Lucasfilm that year.

Speaking of films with bad reputations, are there any other Ishtar fans out there? I’ve never understood the rep this film got! It’s hilarious! I’ve had the opportunity to let both Warren Beatty and Dustin Hoffman know that I love the film. Beatty was appreciative but I think Hoffman thought I was making fun of him. Damn, I want an Ishtar soundtrack album!

Best wishes,

Alan

I was happy to see midnight shows were happening at the National, but to be honest, I didn’t think the film selection was the greatest for that time period. While I would love to see Goodfellas or Pulp Fiction on that huge screen, my first reaction when seeing that list was, “Gee, some of those are kind of long for midnight and don’t seem to have that WOW, gotta get out at midnight!” vibe. Snatch and Fight Club are great films, but relatively speaking, they feel so recent that they lack that event feeling that you need to get you out at midnight for a show at the National. I was actually putting together a suggestion list for them that I thought might generate more interest from the kinds of people most inclined to brave the drive to Westwood at midnight. Even though it seems useless now, here’s a handful of my suggestions.

First, following Roadshow’s lead you create themes for some of the shows, while also offering more than one offering to entice people to go for more than a single midnight show, such as…
Have a mini comic book festival and show:
Friday – Superman: The Movie
Saturday – Superman II
the following weekend
Friday – Batman
Saturday – Batman Returns
(you could probably even have taken a flyer for this program to the Secret Stash a few blocks away and sold out or majorly filled your shows.)

With Live Free or Die Hard in theaters right now:
Friday – Die Hard
Saturday – Die Hard II

Do actor themed features:
Friday – Terminator 2
Saturday – Predator

These are the kinds of showings that would get me out of the house two nights in a row to see a movie (like I did a few weeks ago when the Aero showed double features of Poltergeist & Creepshow, and Tron (70mm) & Star Trek II).

I also asked my wife what kinds of movies would get her out of the house to see a midnight show and she agreed that it had to be something big and something old enough to possibly not have seen theatrically initially or that you just want to see again in a theater. Ultimately, I would say you don’t want to have a midnight show of anything newer than 1997.

Here is a partial list of movies I would have been first in line to see at the National:
Die Hard
Predator
The Indiana Jones Trilogy
The Star Trek Series (especially the original crew films)
The Star Wars Trilogy (a tough one to book, but it’s a dream list)
Lethal Weapon 1&2
Batman and Batman Returns
The Abyss
The James Bond Films (up until Goldeneye)
The Rambo Trilogy (especially with a 4th coming)
The Goonies
The Back to the Future Trilogy
Superman 1 & 2
Howard the Duck (an odd choice, but one that has a sizable following who has never seen it in a theater)
Ghostbusters
Gremlins
Poltergeist
The Thing
The Dark Crystal
Krull
Brainstorm
The Road Warrior
Top Gun
The Untouchables
Speed
Under Siege
Cliffhanger
Conan The Barbarian
Blue Thunder
Commando
Big Trouble in Little China
Alien, Aliens, & Alien 3
Clash of the Titans
The Lost Boys
Silverado
Roadhouse
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
The Black Hole
Dragonslayer
Blade Runner
Willow
Jaws (and maybe even Jaws II)
A 3D festival (Jaws 3D, Friday 3D, Spacehunter 3D)
The Last Starfighter
Total Recall
The Muppet Movie
1941
Streets of Fire
The Rocketeer

The point of the above list is that there’s some spectacle to be had in a lot of these titles. You can’t program the National like the Nuart or the Rialto. The National has something none of those other theaters have… it’s the National! You’re not just selling the movie, what you’re really selling is the spectacle surrounding it. Spirited Away is an amazing film, but it’s not going to make me rush right out, cash in hand. I want to see something I haven’t seen in a theater in 20 years, or better yet something I haven’t seen in a theater at all. What I want most of all, is to go into the theater and, for two hours, feel like I’ve entered a time warp and I’m 11 years old again. When I saw Poltergeist a few week back, that’s exact how it felt and it was amazing. I’d pay over and over to get to re experience that. I also disagree with those that said you shouldn’t program similar to other the other midnight shows, I think the National should be programmed appropriately for that screen. That’s the selling point.
Two last points:
– I also think that special prints (70mm) are one of the keys to success. It may be a pain in the ass, but this would also raise the visibility of what the National shows beyond just another set of “Midnight Movies."
and
– I don’t think the National should be afraid to play around with their programming format. When The Dome ran a restored print of Scarface a few years back as a special engagement, they actually had to hold it over because it was so popular. The El Capitan has had success with some of their revival programs as well. If a movie like Sicko is dropping off in attendance and you don’t have anything promising to play, try a week long engagement of a 70MM print of Close Encounters. You might find that it’s more profitable over the course of the week. Just don’t be afraid to think outside the box with The National. It’s already at a disadvantage as an independent theater, but that is something that can actually be used to it’s advantage. I don’t care what I see at the National, as long as I get to keep seeing stuff there.

It’s too late now.

Is there a theater or theaters showing classic films? Is there a website or thread that tells you which movies are playing?

We had a good series of midnight shows at the Cineplex Odeon Theatre , afew years before Mann took the theatre over. We had Apocalyse Now, Altered States, Alien, Aliens, Deliverance, just to name a few in 70MM on Sunday at midnight. We had very good turn outs on many of the features that ran. On the 35mm features I would add a Warner Bros. cartoon plus a few trailers of coming attractions. I had a great time doing those runs in the booth. After that the Plaza Theatre ran midnights like we did. And the manager of the Cineplex Fairfax Theatre ran Sunday morning early classics shows. We would have the test runs late Saturday night around midnight for friends.
When we did the shows at the Odeon Westwood, we had flyers made up and placed them at Tower Records and many other places for the type of patrons we thought would be interested in it. It cost alot to put these shows together. (cost of rental of film, shipping of prints, labor, electricity for the building, pubicity for the event, etc…)

for moviesoundlover: yes, the dome has that— for any other questions about that theatre, you might want to move over to this thread: /theaters/33/

and i have confirmation that the midnight movies are cancelled effective today. i am so bummed! since i’ve lived in westwood (2002) there’s never been a theatre to program classic films. it’s a shame too just because i hadn’t seen it publicized anywhere! the only places to see midnight films now are the nuart and regency fairfax on fridays and the rialto, new bev, and sunset 5 on saturdays.

I’m also a lover of clean powerful distortion free bass! Would you say the Cinerama Dome has that?