Money's tight and the news is unrelentingly grim. But! There is a big, blank, whitish wall in my house. The university that employs me makes LCD projectors available for checkout from the library. And Netflix recently launched a beta test of its Watch Instantly platform for Mac users. All of which is to say I've been busy creating a home cinematheque,* and not a moment too soon.
Readers might recall that the only theater in town shut down abruptly in mid-August when the national chain that ran the space opted to pull out. But it didn't own the building. Which is why there's a rally that will close downtown this Friday afternoon meant to save the wee three-screen theater. I love living in a town that'll shut down the streets for cinema, but the pessimistic part of me fears the site will be razed and more bullshit condos erected in its place. Thus, the retreat to the de facto bunker. But I'll keep you posted about the state of the seventh art here.
*OK, fine. I've mostly burned through the first season of 30 Rock so far. I may have a touch of the cinema anxiety that's going around. Plus, those 21-minute episodes are addictive.
