Hundreds of theaters showed the latest over-priced holiday movie, Red One. This was not one of them.
The Cinemark Century Riverside 12 in downtown Reno showed its last movies this past November 14. The movie chain had announced a while ago it would end its lease at North Sierra Street after losing customers to its two other Cinemark theaters. The appeal of watching a movie near the Truckee River just faded after more than 20 years.
Here are some pictures, like the schedule of the last set of showings:
a sign for a movie that is never coming:
a sign of what is not to come...
and of course, the final ticket...
There wasn't a massive number of customers hoping to get one last look at the theater. Maybe it's because hardly anyone knew about it. The website barely mentioned it but certainly said one theater was going to get improvements including an XD screen. There should have been more publicity before the big closing night.
I've been there more often than the other two Cinemarks, only because it's closer to my house. If there are any special memories about the place, there was the time I saw a special Rifftrax showing the height of COVID. There have been some "accidental" private screenings, but the biggest was when a sneak preview got cancelled because the movie file was damaged. Got two free tickets I still haven't used.
At least it's good news for the Galaxy theater near the Nugget (also a former Cinemark theater) in downtown Sparks. It has some advantages including premium screens along with beer and wine. The Cinemark in Reno was old-fashioned as far as offerings were concerned. Another Cinemark two miles away has beer and wine plus self-serve soda. The writing was on the screen.
Hopefully someone will bring back movies to downtown Reno. The city needs more investment in downtown, and maybe another Galaxy or even AMC will help the area. It'll be a long time, though.
The Mystery Science Theater Live tour is underway, and stopped off at the Pioneer Center in Reno recently. It presented a movie that was made out of leftover bits from every Spielberg movie, while the newest Mad tried to show she was supreme.
Someone was supreme: the new "victim", Emily Marsh. She is more than a match for MegaSynthia's schemes and is probably more of a heir apparent to the experiment than Jonah. She clearly knows the show and how to riff even the cheesiest movies. As we told her in this post, she is the Kate Bishop of MST. Was she pleased? VERY!
I will say one thing: fans should know not all stops in the live tour are the same. They're saving the "meet and greets" for the bigger cities, and not everyone who gets the premium seats get even a lanyard. This was the case in Reno, but I was glad to find out they had the face mask set. A bit pricey, but it's one of the models I will keep once the $@#!! Covid thing is over. Besides, I still got a great view of the whole thing. Thing is, I was the only guy with a jumpsuit.
So, what's the live tour theme? Well, since MegaSynthia is still relatively new in the MST-verse, she thinks weird hair and scary behavior would be enough. She even showed pictures of the other Mads, and made sure they weren't flattering at all. After all, this is HER show. Then Emily Connor (her name on the show) and the bots arrived, and let's say her version of the theme reveals she became the test case a bit too willingly.
Then the caper: Meg "traps" everyone in a Time Bubble so we go 33 years in the past and be forced to see every episode starting with The Crawling Eye...which aired in 1989. First off, true fans can do that themselves by any means necessary. Also, some of the past experiments have been shown elsewhere (but certainly not Monster-a-Go-Go). She's new. She'll do better in her third live tour. Maybe better hair. She should be more well-known once she gets her turn in the Gizmoplex next Spring.
They took on an early Roland Emmerich movie, Making Contact. When you get mad at Moonfall next year, blame this movie. It's about a kid named Joey who just lost his dad. However, thanks to a toy phone, he can talk to dad...or does he? Then he acquires strange powers, like moving stuff with his mind and having toys do his bidding or something. Then, an evil dummy causes even more chaos. Mix in some annoying kids, a cute girl with pigtails, and a bunch of scientists who have enough gizmos to set up an "avant-garde production of Jesus Christ Superstar", and you have a disaster. Well, at least it didn't stop him from making Godzilla look stupid by mixing him with Sleepless in Seattle.
Emily and the bots approach the movie by looking at the surprising amount of licensed items, and commenting a lot on the evil dummy. There's also the fact the plot was Spielberg's Greatest Hits, only knockoffs of the best parts. At one point, she compares the dummy to Paul Williams. Even GPC2 got into the fun, just like Jonah's version does sometimes. They also had two great musical spoofs in the riffing, including one that was perfect for the season.
The host segments were very good, as they talked about knockoffs of familiar toys (including one that might be a bit inappropriate) and compared the movie to a familiar brand of pasta mix. The best was Emily singing about how buying stuff makes one happy...like maybe at a nearby souvenir stand at the lobby.
One thing they especially noticed is that the movie had a lot of slats everywhere, from Joey's door to the decaying house where his "friends" were planning an attack on him. It seemed annoying, until one came in quite handy during the end of the show.
The fourth live tour holds up quite well compared to the previous three editions. The first one was just like the Netflix show, while the next two depended on the presence of Joel Hodgson to pull in the fans and pass the baton to the next generation. With Emily, the future is now, and Mega should fine-tune her evil eye to "intimidate" Emily. It's clear Emily Connor is more than prepared to riff away (and maybe because she's looking for an easy gig).
Unlike my Rifftrax reviews, I'm not listing any riffs because the tour will be going until February, as it prepares to move back east after the New Year. They'll be heading soon to Denver, Dallas, Kansas City, Atlanta and New York City. Check the schedule at mst3klive.com/events.
When Joel Hodgson announced his farewell tour, also known as the Mystery Science Theater 3000 Great Cheesy Movie Circus tour, he planned to make sure a major part of the country saw him and his retirement from mocking bad movies.
He and his crew arrived at the Pioneer Center in Reno this past Monday, which looks like a UFO, before a near sellout crowd. The crowd was literally an all-ages event, from kids like these:
to those who have been with the show, and their successors, like me.
I was among about 20 people who were there for the meet and greet. The usual questions were told, especially how an episode is made and how it began way back in 1988. I even asked if fans wrote their own scripts to movies that might be riffed. Joel seemed to be surprised someone would mock Serenity (the sci-fi version), but I'm glad I didn't mention how I wrote riffs for the 1992 Buffy movie.
I did tell him I actually had a poster from Catalina Caper, the only "comedy" the show ever riffed.
So, here's me with everyone:
and the sign that was outside the theater:
Joel also seemed to be surprised I saw the "feature presentation", No Retreat, No Surrender, which was a movie that tried to be the Karate Kid, Rocky and maybe The Outsiders at the same time and didn't come close. He apparently didn't know Mike Nelson and Rifftrax pounded that movie in 2015.
However, I also discovered the movie had two different cuts. Rifftrax had the longer, but definitely not better, version by adding how the guy who ran the Seattle dojo was also threatened by the mob. The MST version was shorter and a few scenes were re-arranged, but at least it had one scene that explained how Jason knew Kelly, the love interest who was more like a prop.
The plot is about a kid named Jason who wants to be like Bruce Lee. When some mobsters cripple his dad after he refuses to sell out to them, they move to Seattle for a fresh start. He has a friend in RJ, but fails to impress the karate dojo mainly due to some fat kid who can be described as Andy Richter Jr...and not in a good way.
Suddenly, Jason gets help from the ghost of Bruce Lee. Jason becomes better at martial arts, but no one notices.
This is also the debut of Jean Claude Van Damme, who plays an evil martial arts guy named Ivan. He's the guy who cripples Jason's dad for the mob. Of course, Jason and Ivan have their rematch in the big karate competition that's supposed to help the mob take over Seattle.
You can guess the rest.
The host segments were quite different compared to the previous two live tours. The one familiar thing is Joel in a new version of his red jumpsuit, and he sang the theme himself.
Tom Servo and Crow were there, too, while a new version of Gypsy called GPC was more flexible than the original.
There was also Mega-Synthia (Yvonne Freese), whose origin story is interesting, and a gal named Emily Crenshaw (Emily Marsh) who has a jump suit that suggests her future. She briefly took over for Joel in the third segment, and well, she did play a big part in last year's Turkey Day marathon:
If and when a new version of MST3K is made, it looks like she'll take over along with Mega-Synthia. She'd be fine in a new Satellite of Love.
The host segments had their own take on traditional circus acts, with Crow up to his own tricks. They were pretty good, especially with Joel's decision to use "hidden puppeteers" to help the bots do things they've never done before, It was a trip seeing Crow with legs and on a pogo stick.
You can learn more about the cast here, and this page has very good behind the scenes videos, especially on the puppeteers.
As I said before, MST's riffing on the movie is different from the Rifftrax version because they used two different versions of the movie. So, comparing riffs will be a bit tougher. Joel (and Emily) and the bots packed a lot more riffs than Mike and his guys, but they also seemed a lot fresher. So, time for examples:
JCVD shows up with mobsters:
RT: Ivan the Scotsman MST: Jean Claude Van Mannequin
Jason's dad tries to stand up to them, but his acting is as weak as his resolve:
"I will not join....your organization" RT: That's what I keep telling the CVS Extra Care Rewards Program MST: Boy, if these cheaply painted walls could talk
Scott and his gang try to beat up RJ for no reason because the movie doesn't say why RT: Biggest fast feud brawl since Dave Thomas kicked Arthur Treacher's ass at a Wendy's parking lot. MST: (Scott's too big for RJ to knock down) Nothing moves the Blob
Ghost of Bruce Lee shows up RT: A waiter from a Chinese restaurant MST: HE'S NOT EVEN CLOSE!
Scott's dad serves beer to a fat drunk RT: Darker side of Chris Pratt MST: Treat me right. I'm an influencer for Yelp
Ivan comes back in the big karate battle, and this time he's got an entourage RT: Flanked by the sales team of a Yugoslavian Guess store MST: Los Lobos?
There's also riffs on Pacific Rim, Reno (of course), Joe Don Baker, Game of Thrones, the Oscars (which shows how they retool the show), and the Beverly Hills Cop theme.
At this point of the tour, the crew seems to play this movie more than the other choice, Circus of Horrors. Both movies will be shown in the same area twice in the home stretch in a couple of weeks. If MST comes back, it would be interesting to see their riff on this movie.
Oh, the concession stand in the lobby did some great business, especially t-shirts and MST decals where your laptop can have an MST silhouette. There's even a website where anyone can get swag.
This, however, is not available online:
Good thing the sign has the recipe. That way, anyone close to a BevMo can try their own "Robot Roll Call" while watching the show. At least it's easier to make than a "Killer Shrew". Anyone got ideas on how to make a "StarCrash"or a "Torg-Over"?
The tour continues for another month, with upcoming stops in Colorado, Minneapolis, Atlanta and Texas. Just click mst3klive.com for more info.
I've been in Nevada for four months, and the first thing that stunned me about the state was seeing several slot machines at a Safeway. This was before I found more slots at another supermarket and assorted gas stations.
This is more unusual: a movie theater at a casino. This is at the Grand Sierra Resort Casino in Reno, which is the most impressive facility around. Aside from a flashy new night club and a big theater, it also has a very big bowling alley.
However, I came this past weekend for the movie theater just to see how it compares to other multiplexes. It's basic in its offerings of popcorn, soda and candy, The seats also recline, more than the usual multiplex. At four dollars for second-run movies, you can't go wrong. It has fewer showings and a smaller staff, but it's still a good bargain, It'll also help you forget dropping 50 bucks on a penny slot machine.
I waited until now to try it out because it finally had a movie I wanted to see: Lucy with Scarlett Johannsen. It's about a girl who's forced to deliver a strange drug in her body. Something goes wrong, and the drug expands her mind in a lot of ways. It was all right, but I liked her other sci-fi movie Under the Skin a lot more (and no, it's not because it showed a lot of her skin). Luc Besson is good at directing action movies, but his version of a sci-fi movie was a bit too strange at the end. I'll just say it would be a good idea to see Lucy followed by Her.
The posters inside the theaters plugged movies that the casino hopes to show three months after everyone else, including The Interview, Annie and Mockingjay. I expect while they're shown, the theater will show The Maze Runner, The November Man, and Guardians of the Galaxy two weeks before its DVD is released. It reminded me of a UA Theater at Sunrise Mall near Sacramento that showed second-run features for three bucks. I never went there, but I should have.
For the most part, I'll stick with the regular theaters, mainly the Galaxy Theaters in Sparks. I might go back to the GSR again if there's another movie I never got around to seeing.
