Cinema Paradiso

There’s something ever so glorious about watching a movie from a lawn chair under the stars, caressed by the breeze and lit by moonshine while the little kids giggle and the big ones cuddle and smooch. It’s good, and it’s usually free, and it almost doesn’t matter what the movie...

By Susan Froyd

June 5, 2008

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There’s something ever so glorious about watching a movie from a lawn chair under the stars, caressed by the breeze and lit by moonshine while the little kids giggle and the big ones cuddle and smooch. It’s good, and it’s usually free, and it almost doesn’t matter what the movie might be. Everyone should have a piece of this kind of mini-vacation on a summer’s night. Is that really so much to ask? But ever since the City of Aurora announced earlier this spring that it wouldn’t be bringing Flicks on the ’FAX back to Fletcher Plaza this summer, I’ve lamented that even one of these strongholds of foolish serendipity has so unceremoniously lost its footing — or should I say funding — and bit the dust, just like that. Its Denver-urban counterpart, River Flicks, an August tradition in the Central Platte Valley, won’t be back, either — at least not this year, due to a scheduling conflict with the DNC.

So, outdoor cinemateers, it’s time to count your blessings. There are still a few choices left, beginning with this fine replacement, which debuts tonight: Glendale will enter the free-film fray when the very first Movies on the Pitch screening, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, lights up the JumboTron at that township’s fancy new Infinity Park rugby palace, 4599 East Tennessee Avenue, beginning at 8 p.m.-ish. See www.infinityparkatglendale.com/summerevents/movienight.html for a complete schedule. And, as the summer nights warm up, rest assured that Films on Fillmore, Aspen Grove’s Family Film Festival, Stapleton’s Family Film Night and the time-honored Boulder Outdoor Cinema will all be back in business. For details, see the Film Events/Series listings at westword.com, then sit back and enjoy.
Wed., June 11, 2008

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Susan Froyd started writing for Westword as the "Thrills" editor in 1992 and never quite left the fold. These days she still freelances for the paper in addition to walking her dogs, enjoying cheap ethnic food and reading voraciously. Sometimes she writes poetry.

Contact: Susan Froyd

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