Superman returns me to a simpler time

Saturday, July 01, 2006

Let me put this commentary in perspective. I'm entering my mid thirties and one of my earliest memories includes the original Superman movie. Perhaps I'm about to be too sentimental, but here it goes.

One of my very first memories is being at the Westport Drive-In Movie with my mom, dad, and little brother. The Westport Drive-In was a big outdoor screen right off of Route 6 and it was falling apart even back then. The four of us were in a late model, yellow Ford LTD sedan and the little speakerbox hung on the inside of the driver's window. Some people were on their hoods on blankets, others were in pick up trucks, parked backwards and watching from folding lawn chairs in the bed of the truck. As always, everyone had snuck in their own beer and food to avoid the concession stand. Bags of popcorn from the Cumberland Farms really didn't compete with the smell of hot buttered popcorn, but those were the breaks, kiddo.

I remember when the Superman movie began. Even the crackles of the tin speaker hanging on the window couldn't take away from that soundtrack. From the opening credits I was mesmerized: the music, the big blue credits that stretched out, the characters, the flying man of steel - it was the perfect movie. I was heartbroken to find out that "doublefeature" didn't mean that they show the movie again. I fell asleep in the back seat as the next movie was dragging on. Who wants to watch a movie about a boxer when you can see a movieabout Superman? (Yes, at the time, I did not appreciate "Rocky" as the second film.)

So, that brings me to today's matinee. I sat in the plush, auditorium style seat and soaked it all in. The score was there, Marlin Brando's voiceover was there, the good deeds, evil plans, and heroic acts were there - it was a movie and nostalgia all at the same time. It has been a long while since I thought of the old Westport Drive-In; it is closed, parceled off, and used for some kind of equipment storage now. The old screen and driveway are still there, overgrown by nature and just waiting for the land to be valuable enough to make it worth the cost of demolition of the screen to purchase and use the land.

Superman returns left me with good feelings, yet, also with a tinge of sadness about having lost those wonderful, innocent younger days. The days when my biggest problem was Cumberland Farms popcorn versus fresh popped - a simpler time that I miss. In any case, I'm happy to have Superman return, even if those simpler times never will.