Going to a movie theater during the first week of school with a friend or new roommate can be a fun and laid-back way to hang out, and Bobcats have a few options for places to go.
In and around Athens, there are three theaters where students frequently go to see the latest movies.
One — The Athena Cinema — is located at 20 S. Court St. The Athena is an art-house theater that primarily shows independent films not typically shown in the nearest standard, commercial theater. On occasion, the theater will show blockbusters as a part of series it puts on or in partnership with a Universal Picture’s Campus Representative.
Away from Uptown but still in Athens is The Athena Grand, located at 1008 E State St. Students who choose to go to this theater usually drive a car or take a bus. The Athena Grand is a typical movie theater that shows the movies one would expect, but it has a retro concession stand and front lobby.
The Fun Barn is another place where people can watch well-known movies. The Fun Barn is outside of Athens, in Nelsonville off U.S. 33. The Fun Barn also has bowling, an arcade, bumper cars and a food court.
Here are some of the movies that will be playing at a theater near campus:
August 5: Captain Fantastic — The film is already stirring up Oscar buzz. Captain Fantastic tells the story of a super-dad (Viggo Mortensen) raising six children by himself in a forest oasis created by him and his wife. His wife has died, so he and the children make their way to the real world to witness her funeral. The story is about how the children adapt to the world their parents kept them from. Captain Fantastic is a comedy and a drama, so moviegoers should expect comedic and somber moments. The independent film has been receiving reviews that praise Mortensen’s performance. The movie premieres at the Athena on August 5. Note: The Athena schedules its movies one week at a time, so it may not still be showing during Welcome Weekend.
August 5: Suicide Squad — Students who haven’t had the chance to see this film yet can check it out when they get to Athens. Even though this movie comes out two weeks before school starts, it’s likely to see some success and stay in theaters for a few weeks. Students can watch Suicide Squad at the Fun Barn or Athena Grand. It’s been called one of the most anticipated movies of the summer. Between its crazy antics, amazing cast and overall atmosphere, Suicide Squad is a definite must-see. Viola Davis plays agent Amanda Waller who assembles the deadliest villains to do dangerous, life-threatening tasks in exchange for shorter prison sentences. By the looks of it, the task force is there to annihilate the ultimate villain — The Joker (Jared Leto). Leto takes on a different version of the infamous Joker, making him slightly more deranged and extremely creepy. This film is great for people who like superhero movies, but will also appeal to people who are sympathetic to anti-hero personas. Suicide Squad is keeping the superhero-esque tone of the film, but still breaks away from the conventional superhero movies audiences have grown accustomed to. It’s nice to see a movie about the villains every now and then, even if they do look slightly scary.
August 12:Sausage Party — For people looking for an off-the-wall movie, look no further. Sausage Party appears to take on a Toy Story-like vibe by giving voice to grocery store foods. When some produce leaves the store and is taken home, they find that the real world isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, and sausage sets out on a mission to expose the truth. Sausage Party is a comedy that feeds off of absurdity, so it’s not a surprise Seth Rogen’s name is attached to the movie. Rogen is not the only A-list name working on the film — cast members include Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill, Bill Hader, Michael Cera, James Franco, Paul Rudd and others. The trailer for the film catches people’s attention by playing it off as a children’s movie, but then takes a dark turn. The tagline — “They’ve created a movie they don’t want children to see” — also suggests a mature plotline. If this film comes to Athens, it will likely to be shown at the Fun Barn or Athena Grand.
August 19: War Dogs — By the looks of it, War Dogs has all of the right ingredients to be a Golden Globe nominee in the category of Best Motion Picture: Comedy or Musical. The film tells the unbelievable story of two twenty-somethings, David Packouz (Miles Teller) and Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill), who landed a $300 million-dollar contract with the Pentagon to steal weapons and aide the nation’s allies in Afghanistan. War Dogs is based on a true story. The film is dubbed a comedy and appears to be on a similar level as Martin Scorsese’s outlandish Wolf of Wall Street — which was also nominated for the Best Motion Picture: Comedy or Musical Golden Globe. People who respect high-quality cinema, but also love a good laugh, should appreciate the craziness and technical aspects of the film. This isn’t an independent film, but the Athena is known for playing Golden Globe and Oscar nominated films. While it is not on their list of films to be shown at this time, it could possibly make a second-run appearance. But students can expect this film to be shown at the Fun Barn or Athena Grand.
@georgiadee35
gd497415@ohio.edu
