Two for the Show(s)

It had been months since I'd been to the movies; the combination of a busy spring semester with the fact that my friend who used to work at a theatre (and got us in free on occasion) changed jobs, kept me away for a while. So yesterday was unusual in that I ended up seeing two movies in the same day. Here's a quick blurb about each:

Iron Man: This lives up to the hype; it's the best superhero movie I've seen in a long time, and, for that matter, one of the better movies, period, that I've had the pleasure of attending. The beginning moved a bit slowly for me, but some of that was probably intentional; war is neither quick nor pretty most of the time. It has a good mixture of action, comedy and drama, and the funny parts were really funny. Kev says thumbs up. (If you're one of the few remaining people who haven't seen this yet, be sure and stay till the end of the credits.)

Get Smart: I know that TV shows don't always translate well into the big screen. I'm also a fan of the show, which was in reruns throughout most of my college days. I have to say, though, that this one really works. It's been updated to fit modern times while still offering generous nods to the old series. Steve Carell's Maxwell Smart is more understated and complex than Don Adams' rendering, and Anne Hathaway's Agent 99 is a truly modern woman, often outsmarting Smart while still having both a soft heart for him and marveling at the things that he can do well. And there's plenty of laughter to go around. An 11 p.m. showing last night was almost full, so I'm sure this one is doing well at the box office. Kev definitely says thumbs up on this one as well.

Heralding the Harkins: We saw Iron Man at a place I'd never visited before: Harkins Theatres in Southlake Town Square (yes, it was a Copeland's day). The chain, out of Tempe, Arizona, also has locations in California, Colorado and Oklahoma; this is its first foray into Texas. I have to say I'm impressed; the theatre was clean and comfortable, the sound was good, and maybe I'm imagining things, but they may have even had an energy-efficient thing going; I could swear that the AC didn't turn on to its coldest point (which was comfortable but not Arctic) until the lights dimmed and the feature started. So the venue gets a great rating as well, and, being in Town Square, it means that places like Taco Diner, Snuffer's and Cheesecake Factory (and, yes, Copeland's) are literally steps away.