No good movies ever come to Baton Rouge. While that might be an overstatement, I’ve noticed that none of the movies I look forward to come to this city. To my dismay, Baton Rouge did not contain any of the 23 theaters chosen to show “Across the Universe” during its opening weekend. We were fortunate enough, however, to be one of the 2,277 theaters chosen to show “Dragon Wars.” Why “Dragon Wars” was shown anywhere is beyond me, because it was by far the most ridiculous movie I have ever seen. And yet, it made $5,041,239 its opening weekend. “Across the Universe,” whose trailer I have been salivating over since April, only made $667,784 its opening weekend – but that’s pretty impressive for a movie only showing on 23 screens. Does not living in a major metropolitan area make us unworthy of the best films Hollywood has to offer? The No. 2 movie in the nation, “Good Luck Chuck,” has a rating of 3 percent on RottenTomatoes.com. Three percent. But it’s showing eight times a day at the Rave Motion Pictures at the Mall of Louisiana. Do the people of Baton Rouge only deserve mass-produced, unoriginal crap? I don’t think so. But that’s what we keep getting. Now that Siegen Village is closed, I don’t know where I’ll see “indie” movies. I understand movie studios have a reason for showing their films in the theaters that they do. I doubt “Helvetica,” a documentary about the eponymous typeface and how type affects our everyday lives, would make a killing in Baton Rouge. That’s why it is playing in New York City and not here. But movies opening to limited releases such as “King of California” and Wes Anderson’s newest venture, “The Darjeeling Limited,” would attract a significant audience. If all the people at the University who claim to be fans of a Wes Anderson film – at least 1,000 according to Facebook.com – saw “The Darjeeling Limited” and paid $8.25 a ticket, the film would make $8,250 in Baton Rouge, more than “Dragon Wars” averaged per theater during its opening weekend. So it’s not that far-fetched of an idea. Don’t get me wrong – I’m not saying that all I want Baton Rouge theaters to show is pretentious artsy films from Eastern Europe that people only pretend to understand. I will be the first to admit that “Dumb and Dumber” is and always will be my favorite movie. But sometimes slapstick bathroom humor just doesn’t cut it. Sometimes I actually want to think while watching a movie. I want to see controversial issues and themes that reflect on the current state of the world. I want to see a movie whose producers have put a little more thought into it than, “What will make us the most money?” And above all, I want to be entertained. So what is a moviegoer in the 225 to do? “Across the Universe” finally came to Baton Rouge this weekend, and according to metacritic.com, “The Darjeeling Limited” is supposed to open nationwide this weekend. But if that doesn’t work out, there’s always “The Heartbreak Kid.”
—-Contact Sarah Aycock at [email protected]