The Lost Art of Movie Dates

My girlfriend and I recently went on a date to see a movie, Tim Burton's "Big Eyes," a film about Margaret and Walter Keane. Margaret was an artist who painted pictures of kids with big, sad eyes (eyes that inspired the Powderpuff Girls) , and Walter sold her art in her name and took credit for it. The movie was good, but as we left I was more enthralled with the idea of going out to the movies than the picture itself. 

Seeing a movie seems like a passive thing to do. You just sit there in the dark and look at a screen, and your partner or family or friends do the same. However, there is something very special about going to a theater and sharing a film with a friend or girlfriend or any person. You and the other person get to share the silence, and both become enthralled in the film together. Perhaps the best part is the silence. The world, especially for teenagers, is a never-ending stream of meaningless noise. When a film is projected on-screen, the theater is like a cathedral, and the movie becomes a personal and almost spiritual thing. 

Perhaps the best part of going on a movie date is talking about the movie during the car ride home. There are such few opportunities for intelligent conversation that the post-movie "Did you like it?" feels like a sigh of relief and offers a good way to get to know the other person. 

I think that most teenagers feel the need to be literally doing something when they're with their friends or significant others, whether it be partying or shopping or playing a sport or going to Applebee's, everyone is always doing something. And doing nothing is something that I think a lot of people don't appreciate. It seems to me like the happiest couples amongst my friends are the ones that are able to thoroughly enjoy laying around and talking. The movie date is an under-appreciated way to do something and do nothing, and enjoy the presence of another human being, as you share the wonderful experience of the movie theater.