Published: October 14, 2009 09:36 pm         

MARK BENNETT: The Indiana Theatre brings back Midnight Movie Madness

TERRE HAUTE — There’s something about midnight movies.

Maybe it’s the idea of pursuing laughs or terror deep into the night. Maybe it’s the immense images on the Indiana Theatre screen. Or, perhaps, it’s the after-film dilemma, “Denny’s or IHOP?”

Any Hautean or ISU alum old enough to remember streaking probably watched a midnight movie at the Indiana, before topping the evening off with a trip to Dunkin’ Donuts.

Well, Dunkin’ Donuts is long gone, but Midnight Movie Madness is back, thanks to Indiana Theatre proprietor Roger Aleshire.

The Indiana is revisiting that concept on an experimental basis by showing classic 1960s, ’70s and ’80s films at midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, every other weekend this fall. The series began Oct. 2 and 3, when the theater reintroduced visitors to the hockey-mask-wearing Jason Vorhees with the original 1980 horror flick “Friday the 13th.” It continues this Friday and Saturday with 1973’s “The Exorcist,” starring the pea-soup-spewing Linda Blair.

It gets even better. “Animal House” (from 1978) returns Nov. 6 and 7, followed by “Psycho” (1960) on Nov. 20 and 21, “Jaws” (1975) on Dec. 4 and 5, and finally “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968) on Dec. 18 and 19. John Belushi, the “Psycho” shower scene, and Great White sharks look far more imposing on a screen 50 feet wide and 20 feet tall. Admission is 5 bucks a person.

The films, the hour, and the 1922-vintage venue should drench moviegoers in nostalgia. At least that’s what Aleshire hopes.

“Midnight movies used to be a mainstay of the theater for a number of years, and have not happened for I don’t know how long,” he explained.

It’s been years since the Indiana last rolled the projector at midnight. That honor fell to the ridiculously weird 1975 cult film “Rocky Horror Picture Show.” In a trio of showings, “Rocky Horror” drew large, wild audiences. The theater invited fans to come dressed as the characters, and come on stage for the crowd to judge the best costumes for cash prizes. Of course, “Rocky Horror” brings a mess, too. Its watchers have a ritual of throwing things, such as toast. “That’s not as bad as the rice, though,” Aleshire said.

“Rocky Horror Picture Show” won’t be coming back, and the cleanup cost isn’t the reason. No 35-millimeter film prints of the movie exist in distribution, and that is the only format used at the Indiana. The 35-millimeter film equipment makes finding copies of classic films tricky. Some have deteriorated and no longer exist, and others have been transferred to DVDs.

Aleshire intended to alternate between horror and comedy flicks. But finding actual film versions of “Blazing Saddles,” “Young Frankenstein” and “M*A*S*H” isn’t easy. “The older you go, the harder it is,” Aleshire said. So, he compromised, landed “Animal House” and surrounded it with thrillers in this initial Midnight Madness test run.

When “Friday the 13th” showed earlier this month, an ISU student asked Aleshire if the version at the Indiana was a DVD or a 35-millimeter film. He’d attended a midnight movie in Chicago, and left disappointed after learning that theater used a DVD. No such disappointment occurred at the famed Terre Haute facility.

Lots of folks — especially those old enough to remember the Reagan era — might figure they could watch Hitchcock’s “Psycho” or Belushi and the beer-swilling Deltas on their DVD players at home. But they’re probably forgetting the beauty of that gigantic, larger-than-life scenery at the Indiana, which is the largest indoor screen in the state, according to Aleshire.

“You could probably go to the video store or online to see any of these movies,” he said, “but it’s not the same as on the big screen.”

If enough Generation X’ers and Y’ers, baby boomers, and retro-minded college and high school students turn out, Midnight Movie Madness might just become a regular facet at the Indiana. Aleshire has his eye on a possible follow-up rotation of films, such as “Carrie,” “Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” “American Graffiti,” “Blazing Saddles,” “Young Frankenstein” and “M*A*S*H.”

“If people will support this, we can have this on a regular basis,” he said. “We’ll kind of base the future on what happens now.”

Go see one, and then get an Ultimate Omelet at Denny’s.



Mark Bennett can be reached at (812) 231-4377 or mark.bennett@tribstar.com.