Given the current situation of the you-know-what, most of us are replacing those Saturday cinema evenings with never-ending Netflix sessions. And it is not the same (not even popcorn taste the same). You can’t walk Verdi street after watching the movie and have dinner at Ugarit, or have drinks in a bar in Sant Antoni neighborhood after leaving Floridablanca. Cinemes Verdi and Floridablanca are by far our favourites.
So as cinema lovers (or lovers of the cinema experience in its whole social dimension), we can’t help wondering how the industry is going to adapt to the “new normal” situation. And after reading some articles these past weeks about this issue, one of them caught our attention: drive-in cinemas might be bringing back the past.
Drive in cinemas: a bit of history
We find the origins of the drive-in theatre in New Mexico, where the first one was inaugurated in 1915 under the name of “Theatre de Gadeloupe”. Five years later the second one was open in Comanche, Texas. And from there they expanded all over the United States. Something you can deduct by watching some American movies which include scenes within this scenario.
They became really popular at the end of 1950s and beginning of 1960s, specially in rural areas. There were almost 4.000 drive-in theaters all over the country, making it one of the symbols of the “American Way of Life”.
And far from disappear, there are still 306 drive-in theaters in the United States which remain open to the public who love this outdoor cinema experience.
Movie scenes in a drive in cinema
Grease (1978)
Probably one of the most iconic drive-in movie scenes. Who doesn’t remember that scene in the car between Sandy and Danny?
Back to the future part. III (2003)
The Pohatchee drive-in cinema appears in this movie. But did you know that it is not a real drive-in theatre? It was constructed specifically for the film in Monument Valley, Utah.
Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind (2004)
Michel Gondry also includes a meaningful scene between Joel and Clementine in a drive-in cinema. As we pointed out in some other articles, we love this movie so much.
Brokeback mountain (2005)
Also there is a drive-in movie scene in Brokeback mountain, when Ennis and Alma go on a date night. To be honest, we wanted to watch this movie mainly because of its filming locations (Alberta, Canada, with sceneries which remind us of Wyoming and Montana). And it didn’t disappoint us.
Drive in movie theatre as an open-air cinema option in Barcelona?
During Summer, thanks to some outdoor events like “Sala Montjuic” we have been able to enjoy open-air cinema in Barcelona. These events are now being restated according to the current situation, to ensure the safety of the attendees.
The theaters are adapting to the “new normal” situation and meanwhile other cinema options are being considered. As we pointed out one of those options is the drive in cinema in Barcelona, which might make us feel quite like a character of an old American movie.
Actually, there was one drive-in theatre near Barcelona, in Castelldefels highway from 1977 to 1983. Since then there was none more. But Autocine Madrid RACE has been in charge of bringing back this experience recently, in enclosures which even include food trucks. A scenery which reminds us to those drive-in cinemas in the American movies.
In Barcelona there is no drive-in theaters though (VO cinemas in Barcelona are great though), but that might change in the near future. It is rumored that Autocine Madrid RACE is thinking about opening an Autocines in Málaga and Barcelona. Also there is this company called Drive in Barcelona who might be interested in bringing back this cinema experience and install a drive-in cinema in Barcelona.
And given the current global situation we are all experiencing, bringing back the past might be one of the best options to be able to keep dreaming about the future.