I've always loved movies and I always especially loved going to the movies (for the record, my first one in the theaters was "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory". And I'm pretty sure my second was "The Great Gatsby" - mom and dad weren't really into "kids" movies). I was fortunate enough to marry someone who shared my love of eating stale popcorn while sitting next to two loud mouths from Great Neck (although lately we spend more time talking about going to the movies than actually, you know, going to the movies but that's another story for another blog).
Anyway, most parents will tell you a lot can go into the decision of taking your kids to the movies for the first time. What if they freak out when the lights go out? What if it's too loud? What if they want to leave 5 minutes after it starts? What if they don't like German expressionism?
Kristin and I were pretty confident that Cars was the right choice for Jackson. He was heavily into cars and trucks at the time and he was eager to go. We chose the earliest show (always a good idea, especially when the theater offers matinee pricing) and sat in the back by the exit (just in case he wanted to leave or "duty" called).
Long story short, it was a big success and the DVD has been in heavy rotation ever since. It also helped that the toys from the movie were awesome (and plentiful, especially after the initial collector's craze died down where I would encounter middle-aged women waiting for the toys to come off the truck to feed their ebay habits).
Cars the movie? Ka-Chow.