We've got two movies new to Clinton this week-Takers and Step Up 3. At its best, Takers is a crackling crime drama. At its worst, it is a heist flick, and frankly, either description would get me to see it.

On the other hand, I'm the wrong demographic for Step Up 3, though if solid choreography and stunning visuals are your thing, then this is the movie to see. The memory of being the junior high school wallflower at the dance is just too fresh for me!

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We were pleased to host the Clinton Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours program on Wednesday. We had about 50 Chamber members and general public come through for some refreshments and guided tours.

We were pleased to talk to folks from Monticello, which is closer to Some Other Theater Near Champaign than us.
These events are always good opportunities to hear things, and we wanted to highlight a suggestion, a compliment and a complaint.

The suggestion was that we push back the start times for the late movies on Friday night to give people attending football games a chance to catch the late movie. Hmmm. We'll think about that. What do the rest of you think? Drop me a line at eric@eagletheater.net. Does it matter to you?

The compliment was appreciation that we were offering earlier matinees on Thursday and Friday. Actually, we did that in response to some guest suggestions, and it is always nice to be acknowledged for stealing a good idea!

The (mild) complaint was about film selection, specifically the absence of "Nanny McPhee Returns." She is on our list and will be here soon. As we have said before, we don't get total choice over our films-the studio has to WANT us too. When studios get timid about their films, they cut back on their print count, and when that happens, they lop off the smaller markets.

Part of the problem will never go away. We have five screens, not 12, and that's just reality. But the part we CAN do something about is to continue to stand out as a small market theater. More than two years ago when the original Nanny McPhee was released, the studio passed on booking the film in Robinson. We played it a month later and had very good results, and the studio kept it in the back of their mind. When "Nanny McPhee Returns" was announced, they were looking to book Robinson.

The point? Strong performance at the box office makes life easier and improves movie selection.

So remember the Clintonia motto: "Friends don't let friends go to see a movie in the mall."