'The Two Towers' draws dedicated fans
The opening of the blockbuster film "The Two Towers" had Shaan Katzeek camped at the 20th Century Twin Theater 22 hours before the movie started.
Wednesday marked the debut of second of three movies based on "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien. The saga of the plucky hobbit Frodo and his intrepid cohorts drew a line that rounded the corner of the downtown block by 11 a.m. Wednesday, eight hours before the film lit up the screen.
Midafternoon Wednesday, Front Street smelled like French fries as the crowd of mostly high school students waited for the 7 p.m. debut. Fans sat in lawn chairs or lounged on the pavement wrapped in mummy bags - some crocheted, some played board games or rocked out to Walkmen. The buzz of gossip sounded like the crowded halls at Juneau-Douglas High School when school lets out.
Katzeek, 16, and three friends arrived at 9 p.m. Tuesday to be first in line. On Wednesday afternoon they were huddled in their hooded sweatshirts, playing Game Boys and surrounded by discarded Big Mac wrappers. They all were missing school. Only one had read the books but all had seen the first movie.
"We had two tents and this cop at like four in the morning came and told us that we needed to put it away," Katzeek said.
Police called their parents who eventually, grudgingly, gave permission to miss school.
"It took a little arguing, but they let me," said Eric Pac, 16.
Why camp out all night for this?
"We just thought it would be awesome." Katzeek said.
Eric Forst, director of operations for Gross Alaska Theaters, has seen his share of blockbuster movies, but "The Two Towers" is different. At three hours and 10 minutes, it's much longer. That means Gross Alaska can offer only one matinee and one evening show a day. Shorter films such as "Star Wars" can be screened twice as often, which cuts down on the crowds.
"In Seattle, they started showing it at 12:01. They're showing it 24 hours a day and they're completely sold out through next week," he said.
Forst, 38, is new to Juneau but he's worked in the theater business for 20 years in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay area. He can relate to the fans lined up outside. Their excitement over the debut is what drew him to the business.
"I did it when I was their age," he said. "I stood in line for 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' - in the theater I later managed."
Shannon McVey, a science fiction and fantasy enthusiast who said he's read the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy hundreds of times, called "The Two Towers" one of the most highly anticipated movies of all time. He got in line at 10:30 a.m. with his wife and 5-year-old daughter, who both shivered under hobbitesque hooded capes. They were first in line for "The Fellowship of the Ring" but missed the front spot this time because of car trouble.
The downstairs auditorium for the 20th Century Twin is Gross Alaska's largest theater, with about 300 seats. Forst expects to see it full through the holidays.
He said Gross Alaska will be running weekday matinees at the Glacier Cinemas during the two-week Christmas holidays, but not for "The Two Towers" downtown. The film shows at 7 nightly, with matinees at 2:10 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
"The Fellowship of the Ring," the first film in the trilogy, opened last Christmas to similar crowds and went on to rank as the fifth-highest grossing film in history. The third film, "The Return of The King," is scheduled for release next Christmas.