Oaks Theater Flashes Back With Ninth Annual Moonlit Matinees Fest

The 2011 summer movie season will see multiplexes nationwide invaded by pirates and robots, aliens and wizards, and more talking animals than you can shake a pair of 3D glasses at.

The Oaks Theater also will see a similar rush of blockbusters lighting up the silver screen. There’s just one difference—the hits here will be 25 years old.

The centerpiece of The Oaks’ ninth annual Moonlit Matinee Film Festival—Friday and Saturday nights through mid-August—is a month-long celebration of the films of 1986 in July, allowing moviegoers the chance to take in the films they would’ve been waiting in line for a quarter century ago. "Top Gun" kicks things off for the July celebration, followed by Stephen King’s "Maximum Overdrive," "Aliens," "The Fly," and the rarely-seen heavy horror flick "Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer."

Movie-goers still can enjoy several other films in the series, which began with two showings of the comedy classic Airplane! last weekend. The series showcases everything from family favorites to cult horror hits.

When asked which film he’s most excited about, Oaks manager Randy Collins picked a somewhat surprising choice.

“'The Muppet Movie,' without a doubt. It’s one of my top five favorite movies of all time. I just think it’s beautiful.”

In addition to Jim Henson’s hilarious masterpiece, Collins thinks that "Top Gun" and "Aliens" will be the most popular features on this summer’s schedule.

Fans of horror movies—a frequent target for late-night showings like this —will have plenty to be excited about as well; in addition to "Henry," the series will welcome '90s favorite "Se7en" and the acclaimed "Rosemary’s Baby." Owing to Pittsburgh’s enduring status as the zombie capital of the world, a pair of very different takes on the undead will also get screen time: the 2004 comedy "Shaun of the Dead" and George Romero’s "Day of the Dead," which will close the festival.

Collins says that the theater’s partnership with The ScareHouse, a Halloween attraction in Etna, led to the zombie flick closing the festival.

“The collaboration with ScareHouse was a big motivating factor. Both Scott (Simmons of ScareHouse) and I wanted to show one of the films from Romero's 'Living Dead' trilogy, so we went with 'Day of the Dead.' ScareHouse is excited to use it as a way to introduce people to their new characters.”

The haunted house, which is consistently ranked as one of the top Halloween attractions in the nation, will be premiering a new area this fall—“Pittsburgh Zombies.” And some of those zombies will be stalking patrons, in full costume and makeup, at "Day of the Dead" screenings.

In something of a departure from previous years, two featured films will be from the 2000s—"Shaun of the Dead" and David Lynch’s "Mulholland Drive." As recent as those years may seem, Collins said, they’re already considered cult classics to younger viewers.

“There was a deliberate effort to include some more recent films—recognizing the fact that I’m almost 40, and what is a cult movie to me is not necessarily a cult movie to everyone. It’s okay to show a film from 2004 if people would love to see it.”

All the Moonlit Matinees will be shown at 10 p.m. Friday nights and midnight Saturdays. Tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for seniors, students, and children. Tickets and more information, including the full schedule, are available at The Oaks Theater’s website.