It's Always Sunny in LA: #17: Screening at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery

I've been wanting to go to a screening at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery for years now, but only finally got around to going a few weeks ago. I've always felt that it is just such a "Hollywood" thing to do. Like Hollywood has gotten soooo bored of standard theaters, and has now moved on to more "alternative" venues like cemeteries. Apparently, I'm not the only one who likes the idea, because the screenings of late have been drawing crowds of up to 10,000 people. I had almost written it off completely when I drove by during the Ghostbusters screening in early July and saw what a massive crowd it was. But I figured, it's on the list, I might as well go through with it. I found a night that worked in my schedule (that is, where I could dedicate 3 hours beforehand for waiting, parking, and picnicking) and it happened to be a great classic movie - Breakfast at Tiffany's.

My ever-adventurous friend Barbara came with me, and there we met up with some of my favorite friends - Joey, Josh, Tracy, Stacy, and my roommate Jannine. Luckily, we bought our tickets online ahead of time, so we didn't have to wait in line for that (whiched ended up being doubly a good thing, because the screening eventually sold out and lots of people got turned away). Also, luckily Tracy and Stacy got there super early, and were able to carve out a sweet central spot for us to all picnic on. There is a huge lawn in the middle of the cemetery, where everyone sits for the film. We weren't on graves or near any either, which helped with the creepiness factor. We all brought picnic foods like cheese, crackers, grapes, chocolate, and lots of wine, but some of the people around us put us to shame! There were people with entire picnic sets, complete with low tables and scented candles. The ambiance was great - the sun was setting, and there were DJs playing the most absolutely hipster music imaginable (think completely obscure mixed in with classical).

As the sun set it got quite a bit cooler, but luckily we all came armed with layers and lots of blankets (not to mention a slight wine buzz). As long as we made sure to change sitting positions every half an hour or so, sitting on the grass wasn't so bad. As soon as the sun set and it was dark enough, the movie started. I had never seen Breakfast at Tiffany's before, and had to remind myself that looking at a 50-year-old movie with modern eyes isn't really fair. Yes movies in the 60's were fairly shallow and very over-acted, but I definitely enjoyed watchingAudrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly- one of cinema's most iconic characters. We laughed, we cried, we sang Moon River, and only once I had to get up to go to the bathroom, which meant hopping and leaping over other people's picnic blankets since we were in the dead center.

Overall, it was a really fun experience. The best part was spending time with so many good friends, and seeing classic movies is always fun. But truthfully, I don't think I will be going to many more cemetery screenings, simply because there are so many people there. Getting in and out of the cemetery was a total pain, and having to act like Frogger to go to the bathroom was a bit ridiculous.

Though many people might think the idea of sitting in a large cemetery and watching a movie projected onto a mausoleum wall is creepy to say the least, I actually think it's pretty clever. As my friend Josh said "you know, if I was buried here, I wouldn't mind the company every Saturday night."