In My Little Town…This Blue Light is Special

I grew up going to the movies. We had a big 10-screen theater not too far away, and groups of us kids would be dropped off to see Star Wars (11 times), Superman (9 times), and Indiana Jones (ditched class senior year of high school for that premier!) Tuesdays were Dollar Night. For one dollar, we could see whatever escape was playing. Every Tuesday, all senior year, we piled into our parents’ cars and loved Dollar Night no matter what movie we saw.

Somewhere along the line, the price of movie tickets went up. WAY up. Who wants to pay $11 for a movie ticket and another $11 for popcorn?! And then try to make it a Family Night Out. It’s almost $100 for us just to see a movie and have a snack. So we pretty much stopped going out to movies.

And then, we found Blue Light Cinemas.

Ahhh. A comfortable movie theater. With family movies. And affordable pricing. Here, in our little town. What a concept! What a treat!

Blue Light Cinemas is owned and operated by two local families. They actually understand the concept of Affordable Family Movie Night.

Movie tickets are $5 ($2 on Tuesdays with their discount card). They have a variety of snacks (including frozen bananas) and drinks (Icees and Fanta make the kids happy, while I enjoy the hot tea).

There’s pinball to play before the show. My husband is happy with the Dolby surround and DTS surround. Comfortable seats were installed when the owners took over two years ago. There are even booster seats for the little ones.

Jackie Cohen, one of the cinema owners, is glad to see the community enjoying the benefits of this independent theater. Blue Light has screened films made by local filmmakers.

“Race to  Nowhere” was seen by hundreds of Cupertino teachers. Films in Hindi, Tamil and Chinese have been well received. The Blue Light can show movies the Cupertino community is interested in, but other theaters can’t show. You can even request movies you’d like to see via their website. The Blue Light website (bluelightcinemas.com) shows a variety of upcoming special events, including private screenings, birthday parties, and even a holiday party.  There’s always something going on.

The Blue Light is very actively involved in and supports the Cupertino community in a variety of ways. It sponsored a Little League team. It works with the Fremont Union High School District to provide job training. The Blue Light participated in Great Schools Week, donates to local schools, and encouraged the new Sunday farmer’s market at The Oaks.

Jackie, a mom who knows what kind of experience I’m looking for, notes there is always at least one family friendly film playing. With the holiday break coming up, this is the perfect chance for my family to catch up on movies we’d like to see ‘on the big screen.’ And how nice that we can do so in a family-owned, community-involved theater, in our little town.

Blue Light Cinemas is located in The Oaks, 21275 Stevens Creek Blvd, Cupertino.

For tickets and show times call (408) 255-2552 or check their website at bluelightcinemas.com