QuadWorks Midnight Movie experiences record turnout

Students lined up down the block on Sept. 14 for the first Midnight Movie of the year.
This special Mercer-exclusive event is sponsored by QuadWorks and held at the AmStar 16 Theater. Mercer students can see any number of current releases on the big screen at a discounted rate of just two dollars.
Although Midnight Movie has been popular in the past, the latest experienced the biggest turnout yet, with over 736 students purchasing tickets, well past the 600 students the event usually attracts.
“We’ve had the most pre-sold tickets ever,” explained Tyler Isom, a Weekends at Mercer Chair for QuadWorks. “We sold about 400, where we usually sell about 250.”
There was little doubt there would be many Mercer students at the event when they began to stand in line outside the theater a full half hour before the line was officially supposed to start. One possible reason why is the largest class of incoming freshmen who had yet to experience a Midnight Movie event.
“I would think there are a lot of freshmen here, and it decreases with each year,” said Isom.
All students, freshmen or not, had a large selection of movies to choose from, ranging anywhere from family films such as the re-release of “Finding Nemo” to horror movies like Sam Raimi’s “The Possession”. Despite all of the options, there was one film that seemed to be most popular.
“Everyone is going to see the new ‘Resident Evil’ movie. It’s ‘Resident Evil!’” laughed Isom.
“Resident Evil: Retribution” is the fifth film in Paul W.S. Anderson’s video game-inspired action horror franchise and the winner of the weekend’s box office, edging out “Finding Nemo”, another 3D movie.
Brand new releases were not the only movies students were seeing, as many used Midnight Movie and its discounted price to catch up on films they had yet to see or just wanted to watch again. The most popular of these hold overs was “The Dark Knight Rises”, despite bringing in over $1 billion worldwide.
Darker, heavier films were not the only films students saw, however, as many chose more light-hearted films, such as “The Campaign” and “ParaNorman”.
“[‘The Campaign’] was really funny, but really crude,” said Carrie Stewart.
“’ParaNorman’ was one of the better animated movies I’ve seen in a while,” said Joshua Glasscock. “One of the better movies I’ve seen this year, I’ll say that!”
The movies were not the only things to receive praise from students, thanks to QuadWorks and AmStar 16’s ability to quickly move all 736 moviegoers through the lines and to their seats.
“Even though it was one of the biggest crowds I’ve seen in a while, they managed to get everyone inside faster than I have ever seen before, and I’ve been to just about every Midnight Movie since my freshman year,” explained Glasscock.
The next Midnight Movie will take place on November 16^th, at the AmStar 16, located at 5996 Zebulon Road. Tickets are two dollars for Mercer Students, $6.50 for guests.