Spokane IS the mainstream

There are times, believe it at your own risk, that I get tired of complaining. Of course, demanding that we here in the Inland Northwest get the best of what’s regularly available to the rest of the Pacific Northwest – much less the whole of the U.S. – is part of my job.

Or at least should be.

Which is why I hate to point out that on Friday local movie theaters will be opening only the standard four mainstream releases – “Nacho Libre,” “The Lake House,” “Garfield’s a Tale of Two Kitties” and “The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.”

What are we missing? Well, here’s a short list of films that are already playing in and around Seattle:

AMC’s Pacific Place Cinemas and Landmark Guild 45th are showing the Al Gore film “An Inconvenient Truth.” Landmark’s Harvard Exit is showing “A Peaceful Warrior” (the other house is devoted to the ongoing Seattle International Film Festival). The Egyptian and the Neptune, both Landmark-owner, are showing “Bustin’ Bonaparte (The Story of an African Farm).”

Over at Landmark’s Metro Cinemas, movie fans can see “Keeping Up with the Steins” and “Wah-Wah,” Richard E. Grant’s semi-autobiographical story of his growing up in Swaziland. The Varsity, which is located just across from the University of Washington Bookstore, is playing “District B-13 (Banlieue 13),” “The Proposition” and “Water.”

Even Hallet Cinemas’ Bellevue Galleria Stadium 16 is showing “Keeping Up with the Steins,” “Hard Candy” and “The Celestine Prophecy.”

Here are just some of the films opening across the country on Friday that aren’t likely to come to Spokane: “The Heart of the Game,” “The Mostly Unfashionable Social Life of Ethan Green,” “Lower City,” “Loverboy” and the crossword puzzle documentary “Wordplay.”

It’s a big world and there are many movies out there. We get just some of them.