It doesn't get much better than two double features of Robocop and The Terminator for a sci-fi nerd who grew up in the 80's and 90's!
The poster for the Robocop vs Terminator weekend was designed by Hayden Hall (aka: Sick Slice). He was the artist that created the Freaked poster from opening weekend, as well as many other posters for shows at the Mahoning in previous years.
The t-shirt was designed by Tom Bifulco, who has created shirts and posters for so many events that we've been to that they're too numerous to mention. No disrespect intended to the other talented artists who have created merchandise for the Mahoning, but Tom's work is my favorite.
There were also some pretty awesome keychains from artist Matthew Parton which were available at the merch table. I picked up the one that shows Robocop facing off against The Terminator.
The last item I want to talk about at the merch table wasn't actually for sale, but you could win it. These Terminator 2 Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots have been hanging out in the Mahoning concession building for at least the past two years, but this was their last night as drive-in decoration because they were included in the Saturday night raffle. The folks who were parked next to us on the right were the lucky winners, and I'm glad that they were. Not only are they regulars at the drive-in, but they have a young son who clearly loved the movies and who I'm sure will have fun playing with these robots.
There were two different specials at the snack bar over the weekend. The Robocop double feature on Friday featured the Detroit Wiener while the Terminator double feature on Saturday had I'll Be Mac (and cheese) available.
The screening on Friday night was original 35mm prints of Robocop and Robocop 2. I enjoyed both of these movies when I was a kid, but didn't really watch them too much in the years that followed until much later when I rediscovered them during the pandemic. Not only are they fun action flicks, but there's a lot of subversive humor that went over my head when I saw these as a nine year old kid.
There was a different trailer and intermission reel shown on Saturday night between the two Terminator flicks that included a few vintage commercials that, for some reason, were on 35mm. I believe these were from the late 70's, but I can't say for sure.
Saturday night's double feature was two of the greatest sci-fi flicks ever made: The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day. There's no way that I can overstate how much I love both of these movies. If you had asked me at any point over the past 30 years what I thought of T2, I would have told you that it's in my top five favorite movies of all time, but as I've gotten older, I've come to appreciate The Terminator just as much as the sequel, if not more.
This was actually our second time seeing Terminator 2 at the Mahoning Drive-In Theater. The first time was two years ago at a Tunnel Vision Tuesday screening. That was an awesome night, but last night was even better. These two movies are right up there with A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back as the greatest Part 1-2 of all time, and getting to see them back-to-back on the big screen at a drive-in theater is just the latest in an incredibly long list of dreams to have come true on this lot.
In other words...
(sorry, I couldn't help it!)
