The First “Official” Family Movie Night at Rock Father HQ: Oscar-Nominated THE BOXTROLLS #BoxtrollsFamilyNite

THE ROCK FATHER is participating in a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and Universal Pictures. All opinions are that of James Zahn. #pmedia #BoxtrollsFamilyNite http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV

Over the past few years, we’ve had some “family movie nights,” but they haven’t really been an event. I remember a few times as a kid in the 80s when a true family movie night was watching something on “live” television with no VCR (I remember seeing THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK on one such occasion) with some pizza (usually Aurelio’s) served-up on plain white paper plates that were placed in some brightly-colored wicker/rattan holders. When the pizza was done, the popcorn would be served as the whole family gathered in front of the ‘tube for the feature presentation. While those days seem so much simpler, they were memorable, and my wife and I hope to create some similarly-lasting memories for our own daughters. For our first true “event” style Family Movie Night, I stopped by Walmart and picked up one of this year’s Academy Award Nominees for “Best Animated Feature,” THE BOXTROLLS.

Produced by Laika (same folks that did CORALINE and PARANORMAN) and released theatrically by Focus Features last year, THE BOXTROLLS has come home on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD through Universal Studios Home Entertainment. Based on the book HERE BE MONSTERS! by Alan Snow, the film served as a centerpiece for our Family Night, but it was the overall experience that I was most hoping to drive home, and we succeeded.

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We ordered pizza from Lou Malnati’s (another Chicago-area staple) and had Grandma and her sister over to join in the fun. For the first time ever, both of my girls sat together on the couch, munching some freshly-popped corn – specifically, Pop Secret Movie Theater Butter Popcorn (I bought a 10ct Box).

But that wasn’t all…

Around these parts, it’s a tradition to mix both Caramel and Cheese Popcorn into what had long-been known as “Chicago Mix.” Now, there’s been some legal mumbo-jumbo going on as far as claim to that name, but no one’s gonna come into your house and stop you from mixing it up yourself, so that’s just what we did. A little cheese seasoning into a bag of the Pop Secret Movie Theatre Butter Popcorn, and then we popped up some of Pop Secret’s Caramel variety as well, placed them both into one of my Grandmother’s old Brookpark Melamine (Melmac) Mixing Bowls, and boom – served! If you haven’t tried this mix yet, do it. Whatever you call it (Rock Father Mix?), it’s just good.

With the 87th Academy Awards taking place on February 22, we’ve seen three of the five nominees for “Best Animated Feature” (the three we were interested in) and THE BOXTROLLS comes highly recommended… from all except for my wife, who takes issue with most “family” films (others she’s not fond of include classics such as BAMBI and E.T., along with recent fare like THE BOOK OF LIFE), but that’s ok. 

About THE BOXTROLLS: The Boxtrolls are a community of quirky, mischievous creatures who have lovingly raised an orphaned human boy named Eggs (voiced by Isaac Hempstead-Wright) in the amazing cavernous home they’ve built beneath the streets of Cheesebridge. When the town’s villain, Archibald Snatcher (Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley), comes up with a plot to get rid of the Boxtrolls, Eggs decides to venture above ground, “into the light,” where he meets and teams up with fabulously feisty Winnifred (Elle Fanning). Together, they devise a daring plan to save Eggs’ family.

Pick up THE BOXTROLLS and Pop Secret Popcorn at your local Walmart and make your own #BoxtrollsFamilyNite (While Supplies Last!)