Overview
When you've been screening movies under the stars for 25 years, it's worth celebrating that fact. And when you're hosting your newest season of outdoor flicks in a year of significant worldwide change, giving viewers something comfortable and reliable to watch is a mighty sensible approach. Moonlight Cinema is doing both when it returns for the summer of 2020–21, all by packing its program with a heap of film favourites — so get ready to kick back on the grass and watch Moulin Rouge!, Black Panther, When Harry Met Sally, Bohemian Rhapsody and, depending on your city, either Pulp Fiction or Dirty Dancing.
Indeed, there's a definite retro air to Moonlight's lineup this year — which arrives after the outdoor cinema first announced that it was definitely returning in this chaotic period, and then revealed its exact dates. Between November 2020 and April 2021, the event will head to Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Melbourne with a heap of old-school flicks. You'll also be able to see some recent releases, in case you haven't had the chance since cinemas started reopening (mid-year in most of the country, and this week in Melbourne).
In the classic camp, a week of Christmas films will help you feel merry, with Die Hard, Love Actually, Elf, Home Alone, The Grinch and The Nightmare Before Christmas on the bill. Or, if you'd like to revisit non-festive faves from the past few years, you can check out The Greatest Showman, Frozen II, Thor: Ragnarok, Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain America: Civil War.
From this year's releases, there's a little bit of everything. Christopher Nolan's Tenet will screen in the evening air, this year's new version of The Secret Garden will play surrounded by plenty of grass, and Australian comedy Rams — about feuding sheep-farmer brothers — will do the same. There's also Russell Crowe getting angry over the phone and in his car in thriller Unhinged, the cringe-worthy teen romance of After We Collided and the delightful Dickens adaptation that is The Personal History of David Copperfield.
The program does vary slightly from city to city, so it's worth checking exactly what's playing on your patch of turf. And, because Melbourne's season doesn't start until January, it hasn't actually announced its lineup as yet.
It's also worth remembering that every city is BYO except Brisbane — but, wherever you're settling in for an outdoor cinema session, there'll be food trucks, a bar, snacks and (if you'd like to pay for them) bean bags as well. And, in great news for movie-loving pooches, you can bring them along, too.
MOONLIGHT CINEMA 2020–21 DATES
Sydney: Thursday, November 26–Sunday, April 4 (Centennial Park)
Brisbane: Friday, November 27–Sunday, February 21 (Roma Street Parkland)
Adelaide: Friday, December 11–Sunday, February 14 (Botanic Park)
Perth: Thursday, December 3–Sunday, April 4 (Kings Park and Botanic Garden)
Melbourne: Thursday, January 7–Sunday, April 25 (Royal Botanic Gardens)
Moonlight Cinema kicks off in November 2020, running through until April 2021. For more information and to buy tickets, visit the cinema's website.