Sunday, 22 February 2015

Raphael's First Trip To The Cinema

I think one of the important milestones for a parent is to be able to take their child to the cinema. I mean, what an experience. You spend years waiting for them to be at a stage where you know they will be able to sit for nearly 2 hours and not want to get out of their seat and mess around. We felt that we have hit this stage with Raph and we decided that it was time for that first trip.

I can't really imagine how it seemed to Raph. We tried to explain it but it probably made no sense to him. We took him down to our local Odeon in town and everything just seemed to be perfect. The staff were really friendly and when we explained to people that it was his first time, they all cooed in excietment. It all added to the lovely experience. We went to a 10am viewing of the new Disney film 'Big Hero 6'. It was hard choosing as I wanted to make sure the content wasn't inappropriate and seeing some parts in the trailer, I was a bit worried about the 'bad guy', but Raphael loves 'Wreck It Ralph' and 'Frozen' and it is by the same creators, so I guessed it could't be too far away from them.

With popcorn in hand and 2 toilet trips done before, the film started; Raphael was ready for his first big screen experience. And what a powerful experience it was. Not only was the film truly excellent; Raph sat there mesmerized by the compelling story of Baymax the health care robot. The way the story was told was fantastic and the 'bad guy' was so well created and explained in the end that it almost felt that there was no 'bad guy'. Raphael had no worries during the film and at the end just sat and burst into applause which was so moving as he must have been thoroughly gripped.

After asking to watch it again and watching all of the credits, we left with a very happy little boy. As more polite staff greeted us, we went down the escalator only to see a huge inflatable figure of the main character Baymax. I think Raphael was just in utter amazement as he ran over and nervously stroked his tummy. He then leaned back into it almost waiting for the caring hugs he had just seen in the film.

A truly beautiful way to end his experience.

As a 3 and a half year old, he was fantastic in the cinema and really enjoyed this film. I think we are going to go to a few kids club shows as they are only £3 a ticket and show a slightly older film on a Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday morning at 10am.

We could not have had a nicer trip and for us as parents; it was a memorable experience.

Post by Emily