Boondocks Film Society brings exclusive screening to drive-in

AMENIA — Four Brothers Drive-In will host a screening of the new dark comedy Over Your Dead Body on Thursday, Aug. 6, with director Jorma Taccone on hand for a pre-screening Q&A as part of a partnership with the Boondocks Film Society.

The film stars Samara Weaving and Jason Segel as a married couple. Each is secretly plotting to kill the other. Taccone, a North Canaan resident and founding member of the comedy troupe The Lonely Island, will discuss the film before the screening.

The event marks the third time Taccone has screened one of his films at Four Brothers, following presentations of Hot Rod and MacGruber. He first discovered the drive-in while passing through Amenia and later reached out to its owners about hosting a screening.

"The Four Brothers Drive-In is a delight on every level,” said Taccone. “I had never been to a drive-in movie theater before attending the screening of Hot Rod at Four Brothers. I will forever pat myself on the back for forcing John and Boondocks Film Society to play the movie there.”

Drive-in movie theaters like Four Brothers are a return to better days when people gathered together to celebrate life, community, art, and miniature golf. I'm a big fan.”

Jeff Palfini, a Boondocks co-founder alongside Cindy Heslin, says the Drive-In has been a perfect partner. Boondocks has hosted 15 events there, by Palfini’s count.

“It’s a well-oiled machine,” Palfini said. “And our audience loves it. They’re always asking when we’re going to do another movie at the Drive-In.”

In their nine years of operation, Boondocks Film Society has become a pillar of the local film community. Screenings have moved beyond the Northwest Corner into the Hudson Valley area, and programming has expanded to include premieres and Q&As, like the Over Your Dead Body event next week in Amenia.

Palfini said the film feels particularly well-matched to its venue. It’s set in the woods and “jump scares and a drive-in go hand-in-hand.”

But it all started in North Canaan.

Palfini said the re-opening of the Colonial Theatre in 2017 inspired their first screening — a little-known '90s film starring Johnny Depp, Faye Dunaway, and Jerry Lewis called Arizona Dream. “We decided early on that the way to get people out was to have the events be in a variety of places,” Palfini said. “Sometimes theatrical settings, and sometimes very non-traditional settings.”

Boondocks has emphasized that uniqueness by finding local food partners to create custom menus that referenced the films. The same goes for the playlists that welcome attendees — the music references the source material in a way that beckons audiences to a deeper understanding of the film.

Thus far, it’s been working. Palfini and his team aren’t looking to change things, despite the recent news that the Colonial Theatre is on the market. Palfini helps to manage the theater, but he says one of Boondocks strengths is their ability to be mobile. “Over the years, I think we made a smart decision in terms of the sustainability of this thing by making it a pop-up. It removes almost all of the financial pressure.”