With all of the social distancing being required because of COVID-19, the amount of things people can do for fun is limited. There is a constant interest in fun things to do outside of the home, while remaining safe from the virus that’s been spreading for about a year now. One idea for an activity is drive-in movie theatres.

While students may have had to drive quite a distance to visit a drive-in theatre in the past, Lakeside Mall has turned their nearly empty parking lot into a movie destination only minutes away.

Beginning Nov. 20, “Five Weeks of Christmas” began at Movie Magic Lakeside, with movie fans paying $25 per vehicle to attend.

Drive-in movie theatres are just like going to a regular theatre, but you stay in your car and the movie is projected on some sort of wall/screen. It’s an idea that was very common years ago, but has recently been more popular amid the COVID crisis.

“If there is proper social distancing occurring, then I don’t see a reason not to go,” junior Anthony Chirco said. “It’s especially important to support a business that is slowly dying off, like the movie theatre business.”

On opening weekend, the parking area was full, but since everyone was in their cars, it was perfectly safe.

“I thought it was really cool and very appropriate for the current circumstances that we live in today,” senior Dylan Pillivant said. “It was personalized and they gave us popcorn to eat while we watched the movie.”

Even though everyone was safe, people may not find it convenient for their lifestyle, as lots of busy schedules are very common late at night in today’s society.

“I probably wouldn’t go,” senior Colin Van said. “I could just watch it at home.”

With all this being said, the movie is a way to get out of the house safely to have a good time, and may be fun for movie-goers. Three different movies are available throughout the weekend, with showtimes and ticket sales posted online.