The Shape of Water at New Century DoCo in Sacramento

Because I was in Hawaii for two months this winter, I missed the grand opening of the Century DoCo Theater in Sacramento. This is across from Macy’s in what used to be the Downtown Plaza. Coming back to Sacramento this month meant catching up on my new listings and writing for TheBalance, so I haven’t had time for the movies. Yesterday was the first day, and a bit spontaneous. I had hoped to see The Post, but that’s no longer showing downtown. Which is OK because The Shape of Water was next on my list.

I will start by telling you the end of the movie is not what you might expect. At least it wasn’t really what I had expected. I’m not going to give away the spoiler here, but I will tell you what I expected. What I thought would happen is the character Eliza played by Sally Hawkins would visit the spot by the ocean each year where the creature had departed and swam away in search of deeper waters. Instead of leaving stupid teddy bears and goofy looking plastic flowers, she would make a display of salt mounds and hard boiled eggs. But none of that happened. Just so you know what did not happen.

Visiting the new Century DoCo in Sacramento is an adventure in itself. First, you have to find the parking, and it’s way at the end of L Street. Not the Macy’s parking, the next one down. Upon entering, you might note a sign that says parking is $20, but don’t have a heart attack. It is free and you can validate your ticket at a special machine in the theatre, just past the ticket dispensary. Tip: Make sure you park on the 4th level because the fourth floor bridge takes you directly into the movie theater.

When you walk into the new Century DoCo, employees come right up to you to offer assistance. Which is good because it’s not automatically clear what you’re supposed to do. Or, maybe that’s just my Mr. Magoo approach to the world. I had bought tickets on my Fandango, so you point your phone toward the barcode and tickets print. You don’t even have to set it on the machine, just move toward the vicinity of it.

Then you get into line before you realize all of the other lines are shorter. But everybody stands in the first line because we are sheep. You pay no attention to the sign that says there are more refreshment stands downstairs when you should have left the line and made a beeline downstairs. There was nobody downstairs at all when we got there. Yet, some woman with a friend and a couple of kids held up our main floor line for 10 minutes. Tossing irritated looks in their direction held zero significance.

Looks like there are 9 screens. We were in the last theatre downstairs. It’s a little creepy downstairs. The decor is rather plain, not as exciting as it could be, very understated. But the seats were wide and cushiony. The woman next to me kept sliding her arm on my armrest and pushing against me, but I won out in the end with my bony elbows. Don’t mess with bony elbows. I also discovered the heating button after my husband turned it on for me. Legs up, popcorn in hand and warm butt. What else could you want?

There were parts of the movie when I nearly clawed my husband’s arm to pieces. It was scary and entertaining, and I’m not easily frightened. After all, remember, I used to do short sales. The Shape of Water exceeded my expectations. It was tender, loving, suspenseful and scary, and Richard Jenkins was marvelous. You’d like it, I venture.

On our way home, my life just got a little better, too. A listing appointment in Natomas from last Wednesday finished their interviews and had left a message to say they wanted to hire me as their Sacramento listing agent. Even after 40 some years in real estate, I still get excited when I am chosen to list a home. That feeling never goes away. Which is probably why I’m still doing the job.