There are two opportunities to catch a free film in the wider Banks region this weekend.
Friday, July 8: The city of Banks will show 1988’s “The Land Before Time,” an animated feature chronicling the journey of an orphaned Apatosaurus named Littlefoot in search of safety in a changing world.
Where: Greenville Park, 12700 NW Arbor Park Loop in Banks
When: Dusk
Saturday, July 9: Portland’s Hollywood Theatre will host a free screening of 1996’s “Mars Attacks!” as part of a celebration marking the centennial of Oregon State Parks. The Tim Burton sci-fi film is just one in a series of films being screened in state parks this summer.
Where: Stub Stewart State Park, located on Highway 47 between Buxton and Vernonia. Follow signs in park
When: Dusk, day-use parking
Following this weekend’s events, the city of Banks is expected to host another film night at Greenville Park Friday, August 12, with “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” expected to play.

Chas Hundley is the editor of the Banks Post and sister news publications the Gales Creek Journal and the Salmonberry Magazine. He grew up in Gales Creek and has a cat.