Now you know how in chick flicks, women – and sometimes even men - talk wistfully about getting struck by a ‘thunderbolt’?

Well, as far as I know, this emotional ‘orgasm’ has never been triggered in me. I tend to fall in love rather than explode in an orgy of joy, rose petals and violins.

However, it was at the Drake Cinema in Plymouth, aged just four, and watching James Mason and Kirk Douglas fight against a giant squid in Disney’s 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, that I did indeed get ‘struck’ by the wonder of movies.

And even today, 44 years later, I can still remember, perfectly, how big and ‘alive’ the screen looked; how everything on this huge colourful ‘window’ seemed so much more real and exciting than my mundane nursery school existence.

So yes, if ever I’ve had a head-over-heels moment, this was it. But don’t get me wrong – I AM NOT a film buff. I can’t tell you what a Dolley shot is or a Key Grip.

I couldn’t give a monkey’s about ‘sub-text’ or film theory.

No, all that matters to me is the ‘process’ of going to the movies; of queueing to get in; of buying a hot dog; of sitting through the trailers - God how I love them - and then, finally, rushing off to the toilet just before the Main Feature (I get excited...).

Which is why I am so thrilled about this week. And forgive me, because this is shameless product placement, but I don’t care, because it matters to me.

All this week you see, this newspaper, in association with the Phoenix Picturehouse, in Walton Street, Oxford, is staging a film festival. We have done it very successfully for the last three years and this, our fourth, is focusing on the brilliance of Stanley Kubrick.

He gave us 2001 A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining and Dr Strangelove, among others.

You may or may not be familiar with these films, but that doesn’t really matter. What counts is that you support the idea of seeing great films on the BIG SCREEN. Because that’s where they are meant to be seen.

I’ve got a plasma wide-screen at home, complete with surround sound and pocorn maker, but I readily admit it’s a poor substitute for sitting in a real cinema, surrounded by other people, all excited, all full of expectation, all unable to press ‘Hold’ or put the kettle on. Best of all, with any film by Kubrick, you have no choice but to sit and concentrate – his movies are thrilling, shocking, exciting, mind-blowing, astonishing and, most importantly... entertaining.

So, if you are at a loose end this week, why not pop along? It would be great to see you.

Visit picturehouses.co.uk, call 01865 316570 or check this paper every day for details of the films. Entry is half-price for anyone with a copy of that day’s Oxford Mail.