anthology film archives Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Week after week, I focus on the good and/or bad concerning moviegoing and the movie theatre industry. But as passionate as I am about the subjects of this column, I've never really felt strongly enough to label any one person either a hero or a villain to moviegoers. Perhaps the closest I've come to calling someone a hero was when I finally had my first experience with an Alamo Drafthouse cinema. On the other hand, I've certainly wanted to call a lot of people villains, including whoever was responsible for my worst moviegoing experience in years and whoever came up with the awful idea to produce scented pre-show ads.

So, it was by some sort of coincidence that last week actually brought news of both a remarkably heroic moviegoer and a terribly villainous theatre owner. Of course, you're welcome to disagree with me as I celebrate the former and castigate the latter. The interesting thing about these two individuals is that some of you may see my hero as a villain, and vice versa. In fact the law has deemed the former a criminal, and meanwhile tons of moviegoers in the UK are championing the actions of the latter. No wonder film exhibition is in such dire straits when there's such disagreement about how to improve the moviegoing experience.

As if being an indie-film lover in NYC wasn't already a dream come true, much of the city is going to be discounting the ticket price for independent films, too. Well, for a few days, anyway. In collaboration with the Independent Feature Project (IFP) -- which holds its annual market in September -- and its "Independent Film Week", 10 New York theaters will be reducing their admission on ALL shows (I am assuming this means non-indies, as well) from Monday, September 18 through Thursday, September 21. Many of the city's favorite art-house locations are included, although some are noticeably, and disappointingly, absent, such as Film Forum (I'll excuse them for being non-profit, and an otherwise wonderful establishment), the IFC Center, the Quad Cinemas and the Angelika Film Center. The fact that the Angelika isn't participating just goes to show that it no longer has any redeeming qualities left (and I'm not biased just because I used to work there). I mean, considering that it has been host to the IFP Market for most of its existence, one would think it should be included.

Anyway, if you don't mind seeing a movie for only $6 in a theater where you can't hear the subway roaring beneath your seat, you might want to hold off on seeing one of NYC's large selection of films until that special week. The places offering this deal are: Anthology Film Archives; Cinema Village; Landmark's Sunshine; Cobble Hill Cinemas; BAM Rose Cinemas; ImaginAsian; Museum of Modern Art; Walter Reade Theater; Brooklyn Heights Cinemas and Kew Gardens Cinemas.