|
One of my favorite yet kind of old fashioned things to do on certain weekends is go to Fremont...
More
One of my favorite yet kind of old fashioned things to do on certain weekends is go to Fremont Outdoor Cinema. You can't really find many out door cinemas out there these days, so this is one of the few in the Seattle area. Its a fun way to kick back and relax in your car as you are parked outside of a huge screen. Its a lot cheaper too because you can bring your own food with you, be as loud as you want in your car, have your cell phone on, or whatever things you can't do in an indoor cinema, you can pretty much do here. Its really fun to do especially on those hot summer nights in a drop top vehicle.
Hide
|
|
Harvard Exit
Category:
Movie Theaters
89 East Rooy
Seattle,
Washington 98102
(206) 781-5755
This former Women's Century Club was the first or second art film house to open in Seattle, a...
More
This former Women's Century Club was the first or second art film house to open in Seattle, a distinction it shares with the Grand Illusion in the U. District). (My sister was one of the first ushers here before she matriculated at Brown; she loved working there).
The Harvard Exit opened in ca. 1970. It was purchased eventually by the Landmark Theatre group but still operates mostly the way it has since its inception, with the addition of another movie screen.
In some ways comparable is the Seven Gables (also in the U. District), but I find the screen similar to a long train car: viewing movies there is like sitting in a tunnel and watching images flickering at the far end,,,
It is probably my favorite movie theater in Seattle for several reasons:
(1) the wonderful "living-room" style lobby with its early-mid 20th c. furniture and furnishings, all comfy; large windows with Venetian blinds, looking out across Roy to the the D.A.R. and Anhalt cottages.
Most movie theaters do NOT have a lobby/parlor of this kind. Once the movie gets out, YOU get out, too, simply because there is NOWHERE to linger--unless your idea of a good place to talk about the movie and to relax is to be next or across from a wall of pinball machines.
(2) the quality programming (which currently includes the film version of "The History Boys" and "The Queen," both outstanding British releases.
One of the first and most memorable movie moments when I saw Bernardo Bertolucci's "The Conformist" with Jean Louis-Trintignant and Dominque Sanda when it opened the flood of art house, foreign film that began at that time (at least for me) and led to the independent films that seem to carved a large niche of movie-going today.
I can't count the number of fine films I have seen here that would never have been shown at the multiplex.
The only regret that I have is that the refreshment stand has been moved from the entrance lobby into the living room, as the staff tends to be pretty obstreperous (loud) and not really aware of the space. That said, I enjoy spending a half an hour after a movie is over on a rainy afternoon and enjoying some moments of serenity--it sure beats Starbuck's in my opinion.
Let's hope, perhaps against all odds, that the building is not demolished soon and a 6-story retail-with-condos-above or a multiplex cinema doesn't take its place.
Hide
|
|
Majestic Bay Theatres
Category:
Movie Theaters
2044 NW Market St
Seattle,
Washington 98107
(206) 781-2229
I like the remodeled Bay Theater on Market in Ballard. The seats are really comfy, the theater...
More
I like the remodeled Bay Theater on Market in Ballard. The seats are really comfy, the theater and bathrooms are very clean, and they have good popcorn with real butter (shame!) It's not hard to find parking on the street. In the larger of the theaters, someone announces the movie, and tells you about it being an independently owned business. I've been there to have t-shirts thrown in to the audience. Just a little extra so you get the feeling they care about your business.
Hide
|
|
Columbia City Cinema
Category:
Movie Theaters
4816 Rainier Ave S
Seattle,
Washington 98118
(206) 721-3156
Why see a movie at a megaplex when you can have a real movie experience?
The Columbia City...
More
Why see a movie at a megaplex when you can have a real movie experience?
The Columbia City Cinema is a wonderfully renovated neighborhood cinema (4816 Rainier Avenue South). The neighborhood has great restaurants and a wonderful Wednesday farmers market.
The Harvard Exit always shows great films and is also a wonderful space. (Capitol Hill)
The Egyptian was originally built in 1915 as a Masonic Temple and got an Egyptian decor in the 1980s.
801 East Pine Street, Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 323-4978
The Big Picture has a nice environment - not just another night at the movies. Belltown Pizza is nearby.
The Cinerama still shows only one movie on a huge screen. (downtown at 4th & Lenora)
The IMAX cinemas at the Seattle Center and Aquarium are not to be overlooked. The Boeing IMAX at the Seattle Center (Pacific Science Center) is particularly impressive.
The Bay is a new, state-of-the-art tribute to the original Bay (1915) with one huge screen and two normal ones. Great neighborhood cinema in Ballard (Market Street). Than Bros Pho is right across the street and Ben & Jerry's is next door - perfect for those who like to eat before and after a movie. Than Brothers makes dinner and a movie an affordable concept still – even with a family.
This is just a beginning. Don't settle for always going to the movies in a mall.
Hide
|
|
Shakespeare, the dramatic staple throughout history, is constantly being reinvented with this...
More
Shakespeare, the dramatic staple throughout history, is constantly being reinvented with this great Seattle Center troupe. The plays range from the well-known Romeo and Juliet to lesser-known Shakespeare such as Love's Labours Lost. The directors are artists in that they can take dated texts and apply them to modern settings, atmospheres, and contexts. For example, last season's "The Taming of the Shrew" was an all-male cast! The gender implications of this play were vivified and magnified with this great directing risk. As always, the actors are top-notch dramatists well-known throughout the Seattle theater-world.
If you're looking to save a buck, special pre-premier shows give great rates and excellent, near-perfect productions. Check listings before the shows are reviewed in the papers to get on the special post-production, pre-premier nights.
Hide
|
|
Columbia City Cinema
Category:
Movie Theaters
4816 Rainier Ave S
Seattle,
Washington 98118
(206) 721-3156
This is a beautiful, homey, single-screen theater that plays all the major movies - first run -...
More
This is a beautiful, homey, single-screen theater that plays all the major movies - first run - but without the noise, ads, neon and inflated prices of the major cineplexes. But, beyond that, there is something truly "real" about Columbia City theater. It is a community theater and it is common to find neighbors and friends sitting on the big comfy couches in the lobby and forgetting that they came to see a film. A truly family-friendly place, we can take our daughter there without having to run into mass-media cheezy advertising that can make a trip to the movies feel like such an emotional hassle. We love this theater and go to see EVERYTHING they show, whether we want to see it or not, just to support it.
As a bonus, there are a handful of great little shops and restaurants popping up in Columbia City. Before or after a film, you can dine at any number of restaurants, shop in a handful of unique boutiques..... At this rate, Columbia City will be the next Ballard..... If you live int he South End, you already know about this gem of a theater. If not, it's worth the trip.
Hide
|
|
Still holding on after all the years and under new owners this theater brings in an eclectic...
More
Still holding on after all the years and under new owners this theater brings in an eclectic selection of indie and late nights. A community feel and run mostly by volunteers, everyone that works and goes is passionate about it staying alive. It's unfortunate that it's not in a more supportive neighborhood, with classic theaters not being a main goal or drunk frat boys.
Hide
|
|
Come give this place a visit. Both are located at the Science Center and are basically neighbors...
More
Come give this place a visit. Both are located at the Science Center and are basically neighbors as the walk to each theater takes about 2 minutes. Both have huge screens and comfortable seats. The seats in the Boeing Imax theater are very plush and provide a great experience. The Eames are little bit hard, but that will prevent you from falling asleep. When you find a movie you like come here and watch it, it's fairly cheap!
Hide
|
|
With the passing the same day on July 30, 2007 of film-makers Ingmar Bergman and Michaelangelo...
More
With the passing the same day on July 30, 2007 of film-makers Ingmar Bergman and Michaelangelo Antonioni it makes sense to remember that film both then AND now is largely a commercial enterprise targeted at the lowest common denominator: the masses largely interested in action--cheap thrills, empty spectacle, and stupefingly numbing cliches, one-liners, recycled gags, and loads of popcorn...
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/01/movies/05scot.html?_r=1&8dpc&oref=slogin
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/12/movies/12scor.html
Although I have only been there once or twice since it opened (it used to be at the Little Theater on 19th Ave. E. near St. Joseph's), I can attest to this being the least "commercial" movie theater in Seattle, with very fine, programming, including art, foreign, "independent,"experimental, documentary, and classic film.
This may one of the very few non-commercial venue for cinephiles in Seattle (Seattle Art Museum also counts, I guess)...
Hence, NO preliminary 10-15 minutes of uninterrupted cheesy, flashing, adrenaline-thumping previews, commercials, or announcements, as I recall, before a screening.
Where else could we have seen the haunting, psychologically resonant neo-Italian-realist*** film version of Gian-Carlo Menotti's opera "The Medium"--directed by Menotti himself and with a radiant young Anna-Maria Alberghetti--think of "Turn of the Screw," and "Umberto D." (or an Italian Fascist film from Rome's Cinecitta studio**** all rolled in one, set to a modernist Puccini? How they pulled this forgotten gem out of some obscure vault is an open question.
Or a few years, an exhibition/film festival/symposium
on Slovene contemporary art (attended by the Slovene ambassador)?
A strikingly original, funky space, with two very comfortable screening rooms, gallery, bar/cafe, large windows that look out onto the increasingly "in" 12th Ave. scene.
This one-of-a-kind non-profit venue clearly stands head and shoulders above the Landmark Theaters (excepting possibly the Harvard Exit, Seven Gables, and Egyptian) in its selection of not-often-seen, mostly non-commercial fare.
What about "revisiting" films by such cultural/intellectual luminaries and film-makers who have passed away recently, such as Susan Sontag ("Brother Carl,") "Duet for Cannibals"), Arthur Miller ("Playing for Time," "Misfits"), Gian-Carlo Menotti* ("The Medium"** or "Amahl and the Night Visitors," Bergman ("Cries & Whispers," "Persona," "Scenes from a Marriage"), Antonioni ("L'avventura," "Blow-Up", etc.? (Robert Altman, despite his iconic maverick status, worked within the Hollywood studio system, as far as I know).
Or "one of its own," Elia Kazan (d. 2003), controversial for his role in the blacklisting of the McCarthy era but lauded for his "Streetcar Named Desire," "On the Waterfront," "Baby Doll."
Seattle being a fairly important theater city--even though theater and cinema are in many ways antithetical media--it would also be interesting, for instance, to see a program of successful Hollywood film versions of Tennessee Williams's works (John Huston's "Night of the Iguana," Kazan's "Streetcar," the little seen "Glass Menagerie" with Gertrude Lawrence in one of her rare film roles), "Summer and Smoke" with Geraldine Page repeating the role that brought her fame in a Circle in the Square revival in New York), even though the number of bowdlerized, mediocre-or-worse versions makes up the vast majority (think of Eugene O'Neill, except for "Long Day's Journey into Night," or Arthur Miller).
Or opera-on-film...Bergman's "Magic Flute," the ca. 1987 "Carmen," etc. (Maybe they have already had an occasional opera on film, rarely "a mini-series" or in repertory, to my memory...).
[The Big Picture in Belltown used to be adventurous ("The Station Agent," the Robert McNamara documentary, "Fog of War," the documentary on the influential architect Louis Kahn, etc.). In the past year, it has turned to VERY standard Hollywood fare ("Dreamgirls," "Casino Royale") that could seen at ANY multiplex. This is a duplication of effort--the Meridian 16, that downtown rabbit-warren downtown due for demolition in the not too distant future, usually has "first dibs" on this sort of fare].
This and the Harvard Exit are my two favorite movie theaters in Seattle.
*http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/01/arts/music/01cnd-menotti.html?ex=1327986000&en=7ef65dc15876a946&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
** http://www.amazon.com/Menotti-Medium-Powers-Alberghetti-Schippers/dp/B00006ADF9/ref=pd_sxp_grid_pt_0_1/002-2763930-2716018
*** http://www.italica.rai.it/eng/cinema/cards/neorealism1.htm
****
http://www.romefile.com/culture/cinecitta.php
Also recommended:
The Warren Report, in the old Carnegie Free Library in Ballard:
http://seattle.thewarrenreport.com/default.asp
Hide
|
|
Central Cinema
Category:
Restaurants
1411 21 Avenue
Seattle,
Washington 98122
(206) 443-2001
Ever get home from work only to be greeted by flavorless left-overs and insipid network...
More
Ever get home from work only to be greeted by flavorless left-overs and insipid network television; then Seattle’s Central Cinema is the place for you! Like some magical all-curing elixir, the Central Cinema is a guaranteed remedy for the “dull evening” blues. Set inconspicuously on the corner of 21st & Union, this place has everything you want in a convenient, inexpensive and entertaining evening: easy street parking, great food, beer & wine, good service, and of course, movies that entertain*. Tickets are only $5 and they have $5 pizzas and $10 pitchers during happy hour! I admit that this review is completely biased. I love this place and go there all the time and I want to make sure this place stays in business. So check it out… http://www.central-cinema.com/
*The word “entertain” may be subjective but entertain is what these movies do by anyone’s definition. They may be great, they may be terrible, and sometimes it is too close to call. Where they get their play list is a mystery. Late night commercials on IFC? Obscure corners of IMDB? One thing is for sure…you walk away with plenty of conversation and a feeling that you did something fulfilling with your evening.
Hide
|