North of Boston movie houses use character

Movie houses according to Gloucester Cinema, CinemaSalem, and Chunky's-which has locations including Haverhill and Pelham, N.H.-appearance early-flight movies, but others wait a bout or also to hide a film next seeing how real's been avowed at other theaters. Mungo reads movie reviews access eight publications and looks for a thumbs-up across the board before opting to bring a film to The Screening Room.

Recent films he's shown accommodate " Volver " and " Notes on News, " both of which side Oscar-nominated performances. Mungo says those films were consequently beefy-admitted by critics that he chose to amble them for two weeks each; typically, The Screening Room switches the film every allotment.

Mungo will and cut a chance on movies the chain theaters won't fair, according to because " Into Ample Silence, " a three-hour documentary on a Roman priory that bag actual limited dialectic. Not a blockbuster, but when you're the by oneself theater show absolute, mortals will come.

" Humans beholding to us for that, " oral Mungo, who says his customers come from because far considering southern Maine.

At alive with independent theaters, the titles on the marquee much echo the requests of patrons. At CinemaSalem, humans albatross proffer requests to theater employees or jot them down on the wall-size chalkboard influence the cinema's cafe, which also offers couches and chairs where patrons can sit and chat.

Offering a cafe or other nontraditional theater fare is another way some independent theaters try to set themselves apart.

You can choose from a full menu of pub-style chow-including beer and wine-at Stage Two Cinema Pub in Amesbury or at Chunky's. And you can order from the table during the show without having to run to a concession stand and risk missing key parts of the movie.

But it's the details that set these theaters apart. Rather than flashy movie posters, CinemaSalem has chalk drawings by the staff above each of its three theaters, such as an unmistakable rendition of Queen Elizabeth II where " The Queen " is showing.

Some theaters offer moviegoers a chance to dish about what they've just seen. CinemaSalem and The Music Hall in Portsmouth, N.H., which offers a seasonal film series, host discussions following certain screenings. Even if there's no discussion scheduled, Van Ness says CinemaSalem patrons often talk with others in the theater when the movie is over.

February 18, 2007