Repertory Nights at Film Forum

Film Forum, on West Houston Street, was founded in 1970 and is the city's only autonomous nonprofit cinema. Its four screens split between first-run independent and foreign films and a repertory program of restorations, retrospectives and director seasons, and it shows hundreds of films a year. The repertory calendar is the draw: 35mm prints, double features and themed series, often with filmmakers or historians introducing the screening.

Check the calendar on the Forum's site and buy online for anything with a guest or a new restoration; regular repertory shows can usually be bought at the box office. Members pay less, which pays off quickly if you go often. Seats are close and the screens modest in size, so sit centrally. The concession stand's popcorn and cakes are part of the ritual. Afterward, the South Village and Soho are on your doorstep for a drink and an argument about the film.