In the past, D.C. hasn’t exactly been known as a film town. But, as recent developments suggest—there’s a bunch of new indie film theaters scheduled to open within the next few years—it’s increasingly becoming more of a noted film city. While we don’t have as many theaters showing great repertory cinema as New York City or Los Angeles, D.C. still has plenty of options to catch screenings of old movies. Below are the best theaters in the area to catch repertory cinema—from the classics to contemporary foreign, independent, avant-garde, art house, and documentary.
The AFI Silver Theater. Photo by Rudi Riet.
AFI SILVER THEATER AND CULTURAL CENTER: To say that the AFI Silver is one of the best places to watch repertory cinema in the area is an understatement. To say it’s one of the best theaters in the region is an understatement. That it’s one of the best theaters in the country is a more accurate sentiment. The theater’s massive central screen—a 500+ seat replica of the historic 1938 Silver Theater—is impressive, sure, but the kinds of films they show are equally, if not more impressive. Never mind the revered recurring series like their annual summer showcase of beloved and forgotten ’80s movies, the theater’s upcoming film series gives an apt glance of the kind of carefully curated program it’s known for: centennial celebration of director William Castle; a Tim Burton retrospective; the Noir City Film Festival; and series on renown international directors Marco Bellocchio and Hou Hsiao-hsien. Cinephiles: this is your Mecca.
The AFI Silver Theater and Cultural Center is located at 8633 Colesville Road in Silver Spring, Md. Check out their schedule here.
E STREET CINEMA: Though E Street Cinema is best known as one of the best theaters showcasing new indie and international cinema, they also have a killer Midnight Madness series that routinely shows contemporary and old cult classics. Apart from monthly showings of the horror-musical classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show—with live shadow cast by the Sonic Transducers—you can count on the Midnight Madness series to show some truly great classics (I saw the director’s cut of Alien there last year) to new cult classics-in-the-making (Jim Jarmusch’s latest existential vampire drama Only Lovers Left Alive is showing next weekend). Oh and don’t be surprised to see your favorite cult film stars show up to screenings: The Room’s Tommy Wiseau and the cast and crew of Troll 2 have made repeat appearances at E Street screenings.
E Street Cinema is located at 555 11th Street NW #2. Check out their schedule here.
NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART: There’s quite a few museums in D.C. showcasing great repertory cinema, and nine times out of ten, the National Gallery of Art is behind it. Not only does the museum curate film series of classic, avant-garde, and documentary cinema in their own West Building Lecture Hall, but also at the AFI Silver, Goethe-Institut, National Archives’ McGowan Theater, The National Portrait Gallery’s McEvoy Auditorium, and occasionally at American University’s Malsi Doyle and Michael Forman Theater. There’s always several great film series going on, highlighting certain artistic and cinematic movements, or the cinema from a specific region. Art film lovers, heed my call: pay attention to the National Gallery of Art’s programming.
The National Gallery of Art is located at 6th and Constitution Avenue NW. Check out their programming schedule here.
FREER GALLERY: As the Smithsonian’s museum of Asian art, it’s no surprise that the Freer Gallery’s film program highlights the best of Asian cinema. With local premieres of the newest films from Asian auteurs throughout the continent, to screenings of classic Asian films and directors (I’ll never not go to see a Wong Kar-wai film there when it’s screening). Oh, and did I mention all screenings are free? No? Well, all screenings are free.
The Freer Gallery is located at 1050 Independence Avenue SW. Check out their programming schedule here.
Photo by army.arch.
MARY PICKFORD THEATER AND PACKARD CAMPUS THEATER AT THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS: On any given night of the week, you can catch a classic film at the Library of Congress’s Mary Pickford Theater and Packard Campus Theater. A look at this month’s lineup at the Packard Campus Theater gives a glimpse of the kind of terrific programming the LoC consistently delivers: His Girl Friday, Newsies, To Have and Have Not, a Czech cinema showcase. And just last month at the Mary Pickford Theater, our own Pat Padua curated a series of Ken Russell films. In January, he’ll be presenting a series of forgotten ’80s musicals. Like I said, the programming is consistently terrific.
The Mary Pickford Theater is located in the James Madison Memorial Building at 101 Independence Avenue SE. The Packard Campus Theater is located at 19053 Mount Pony Road in Culpeper, Va. Check out their programming here.
WARNER BROS. THEATER AT THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN HISTORY: Though they don’t show films as consistently as they should, the newly opened (in 2011) Warner Bros. Theater at the National Museum of American History is a gorgeous theater. Pay attention to their website, as they’ll screen classic films (the Warner Bros. vault is vast and great) along with the occasional documentary or film panel discussion. There’s also a great exhibit of classic film memorabilia just outside the theater. I only wish they screened movies more consistently!
The Warner Bros. Theater is located at 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW. Check out their programming here.
ARLINGTON CINEMA ‘N DRAFTHOUSE: Apart from playing new(ish) movies a few months after they were initially released (at a cheaper cost), pay attention to the Arlington Cinema ‘N Drafthouse schedule as they’ll semi-regularly play cult classics, usually with some kind of corresponding event (their annual showing of The Big Lebowski is not to be missed) for a truly memorable—and boozy—night of cinema.
The Arlington Cinema ‘N Drafthouse is located at 2903 Columbia Pike in Arlington, Va. Check out the schedule here.
GOETHE-INSTITUT: The Goethe-Institut is often rented out by other parties for screenings and festival—AFI Docs being a particularly noteworthy client—but it also showcases the best of German and Eastern European cinema throughout the year. Beginning next week, the Goethe will kick off their annual Film|Neu festival, which showcases new films Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Throughout the year, check the calendar for screenings of classic European cinema. The theaters intimate setting makes for a truly memorable viewing experience.
The Goethe-Institut is located at 812 7th Street NW. Programming schedule here.
