Been meaning to post something about the refurbished Quad Cinema... not too far away from the neighborhood on 13th Street between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue.
The four-screen cinema reopened on April 14. These photos are from April 16...
On this day, I went to see the 12:20 p.m. screening of Katell Quillevere’s "Heal the Living" (quite compelling!) ... it was Easter Sunday, and at this hour there were only three other people in the theater... (it was much more crowded during other visits)...
As previously reported, the Quad Cinema, family-owned and operated since 1972, was sold in 2014 to real-estate developer, film producer-distributor and movie buff Charles S. Cohen (his distribution company was conveniently behind the U.S. release of "Heal the Living"). The theater then went under an extensive renovation to upgrade the space. Cohen hired C. Mason Wells, the IFC film programmer, and Gavin Smith, former Film Comment editor, to help with programming.
The Quad has been screening some interesting work, showcasing foreign, independent and classic films... upcoming, for instance, they're featuring retrospectives of New York-born director Frank Perry and his screenwriter wife Eleanor Perry ... as well as actor Sam Elliott (including "Road House" on June 8!).
There's a lot to choose from on any given day. For instance, tomorrow (Saturday), there are nine different films featured, including screenings of "The Man Who Fell to Earth," "Stranger Than Paradise," "Liquid Sky" and "Superman." (Tickets are $15, which is the same at the Village East Cinema on Second Avenue ... and less than the $17.50 that the AMC Village 7 on Third Avenue fetches.)
There is a cafe connected to the Quad's lobby. It was not open when I was there. And the cafe is for pre or post screenings. This isn't a theater where you bring drinks into the auditorium (a la Alamo Drafthouse).
In any event, I've enjoyed going to the Quad... it's one more choice to go along with the Metrograph on Ludlow Street and my usual go-to theater, the Anthology Film Archives on Second Street and Second Avenue... not to mention the Film Forum, the IFC Center, the Angelika Film Center and Cinema Village.
I'm glad the Quad is there. I'm still going to miss the Sunshine when it ultimately closes next year. The Sunshine is the closest theater to where I live, and I'll miss running out for those last-minute, early-afternoon screenings on the occasional days off...
The renovations look great; I'm digging the metal work done for the canopy over the entrance.
ReplyDeleteI love the new Quad. I am so glad it is back and showing even more films.
ReplyDeleteGreat theater but those new seats look like first class in an airplane. Do they come with complimentary cocktails?
ReplyDeleteThe canopy - I want to throw something in there! I can see rain and snow accumulating in there. And, a cozy place for pigeons nests.
ReplyDeleteAMC Village 7 is $17.50 - blow me.
ReplyDeleteWhen you think about it, the independent/non-nationally shown film theater scene below 14th Street is alive and well even with Sunshine Theater closing.
Quad Cinema, Cinema Village, Village East, Anthology Film Archives, IFC Center, Film Forum, Metrograph, Angelika Theater - EIGHT theaters.
We also have two solid multiplex theaters for mainstream movies in Regal Cinemas Union Square and Battery Park City (the latter hands down the best place to see a mainstream movie in NYC) which have $15 admission so again AMC Village 7 can blow me for charging $17.50.