Movie Theaters Around New York City to Beat the Heat that Aren’t AMC or Regal

In Texas, the summers are suffocating.

The only way to escape the sweltering southern heat is to beat it by staying inside with solid air conditioning, and as a child my personal safe haven was my local movie theater.

There was nothing I enjoyed more than catching the latest summer blockbuster with my parents, and then sitting in the back seat of the broiling car telling my dad my favorite parts.

As a superhero-obsessed middle schooler, meeting my best friends on the curb with my mom waving goodbye, saying she’ll be back in a couple of hours to pick me up. Finally getting my driver's license and maximizing my free will to see movies that no one else was interested in alone. 

When I moved to New York City for college, it took me exactly one month to bite the bullet and see a movie alone in a brand new place.

On a Wednesday before my 6 pm lecture, I took myself to Regal Union Square to see Venom 2. And just like all those years prior, everything that made me fall in love with going to the movies as a child was now an even bigger part of what would come of my new adult life in New York City.

Whether it's seeing a cinematic classic that's been on my watchlist for months or catching the latest indie feature debut from a young director, going to the movies is akin to going to church for me. Going at least once a week makes all feel right in the world. 

Cinephiles living in NYC suffer no shortage of great movie theaters in every borough.

From historic one-screen auditoriums to newly-furbished warehouses, there’s no better independent scene than here in the city.

Here are some of the best New York City independent theaters to defend yourself from the stuffy streets. 

Manhattan:

Film Forum

This theater is arguably the most important and deservedly popular independent cinema in New York City. From its opening in 1970, Film Forum has remained a cinematic staple, yielding praise from prolific filmmakers and actors alike, Agnes Varda to Ethan Hawke.

A large part of its praise is due to the programming; Film Forum screens American independent, documentary, and international feature films, as well as impressive and carefully curated repertory series. If the history and everything the Film Forum has to offer still isn’t convincing enough, they also have incredible popcorn. Don’t waste another movie night in the city anywhere else. 

Angelika Film Center

Similar to Film Forum, Angelika Film Center stands as a pillar of New York City, with two locations outside of its original Houston street location. What was originally a … has now become a staple in NYC moviegoing culture. Constantly screening a range of new independent releases and retrospectives, there’s something of interest for everyone.

This summer, Angelika worked alongside the Criterion Collection to run “Lynchian: A David Lynch Retrospective”. Seeing the works of the incomparable late filmmaker on the big screen is an essential for any film lover. 

Metrograph 

Compared to Film Forum or Angelika, Metrograph is a baby independent theater, with its doors having opened just ten years ago. However, within those ten years, Metrograph has solidified itself to be one of the most popular independent theaters in New York City and for good reason.

Their film-only programming is mainly a repertory one, with the occasional new release and Q&A between two screens. Settled inside a refurbished warehouse in the Lower East Side, Metrograph also has an upscale food selection and two bars, inspired by Hollywood's golden age. 

Paris Theater

If you have ever thought to yourself that a Netflix original film would be better to experience in a dark auditorium while sitting in a cushy red velvet chair with a crisp soft drink, then Paris Theater is the place for you.

This single-screen theater is the longest-running arthouse cinema in New York City, and after being bought by Netflix in 2019 screens limited engagements of films made for streaming, as well as running programs curated by filmmakers and other retrospectives. In mid-July, Paris Theater and the Film Noir Foundation are running “Noir City: New York” a traveling celebration of film noir, which includes 32 feature films on 35mm print.

IFC Center 

In the heart of Greenwich Village, IFC Center has been highlighting independent films since 2005. Alongside their usual theatrical distribution of independent, foreign, and documentary features, they also present theatrical productions of National Theatre Live and host DOC NYC every November.

They also feature two series, Waverly Midnights and Short Attention Span Cinema. Waverly Midnights focuses on cult classics, screening at midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, while Short Attention Span Cinema screens short films before features. 

Brooklyn: 

BAM Rose Cinemas 

The Brooklyn Academy of Music hosts art across multiple mediums, spotlighting everything from film to theater to dance and live music.

Their film programming is nothing short of impressive, screening both new releases and carefully curated and niche series that center on various topics. In mid-July, BAM will be presenting "Electronica" a series that features films with electronic-heavy soundtracks, and then following that, they will be screening a series of contemporary Arab cinema. 

Syndicated Bar Theater Kitchen

If the classic popcorn saturated in butter and overpriced fountain drink don’t tickle your fancy, then Syndicated is the perfect cinematic outing for you.

Like chains such as Nitehawk and Alamo Drafthouse, Syndicated has a full drink and dinner menu, and it accompanies their one screening a day. To keep up with their screening schedule and programming, which floats between new releases and repertory, follow them on Instagram for updates! 

Queens:

MoMI

Surrounded by the magical works of Jim Henson and quirky rotating exhibits is a massive screening room that contains some of my personal favorite programming around the city.

With an exciting “De Palma: Summer of Suspense” and “Culture Wars” series running through late July, the Museum of the Moving Image is an absolute essential for any film lover in New York City. Start your day learning about the technical histories of cinema and make your way through the exciting exhibits, such as “Overexposed: Art, Technology, and the Body” and  “Sense of Nowhere,” an interactive VR technology experience, then make your way to the auditorium to catch a film. 

Low Cinema  

Small but mighty, Low Cinema is located in Ridgewood with only 42 seats and features a wide range of programming. Partners John Wilson, Davis Fowlkes, and Cosmo Bjorkenheim are driven by their love of cinema and their neighborhood, and in an effort to keep moviegoing alive and well, they opened Low Cinema in May of 2025.

Their programming contains anything and everything from obscure documentaries to hit romantic comedy blockbusters; this quaint cinema needs to be on everyone’s radar this summer. 

Go to the movies and support arthouse cinemas! Happy watching.

The Drama and the Limits of Movie Marketing

Spoiler alert for "The Drama"

TW: School shootings, gun violence

When A24 released the trailers for The Drama, audiences thought they knew what they were getting; at least I did. 

The marketing promised a tense romantic drama starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson.

Social media immediately began theorizing about the central mystery: what had happened between the couple, and what secret was threatening their marriage?

Like many film fans, I was hooked.

As a film student and longtime A24 viewer, I was excited. The trailers were effective. They created intrigue without revealing too much, which is exactly what good marketing is supposed to do.

Then I got spoiled.

A TikTok video revealed the film's major twist before I had a chance to see it myself. Suddenly, the conversation around The Drama shifted from romance and relationships to something much heavier. The film's central revelation (spoiler alert) that Zendaya's character had planned a school shooting as a teenager.

This sparked immediate backlash and reopened an ongoing debate about audience responsibility, content warnings, and the role of marketing.

The criticism wasn't necessarily about the film itself. It was about the surprise. For many viewers, school shootings aren't simply a plot device. They're lived experiences.

I know this because I was on a college campus during a shooting.

In October 2022, while I was a freshman at the University of Arizona, Professor Thomas Meixner was shot and killed in a building next to where I was attending class at that same time.

Authorities would later determine that the attack was targeted and carried out by a former student. But in the hours immediately following the shooting, nobody knew that.

What I remember most is uncertainty.

I remember being on the phone with my mother asking whether I should go to my next class, stay where I was, or return to my dorm.

I remember emergency alerts appearing across campus. I remember the fear in my classmates' faces. Most vividly, I remember not knowing whether the person responsible was still somewhere nearby.

People often reserve the label "survivor" for those directly involved in a shooting, and I understand why. I wasn't in the room. I wasn't physically harmed. 

Yet trauma doesn't always follow neat definitions. I still remember exactly where I was sitting when I got the alert. I remember the clothes I was wearing. I remember texting my family that I loved them.

Four years later, I still think about it.

That's why The Drama's marketing controversy interested me, not because I was offended by the film, but because it raised a question that filmmakers increasingly have to confront: How do you market a twist built around a collective trauma? There are no easy answers.

Film marketing exists to generate curiosity. Revealing major plot points can weaken a film's impact before audiences ever buy a ticket. At the same time, subjects like school shootings occupy a unique place in American culture. They are not rare tragedies. They are recurring realities.

According to Sandy Hook Promise, more than 390,000 students in the United States have experienced gun violence at school since Columbine, and lockdown drills are now a routine experience for most American students (Sandy Hook Promise; Brady United).  For many viewers, school shootings aren't hypothetical fears; they're memories.

So where does that leave filmmakers?

Should marketing campaigns explicitly warn audiences when a film contains school-shooting or trigger worthy content? If they do, does that effectively spoil the narrative? If they don't, are viewers being denied information that could help them make informed decisions about what they're about to watch? The debate surrounding The Drama suggests there may never be a universally accepted answer.

What the controversy does reveal, however, is how normalized these conversations have become. The fact that audiences immediately questioned whether a school-shooting twist required a warning says something unsettling about contemporary America. An entire generation has grown up measuring films against experiences that previous generations never imagined would become routine.

That reality extends far beyond movie theaters.

Following the University of Arizona shooting, counseling resources became overwhelmed as students attempted to process what had happened. The incident was eventually classified as targeted, but that distinction offered little comfort in the moment.

My fear didn't wait for official reports.

Perhaps that's why the discussion around The Drama resonates with so many people. It isn't really about a single movie. It's about the challenge of telling stories about violence in a country where violence increasingly shapes real lives.

I still haven't seen The Drama… Maybe I eventually will.

But the marketing controversy surrounding it forced me to think about something larger than a plot twist. It made me reflect on how trauma travels beyond the moment it occurs; into classrooms, conversations, films, and marketing campaigns.

The stories we tell are shaped by the world we live in.

For some viewers, a plot twist is just a plot twist. For others, it's a memory.

Read more about the drama, shootings and UofA below:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2026/04/03/drama-movie-controversy-gun-violence-school-shooting/89388141007/\ 

https://www.businessinsider.com/the-drama-movie-twist-spoilers-backlash-columbine-zendaya-robert-pattinson-2026-4 

https://news.arizona.edu/news/what-youre-feeling-after-campus-shooting-normal 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/thomas-meixner-university-of-arizona-professor-killed-by-former-student-identified/ 

https://www.sandyhookpromise.org/

Fandom Spaces Have a Boundary Problem

At the end of February, amid the ever-persisting Heated Rivalry craze, an article was published for New York Magazine called “The Great Fujoshi Awakening: Why Do So Many Women Love Men Who Love Men?” In the article, the author made very specific references to works of fanfiction online, going so far as to link one of the works within the article. There was immediate public outcry by fans on Twitter discussing the impropriety of bringing free fan works into a for-profit space without the fanfiction author’s consent. While the work was delinked soon after, it brought attention to the rapidly increasing lack of boundaries in fandom spaces, both by fans, people interacting from an outsider perspective, and people involved in the source material.

A multitude of comments have surfaced recently regarding a “separation of church and state” in an analogy for keeping fandom spaces separate from the creators and/or cast and crew of the source material the fans are for. This idea is not new, as there have been conversations around the legality of fanfiction for quite some time. There can be copyright problems, which fans of Anne Rice’s literary works are probably familiar with. Rumors around Anne Rice suing fans for writing fanfiction in the 1990s have circulated for years, but in reality, she just took a stance against fanfiction out of a desire for creatives to come up with their own stories and leave her alone. Some fans said they received cease-and-desist letters from Rice’s lawyer to remove their fanfiction from the internet. It is important to note that Rice later changed her opinions on fanfiction due to realizing she could easily avoid coming into contact with fan works. Because similar problems have occurred over the years, some fanfiction websites, like Fanfiction.net, even have a list of authors whose works are prohibited from the site on account of the authors’ stricter copyright claims. 

Most of the time, copyright claims are only an issue for fanfiction if the creator is somehow profiting from the material. Fanfiction is on public websites with free access, and there are rarely instances where fanfiction authors are making money from their works because they know it would be a copyright issue. Part of the problem with the aforementioned article was that it was behind a paywall, indirectly profiting off of someone’s fanfiction that was temporarily linked. It’s incredibly important to note that Heated Rivalry itself stemmed from fanfiction. Author Rachel Reid adapted her first book in the series, Game Changer, from fanfiction she wrote about Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She’s far from the first person to do so: Fifty Shades of Grey began as Twilight fanfiction, and The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood began as Star Wars fanfiction. 

It’s incredibly important to note that what all of these published authors have in common is that they’re women. To recenter Heated Rivalry, much of the backlash revolved around the idea that straight women were fetishizing gay men. There are plenty of straight female fans of Heated Rivalry, but to act as though they’re the only fans of the show or book series is disingenuous. There is a wide array of queer people who are fans of both, and there are queer people in the cast and crew. The show creator himself is a gay man, and he’s spoken at length about the nuances of why women are drawn to the show. The inflammatory comments surrounding the fanbase of Heated Rivalry are steeped in thinly veiled misogyny. When one Twitter user asked, “Why do men keep calling things women are into mass psychosis?”, another replied, “Cause they can’t use female hysteria anymore.” The fanfiction writer whose work was linked in the New York Magazine article made a statement on Twitter about the situation and also called attention to the rampant misogyny and ignoring of just-as-present queer fans. He (@/subc0rax) wrote, “It feels like a shame that an article that’s seemingly willing to engage with the reasons women enjoy this kind of romance and explore the fact that not all of these fans are even women doesn’t seem to be able to connect the dots and entertain the possibility that there are gay men enjoying the current Heated Rivalry craze with the same fervour and adoration as its female audience.” 

Many of the problems stem from fan works reaching the eyes and ears of the authors and other direct participants of the source material. Many of these instances have been brought up in relation to the Heated Rivalry article. One situation was on the Graham Norton Show, where Norton displayed romantic fan art between the X-Men characters Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr to actors James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender. It is uncertain as to whether or not Norton received permission from the artist to project it on television and/or show it to the actors, but it also didn’t feel like it was in good faith and was much rather poking fun at the fan art. There have been similar issues in The Pitt fandom, where interviewers have been asking actors directly what their opinions are on ships (desired romantic pairings between characters, short for “relationships”) of their characters, sometimes even asking if they’re going to happen in the course of the show. An article was recently posted titled “‘The Pitt’ Fans Are Horny Little Freaks,” to which the author was essentially berating fans for shipping characters and creating fan works based on the show. The Pitt actors have also been shown erotic fan art in recent interviews, as a means for inciting some sort of reaction, once again without any consideration for the artists who very probably did not intend for the actors to see it. One Twitter user (@/midwestprincsss) commented, “I really don’t like that fanfic and fanart are being used to make actors give a reaction that’s profitable for the publication interviewing them. Fan work is not for corporations or the folks in the project. It’s for fans.” Most fans feel similarly, especially since the people showing the actors or whoever is involved with the source material are often doing so in bad faith.

Within fandoms, there are boundary problems surrounding parasocialism, in which fans act overly familiar with celebrities as though they know these people in real life. A divisive aspect of fanfiction in many fandoms is real person fiction (RPF), where people write about real people. While plenty of people write and make fan art for their own enjoyment, there are also plenty of people who take it too seriously and begin to intrude on the celebrities’ personal lives. Some will comment cruel things on a celebrity’s Instagram page, and some will go so far as to stalk a certain celebrity and their family. This was a longstanding issue in the Dan and Phil fandom, which kept the YouTubers from talking about their sexualities, relationships, and personal lives for well over a decade. There have been more recent issues for actors in the Disney+ Percy Jackson television adaptation, too, as the teenage lead Walker Scobell took to Instagram to call out “fans” who have been stalking and harassing his friends and family. These examples illustrate that this is not a one-sided issue of outsiders intruding on fandom but also fandom intruding on the lives of the creatives involved in the works they claim to love. 

This is not any one fandom’s problem, as these issues have been arising since before the age of the internet. However, the increased amounts of social media platforms and the rise of public-facing fandoms have made these issues more apparent. So what should we do? First, news outlets need to stop using fan works without the creators’ consent, especially when they’re profiting off of it. Otherwise, fandoms are always going to have problems. There will always be plenty of kind, welcoming, and respectful fans, just as there will always be some fans who start arguments, breach boundaries, and give their fandoms a bad reputation. As many things do these days, many of these problems boil down to critical thinking and media literacy skills. There needs to be a boundary between fans and what their fandom is for, or we will lose any worthwhile contact going forward. Fanfiction writers and fan artists shouldn’t be afraid of their works being exposed on television or published articles, and actors and other creators shouldn’t be afraid of their lives or the lives of their loved ones being aggressively disrupted.