The Art Film

Two hours for the film. Another hour, at minimum, for what comes after.

The art film as a date works precisely because it asks something of you. You can’t coast through it. You have to pay attention, decide how you feel about what you’re seeing, and then — this is the part most people skip — actually talk about it afterward with the person next to you.

The after-conversation is the date. The film is the premise.

Pick something with a point of view. Not deliberately difficult, not obscure for the sake of obscure — something made with intention that leaves room for interpretation. The films that work best for this are the ones where two people can watch the same scene and come away with genuinely different readings. That’s the raw material for the conversation you want to be having at eleven o’clock over a drink you weren’t expecting to have.

Seek out the independent cinema in your city rather than the multiplex. The projection tends to be better. The crowd is quieter. And the repertory theaters that screen classic and international cinema create a specific atmosphere — the sense that you’re there to actually watch, not just to say you did (tickets run $14–18 at most independent houses, less for matinees). Some cities have theaters that pair films with wine or cocktails; those are worth seeking out specifically.

Sit toward the middle. Don’t talk during the film. Don’t check your phone. Let the thing actually happen to you.

Afterward, don’t go straight to the car. Find a bar or a coffee place near the theater and sit down. The conversation needs a room. Some combination of: what did you actually think, was there a moment that got to you, what did you think it meant, what did it make you think about that has nothing to do with the film at all. The best version of this conversation will drift away from the movie within twenty minutes and end up somewhere neither of you expected.

Find your local equivalent

Search your city plus “repertory cinema,” “art house,” or “independent film.” Most cities with a university have at least one. The Criterion Channel and MUBI are good sources for the same experience at home if there’s nothing nearby — pick something together, make the room for it properly, treat it like you’d treat going out.

Where to start

The Film Forum in New York and the Cinematheque in Los Angeles are the gold standards. The Music Box in Chicago. The Alamo Drafthouse does repertory programming at several locations nationally and gets the experience right. For a weekend road trip version: the Brattle Theatre in Cambridge has been programming seriously for decades. If you’re choosing at home, pick something from the Criterion Collection that neither of you has seen. Trust the selection.

watching  ·  going-out  ·  any-stage  ·  cinema  ·  art-house  ·  conversation  ·  evening  ·  drinks-after  ·  intentional  ·  independent