Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
flicks. The corn and grilled meat are all you can eat from 3 to 8pm ($15), and there are two-for-one happy hour
drinks.
1221 Astoria Blvd., btw. 12th and 14th sts., Astoria, Queens.
718/204-8313.
www.hellgatesocial.com
.
Subway: N/Q to Astoria Blvd.
HBO Bryant Park Summer Film Festival
Bryant Park's movies are the most famous and most popular of
New York's outdoor talkies. A huge screen goes up along Sixth Avenue across from the library's back porch, and
the lawn fills with friendly movie fanatics. Film selections run from kitsch like
JailhouseRock
to classics like
The
PhiladelphiaStory
to tripped-out wonders like
2001:ASpaceOdyssey.
Watching the latter from the grass brings a
creepy resonance, given Bryant Park was once a potter's field. The gravel area outside the lawn opens at 4pm,
followed by the gates at 5pm. If you want a decent view you should be on-site by then at the latest. Bring a cross-
word puzzle and a picnic dinner and pretend you're just sitting in the park and not waiting for a show. Late-
comers have to watch from way back or the wings. It's not untenable; it's just not as much fun as dancing through
the HBO trailer from the heart of the crowd. If you time things right, and the director's done her work, this event
is totally worth its logistical impositions. Shows are Monday nights June through August with no rain dates.
W.
40th to 41st, on the Sixth Ave. side of Bryant Park.
212/512-5700.
www.bryantpark.org
.
Subway: B/D/F/M to 42nd St.; 7 to Fifth Ave.
Movie Nights on the Elevated Acre
Despite a glowing beacon, a huge swath of open space, and gorgeous
harbor views, this downtown park flies well under the radar. Introduce yourself to the spot during free Thursday
movie nights in late July and August. Programming focuses on NY classic films (Woody Allen is well represen-
ted), paired with indie shorts. The crowd is capped by a ticketing system: Pick up your passes at the ground-level
Water Street entrance (two per person) starting at 6pm the evening of the screening. Films begin around 8pm.
55
Water St., at Old Slip.
212/566-6700.
www.rivertorivernyc.com
.
Subway: R to Whitehall; 1 to South Ferry.
Outdoor Cinema Program at Socrates Sculpture Park
Queens is the most culturally diverse spot on
the planet, so it makes sense that a Queens film festival would show off movies from around the world. You'll
also find culture-appropriate food vendors, so you can nosh on Italian during
TheBicycleThief
or Indian while
MonsoonWedding
plays. The movies flicker at Socrates Sculpture Park in Long Island City, a former dump site re-
suscitated as an artistic oasis along the East River. There are great skyline sightlines, and they throw in free music
and dancing as well, beginning at 7pm. Wednesday nights in July and August, movies start at dusk.
32-01 Vernon
Blvd., at Broadway, Astoria, Queens.
718/784-4520.
www.socratessculpturepark.org
. Subway: N/Q to Broadway. Walk 8 blocks along Broadway toward the
East River.
Red Hook Flicks
This neighborhood movie show boasts waterfront sunsets and Statue of Liberty views,
on top of screenings of fan favorites like
BringItOn,Highlander,
and
Pee-wee'sBigAdventure.
Films go Tuesday
nights from mid-July to mid-September, starting around 8:30pm.
Louis Valentino, Jr. Park and Pier, near Coffey and Ferris sts., Red
Hook, Brooklyn.
www.redhooklicks.com
.
Subway: F/G to Smith/9th St.
RiverFlicks
The waters of the Hudson and the Jersey skyline provide the backdrop for RiverFlicks. This is
a viewer-friendly scene, with chairs laid out on the pier, free popcorn, and themed films that tend toward crowd-
pleasing recent hits.
Legally Blonde, 8 Mile,
and
Gladiator
have all made the cut. This is not actually one of my
favorites, as the spot is loud, and overbright lighting makes the screen hard to scan. On the plus side, as a result
of the marginal conditions there are usually seats left over (if not, there's blanket-spreading space in back and
on the wings). Pier 63 hosts Wednesday nights for adults, and Pier 46 takes Fridays for kids, in July and August.
Pier 46, at Charles St. and the Hudson.
212/627-2121.
www.riverlicks.com
.
Subway: 1 to Christopher St. Walk toward the river. Pier 63, at 22nd St. and the
Hudson. Subway: C/E to 23rd St. Walk toward the river.
Solar-Powered Film Series
Solar One is New York's first free-standing building to get all of its power not
from recycled dinosaurs, but from Helios himself. To celebrate this achievement (and to raise awareness about
the inevitable need to live greener in NYC), the building hosts an annual film festival. Over 2 August weekends,
projectors running on sun power alone show six well-chosen films, often documentaries that highlight some as-
pect of our environmental plight. See also p. 272 for the dance series.
Stuyvesant Cove Park, 23rd St. and the FDR.
212/
505-6050.
www.solar1.org
.
Subway 6 to 23rd St.; L to First Ave.
Summer Movie Series at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
How 40,000 tons can float is beyond
my limited engineering comprehension, but I'm all over any chance to check out a battleship flight deck for free.
On select summer Fridays, the
Intrepid
screens a flick on its up-top runway.
TopGun
plays most every year, along
with kid-friendly fare. Doors open at 7:30pm and films start about an hour later; picnics, blankets, and lawn
