Coolidge Corner Theatre

No local theater better represents the spirit of independents than this grande dame in Coolidge Corner. The paint may be chipped and the seats may be missing a few threads, but Beacon Cinema Group honchos Marianne Lampke and Connie White keep packing them in with director appearances and special events like the uproarious "Sing-Along Sound of Music." Campy midnight movies (Toxic Avenger, Footloose) screen alongside breakthrough hits (Pollock), and deserving foreign titles (Yi Yi, Long Night's Journey into Day). Expanding its scope even further, the theater recently unveiled a plush new video screening room with showings curated by local filmmakers.