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Where to watch movies in LA
LA still runs real film projectors in rooms older than your grandparents, and most of them are a short ride from your couch. Here are the ones worth leaving the house for.
Streaming at home is fine. Watching a 35mm print with 300 strangers who all laugh at the same weird moment is better. LA is the one city where you can catch a Tarantino-owned double feature on a Tuesday, a 70mm print on a Friday and Rocky Horror at midnight on Saturday without ever getting on a plane.
This list sticks to theaters that are open right now and actually worth the trip. Some are about the projector, some are about the building, some are about the crowd. Showtimes change constantly, so check each theater's own calendar before you head out, and buy tickets online for anything special. The good stuff sells out.
Real film, real projectors: 35mm and 70mm in LA
If you want to see movies the way they were shot, on actual film with that little flicker and grain, these are the rooms. Repertory cinema in LA is alive because of a handful of stubborn owners and nonprofits. Support them.
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Fairfax / Beverly Grove
New Beverly Cinema
7165 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036The New Bev is the heart of repertory cinema in LA. It has been running double features since 1978, and Quentin Tarantino bought the building in 2007 to keep it from getting torn down. He took over programming in 2014 and it has been 35mm only ever since, with 16mm when that's the only print around. Some of the prints come straight out of his personal collection.
It's a small, roughly 300-seat room. Nights usually open with vintage trailers and cartoons before the first feature, which is half the fun. The monthly Grindhouse Film Festival lives here, and there are midnight movies on Fridays and Saturdays. Weekend Kiddee Matinees run in the afternoon if you're dragging a niece along.
TipStay for the second feature. It's the same ticket and the programming pairs are the whole point.
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Los Feliz
Vista Theatre
4473 Sunset Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90027The Vista opened in 1923 at the corner where Sunset and Hollywood Boulevards meet. Tarantino took it over in 2021 and reopened it in November 2023 after a full restoration: restored neon marquee, mustard gold paint job, new seats. It plays new releases and some classics, all on film. No digital.
It has a 70mm projection system, and as of 2025 it can run VistaVision too, which it used for One Battle After Another. Weekend matinees and midnight shows lean repertory. Downstairs there's a coffee spot called Pam's Coffy and a tiny 20-seat micro-cinema, the Video Archives Cinema Club. Check out the celebrity handprints in the forecourt on your way in.
TipBig new releases on 70mm sell out fast here. Buy the second tickets go on sale.
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Eagle Rock
Vidiots
4884 Eagle Rock Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90041Vidiots used to be a beloved Santa Monica video store. Now it's a nonprofit living inside the old Eagle Theatre, a nearly century-old building that has been a vaudeville stage and an adult cinema in past lives. The main room has 271 seats and runs 35mm and 16mm alongside digital, plus a 36-seat microcinema for smaller stuff.
The best part is next door: a real video store with around 50,000 DVDs, Blu-rays and VHS tapes to rent. The lobby bar pours beer and wine with light bites. It's the most Eastside night out on this list in the best way.
TipGrab a rental on the way out so the night keeps going at home.
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Los Feliz
Los Feliz 3
1822 N Vermont Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90027A 1935 single-screen theater that got split into a triplex in the early '90s. The American Cinematheque programs the biggest room, Cinema 1, seven days a week. It only has 144 seats and the seating is unreserved, so it feels like a neighborhood clubhouse for film nerds.
It runs 35mm and digital, and it sits on the same Vermont strip as a bunch of good bars and restaurants. Easy to pair with the Vista, which is a few minutes away.
TipSeating is first come, first served. Show up a bit early for anything popular.
The old Hollywood movie palaces
These buildings are the reason people move here. Gilded ceilings, giant screens, a century of premieres. Even if the movie is mid, the room carries it.
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Hollywood
Egyptian Theatre
6712 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028Sid Grauman opened the Egyptian in October 1922 with a premiere of Robin Hood, five years before his Chinese Theatre went up down the street. Netflix bought the building from the American Cinematheque in 2020, restored it, and reopened it in November 2023. Netflix programs Monday through Thursday. The Cinematheque runs Friday through Sunday.
It can show 35mm, 70mm, nitrate prints and digital. The Egyptian went dark in June 2026 for technical upgrades and is back on the Cinematheque calendar this fall. Weekend programming is where the deep cuts, guest Q&As and 70mm runs show up.
TipCheck the Cinematheque calendar for weekend screenings with guests. Those are the nights to go.
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Hollywood
El Capitan Theatre
6838 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028The El Capitan opened in May 1926 as a live theater and turns 100 this year. Disney partnered on a restoration that reopened it in 1991, and it's been Disney's home on Hollywood Boulevard ever since. So yes, it's mostly Disney, Pixar and Marvel releases.
That sounds limiting until you're inside. The room is ornate, over the top and a blast to see a big family movie in. Special anniversary screenings pop up too, like The Rocketeer coming back this year for the centennial.
TipGo for a big animated release on opening weekend. The crowd is half the show.
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Santa Monica
Aero Theatre
1328 Montana Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90403Aviation guy Donald Douglas built the Aero in 1940 so workers at his nearby aircraft plant could catch a movie at any hour. The American Cinematheque reopened it in 2005 and it's now the Westside's best repertory house, with upgraded projection and sound from renovations in 2019 and 2021.
It's a single screen on a quiet stretch of Montana Avenue. Programming leans classic and repertory. Every October it runs an overnight horror marathon that has become a local tradition.
TipMake it a Westside night. See our Santa Monica guide for where to hang before.
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West LA / Sawtelle
Nuart Theatre
11272 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90025The Nuart opened in 1929 and became Landmark Theatres' very first theater when the chain bought it in 1974. It's still the flagship. Weekdays are indie and foreign releases, but the reputation is the midnight shows.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show plays every Saturday at midnight with a live shadow cast, and has since the 1980s. Friday midnights rotate through cult stuff. If you've never done Rocky Horror with a real crowd, this is where you get initiated, and the regulars will make sure everyone knows it.
TipFirst-timers at Rocky Horror get called out. Lean into it.
Best IMAX in LA and other big rooms
When the movie is three hours of explosions or space, you want the biggest screen you can find. These are the rooms locals argue about.
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Hollywood
TCL Chinese Theatre
6925 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028Grauman's Chinese opened in 1927 and the forecourt full of handprints and footprints is the most iconic tourist stop on the Boulevard. Inside, the main auditorium was converted to IMAX in 2013 and seats 932 people.
The building also has a separate multiplex, so make sure your ticket is for the main room. It's listed online as IMAX or Auditorium 7. The forecourt is a zoo during the day. At night it's a lot more fun.
TipBook Auditorium 7, not the multiplex. Middle of the room, halfway back.
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Miracle Mile
Academy Museum theaters
6067 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures has its own state-of-the-art screening room, the David Geffen Theater. Programming includes themed series like awards-season runs, and it shows 70mm when the print exists. This year's Oscars series ran Sinners and One Battle After Another in 70mm.
It's a different energy than the old palaces: modern, comfortable and very serious about presentation. Pair it with the museum exhibits during the day and a screening at night.
TipWatch the museum's series calendar. Special screenings go fast.
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Downtown LA
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema DTLA
Alamo's downtown location sits inside The Bloc on 7th Street, right by the 7th Street/Metro Center station. It has 12 screens, food and drinks served at your seat, and a calendar that mixes new releases with special screenings.
It's the easiest pick on this list if you're staying downtown or want to take the train. See our Downtown LA guide for the rest of the night.
TipTake the Metro. 7th Street/Metro Center drops you right there.
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West LA
Laemmle Royal
11523 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90025Not a big-screen spectacle, but worth knowing. The Laemmle Royal is a few blocks from the Nuart and is where a lot of the indie, foreign and documentary releases land in LA. If a film you read about isn't playing at the multiplex, it's probably here.
Pair it with dinner on Sawtelle and you've got a whole Westside night.
TipPark once and walk. The Nuart is a few blocks east.
Drive-in movies and outdoor screenings in LA
Drive-ins mean somebody has to drive. Make sure that somebody is sober. That's not a lecture, it's just how it works.
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City of Industry (San Gabriel Valley)
Vineland Drive-In
443 N Vineland Ave, City of Industry, CA 91746The real deal. Vineland has been showing movies since the 1950s and still runs four screens of new releases. One ticket gets you a double feature, but you can't hop screens, so pick your pair carefully.
Sound comes through your car's FM radio. No radio, no problem: you can rent one at the snack bar. It runs rain or shine.
TipGet there early for a spot near the center of the screen, and bring a blanket for the back seat.
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Hollywood
Cinespia at Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Watching a movie on a lawn in a cemetery where old Hollywood stars are buried sounds goth. It's actually the most LA summer night you can have. Cinespia runs screenings at Hollywood Forever, and 2026 marks its 25th season.
It's seasonal. The main run is summer, wrapping up around Labor Day, with some extra post-summer screenings this anniversary year. You can bring blankets, food and drinks, and there are DJs, photo booths, beer and wine bars and food stands.
TipTickets sell out. Buy as soon as the month's lineup drops and arrive when the gates open to claim lawn space.
Neighborhood arthouses outside the usual spots
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Gardena / South Bay
Gardena Cinema
14948 Crenshaw Blvd, Gardena, CA 90249Built in 1946 and run by the Kim family since 1976, Gardena Cinema is the last single-screen theater in the South Bay. It's a city Legacy Business and the definition of a family-run movie house.
Programming mixes second-run, indie and community events like cinema potlucks and popcorn happy hours. In October 2026 it hosted the Night Frights LA horror fest. Going here genuinely keeps a place like this alive.
TipFollow their events calendar. The special nights are where it shines.
Making a night of it
Theaters are not the place to light up, and nobody wants to be the person who gets tossed from a Tarantino house. Sesh at home base first, then grab a ride so nobody's driving. Most of these spots have rough parking anyway, especially Hollywood and Los Feliz. If you need ideas for where you can actually smoke, see where to smoke in LA.
Time it so the high lands somewhere around the opening trailers. Two-hour movie plus a double feature at the New Bev is a long night, so pace yourself. Then go eat. A late-night taco or a burger after a midnight movie is non-negotiable. Our late-night food guide has spots near most of these theaters. First time doing this in LA? Start with the first-timer basics.
What's closed or coming back
The Cinerama Dome on Sunset has been dark since the pandemic. Sony is leasing and restoring it, Alamo Drafthouse will operate it, and the reopening is planned for 2028. Until then, it's just a very cool dome to look at from the sidewalk. Westwood's Bruin and Village theaters are also mid-comeback. Check their status before you go.
Questions people ask
Which LA theaters show 35mm film?
The New Beverly Cinema shows only 35mm and 16mm, and the Vista Theatre in Los Feliz shows only film, including 70mm. Vidiots in Eagle Rock, Los Feliz 3, the Aero in Santa Monica and the Egyptian in Hollywood all run 35mm too. Check each theater's calendar, since format is usually listed per screening.
Where is the New Beverly Cinema?
The New Beverly is at 7165 Beverly Blvd in Los Angeles. Quentin Tarantino owns it, and it runs 35mm double features most nights plus midnight shows on Fridays and Saturdays.
Where can I see 70mm in LA?
The Vista Theatre, the Egyptian Theatre and the Academy Museum's David Geffen Theater all project 70mm. Runs are usually tied to big new releases or special series, so watch their calendars and buy early.
Are there drive-in theaters in Los Angeles?
Yes. The Vineland Drive-In in City of Industry runs four screens of new releases with sound through your car's FM radio. For an outdoor movie without a car, Cinespia screens films at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, mostly during summer.
Where do you see Rocky Horror in LA?
The Nuart Theatre in West LA plays The Rocky Horror Picture Show every Saturday at midnight with a live shadow cast. It's been doing it since the 1980s.
What is the best IMAX theater in LA?
The TCL Chinese Theatre's main auditorium in Hollywood is a 932-seat IMAX room and the one locals point to first. Book the IMAX auditorium, listed as Auditorium 7, not the multiplex next door.
Is the Cinerama Dome open?
No. The Cinerama Dome has been closed since the pandemic. Sony is restoring it with Alamo Drafthouse set to operate it, and the planned reopening is 2028.