Free Friday Flicks at the Hatch Shell (tel. 617/727-9547, ext. 450) are family films shown on a large screen in the amphitheater on the Esplanade. On the lawn in front of the Hatch Shell, hundreds of people picnic until the sky grows dark and the credits roll. In the last few years, the films have tended toward recent releases (no big thrill for anyone with a VCR), but a few classics usually crop up, and the movie is only part of the experience.

Tip: Bring sweaters in case the breeze off the river grows chilly.

True revival houses -- they feature lectures and live performances in addition to foreign and classic films -- include the Brattle Theater, 40 Brattle St., Cambridge (tel. 617/876-6837; www.brattlefilm.org), and the Coolidge Corner Theater, 290 Harvard St., Brookline (tel. 617/734-2500; www.coolidge.org/Coolidge). Classic and foreign films are the tip of the iceberg at the quirky Harvard Film Archive, 24 Quincy St., Cambridge (tel. 617/495-4700; www.harvardfilmarchive.org), which also shows student films.

For first-run independent and foreign films, head to the Kendall Square Cinema, 1 Kendall Sq., Cambridge (tel. 617/494-9800). The best movie theater in the immediate Boston area, it offers discounted parking in the adjoining garage. Second-run current releases at discount prices are the usual fare at the Somerville Theater, 55 Davis Sq. (tel. 617/625-5700), which sometimes schedules concerts, too. A promising newcomer that screens only mainstream releases is the 19-screen Loews Boston Common, 175 Tremont St. (tel. 617/4423-3499), which has stadium seating and digital sound.