Brokelyn

Suck it, winter. Via Flickr's Karl Hassel.

Some science bros in Britain have declared this week to contain the single most depressing day of the year, what with the return to work, that rapidly drying fire hazard of a Christmas tree and these lousy caucuses making all of us pay heed to the opinions of 1 percent of Iowans. It’s easy to spend the few daylight hours feeling sorry for yourself and watching Arrested Development over and over again. Nay! Rage rage against the dying of the light! Winter is the perfect time to take advantage of things you’ve missed all year. Read the rest of this entry »

I just learned about this on Reddit, of all places (which, c’mon guys, shoot us an email us with crap like this!). Tonight, Williamsburg’s Nitehawk Cinema is hosting some sort of free event for VHS fetishists. If you’re somehow interested in anything VHS, I can probably stop explaining it here because, honestly, what other VHS event are you going to go to? But for the curious rest of us, there seems to be tape trading, secret Santa, a game show, food, drinks, a “Santa Pause” and a screening of an old “ratty” VHS version of 1989′s Elves. Personally, nostalgia for the never-not crappy VHS format seems like pining for medical practices pre-discovery of bacteria, but shine on you crazy tracking-button pushing diamonds. Nitehawk has these events periodically, so keep an eye on its site for future info.

Mad as hell; gonna watch some movies.

When looking for movies that speak to the 99 percent you’ve got the obvious Oliver Stone’s Wall Street. But that film’s a bit blunt force (also it’s …meh). Or there’s Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A True Love Story, which is specific to our current sociopolitical plight. But for films to really get your proletariat blood boiling, I’ve compiled a list of more conventional entertainment for the masses that contain a Trojan horse of social consciousness, like how you wrap your dogs’ pills in cheese so they’ll take them. If you want to feel like you’re being politically active while remaining in the comfort of your own home, hit up your friend in the 1 percent with a digital projector and pick from the list. After that, you’ll understand why you might not be surprised to see Rowdy Roddy Piper or George Bailey at Zuccotti Park. Read the rest of this entry »

Photo via Flickr's William Self

Dear Cobble Hill Cinemas: We could go on and on about how we’d much rather hand over our $10 to your smiling, independently owned faces instead of shelling out $13 and some dignity at the bigger UA bully down the street; or how your concessions are priced lower so we don’t feel like we’re shopping at the last snack bar on the international space station; or how your crowds are pleasant and respectful and actually bought up all the tickets to Bridesmaids one Saturday night three weeks after its release while the newly released, far dumber Hangover 2 still had plenty of seats available. But there’s something bigger that cements our crush: it’s that old-generation, Saturday-morning-movie-with-Dad kind of charm the theater captures so well. You are located in one of the most Brooklyn stretches of Brooklyn down Court Street, with enough cozy bars, tasty food and enticing chocolatiers to justify missing the first showing. Climbing the winding staircase past movie scenes painted on the wall, it’s easy to imagine being there when all the movies were black and white and everyone wore fedoras. But mostly, we love that that the one time a bag of Trader Joe’s chocolate covered pretzels fell out of our bag as you were taking our ticket, you just smiled, laughed, and waved us through.

So, dear reader, you should buy this $15 Groupon for two tickets, popcorns and sodas today and go see for yourself. And even if you miss the Groupon, love up on some of their bargain nights: $7 seats all day Tuesdays and Thursdays and up to 5pm from Monday-Friday.

Photos by Faye Penn

“This is so much more fun than selling DVDs on Amazon,” said Josh Mueller, movie buff, Brokelyn reader and blissful attendee of Brokelyn’s NOTflix DVD Swap last night. As Mueller (proud new owner of The Notebook, Nashville and Hellboy) can attest, last night’s flickfest was an orgy of movie love and a feast of “swapcorn.” So much fun, we’re going to do it again; join our Facebook group so you’ll never have to go without your own copy of Nacho Libre. Here’s what you missed last night at Mission Dolores, quite possibly the perfect summer bar: Read the rest of this entry »

Homage by Rommel Alama.

Are you mad as hell about the Netflix 60 percent price increase?

Maybe you’ve up and canceled your subscription — or maybe you think that 15.99 a month is still actually a good deal for unlimited movie streaming and DVDs (one at a time). Here’s what’s not a good deal: hanging onto old DVDs that you own but will never watch again. This Wednesday night (July 20), from 7 to 9, haul those pre-loved DVDs to our first-ever Notflix DVD swap at Mission Dolores.

Ground rules: real movies and TV shows only. Nothing bootlegged. Not your film class senior project, not your wedding video, not your old AOL startup discs and no VCR tapes. Desirable indies, blockbusters, romcoms, scifi, foreign, other good stuff all welcome. Bring up to 10 discs; walk away with as many as you bring, and stay for a drink or two — Mission Dolores is extending happy hour prices for the event. The popcorn is on us.

Anti-Atlantic Yards nightclub petition: “Embrace Indie Music!” [FiPS]
Sample sale at Brooklyn Industries new DUMBO location Thurs-Sat [BK Industries]
The L Magazine’s 2011 bar awards (includes several Beer Book bars) [L Magazine]
Free toxic waste at abandoned Ditmas Park auto body shop [DP Blog]
Pick your favorite subway busker [NY Magazine]
Win a year of free taxi rides from Scoop St. [Brooklyn Nomad]
$9 for two movie tickets through Fandango ($30 value) [Living Social]
City Limits series compares Brooklyn’s reputation vs. reality [City Limits]

There’s no shortage of free classic & cult cinema around town this summer, but sometimes the lure of that ultra-hyped, big-budget blockbuster is nigh inescapable. Luckily, the good, old matinee’s still alive and well in Brooklyn. A handful of theaters sell single-digit tickets at off-hours, while others are a relative bargain all the time. You can even find a break on 3D if you know where to look. Here’s an updated list of Brooklyn theaters with matinee pricing: Read the rest of this entry »

She's donating.

Dying to see Inception at a big theater in Brooklyn, but you can’t dream upon dream of dropping $12.50 for the ticket? (And that’s not even counting the sustenance you’ll need for the 2.5 hour extravaganza). Well then, plant this idea somewhere deep in the ice fortress of your subconscious: You get a free movie ticket every time you donate blood at the bloodmobile on Court Street. And you can do it today. Read the rest of this entry »

David Hemmings and Veruschka von Lehndorff in Blow-Up

London in the ’60s was one of those places and brief moments in time that we think almost compares to modern-day Brooklyn when it comes to ‘cool’. It was a swingin’, mod-wearing time—an era so many of us would have loved to live through. And this Wednesday, we might get a pretty good taste. Future Cinema, the British event company behind feats of live, immersive, multimedia cinema, has crossed the pond for the first time (straight to Brooklyn) with one of its extravagant creations: Antonioni’s iconic 1966 classic Blow-Up, tomorrow night, Jun. 30, at Shangri-La Studio in Greenpoint. Read the rest of this entry »