How to Pick the Right Movie for the Holidays

You might think every red-blooded American is born knowing how to watch a movie, but TV, DVDs and the Internet have altered the picture. So first things first: If a movie is worth seeing, it's worth seeing at a theater.

No home entertainment system, for the foreseeable future, can exceed the screen size or sound quality of a state-of-the-art cinema. And stadium seating ensures that legroom and sight lines are not going to be issues. So put on some nice clothes, grab a signi.cant other and make it an event.

CHECK IT OUT: Before you pick the movie by trusting the ads, check the reviews from your local critic or from a consensus review site such as metacritic.com. Or impress your date by choosing a movie based on the director's track record.

TIME MANAGEMENT: If you've been to a theater in the past few years, you've probably deduced that the time listed at the box office is not when the main attraction actually starts. You've probably got a good seven to 10 minutes of commercials and coming attractions to sit through first. Yet, if you dawdle and arrive after the posted show time, you'll not only miss a potentially good preview, you might .nd yourself at the mercy of concession-stand personnel, who don't get paid any extra for moving faster. So budget your time accordingly.

CASH FLOW: And speaking of budgets, resign yourself to spending about $15 to $20 a person for tickets and food. For a new movie, the rough breakdown is that the ticket money goes to Hollywood and the concession money goes to the local theater owners. So the candy bar you smuggle in your coat isn't depriving pampered movie stars - it's stiffing the hometown businesspeople who provide our teenagers with safe places to work and socialize.

HAVE A SEAT: Over the years, you've probably developed a favorite place to sit. (I like the last row, on the aisle, so I can make a quick getaway if necessary.) And surely you know to turn off your cell phone and refrain from kicking the seat in front of you. But even seasoned moviegoers might not think to unwrap treats in advance - or at least to wait for a loud part of the movie before rustling plastic and chomping on Goobers.

NO TALKING: It's almost irresistible for the TV generation to remark aloud about things that are funny or scary. However, if you can't refrain from talking during a movie, at least practice the lost art of whispering. Actually, if you feel compelled to talk, that's a good sign that the movie has engaged your attention. So become an active viewer. Ask yourself questions (albeit silently).

ANALYZE THIS: What kind of movie is this trying to be? Does it want to help you escape from your problems, or does it want to teach you a lesson? Is it a movie that's striving for realism (such as "The Godfather") or a movie that plays with our awareness of Hollywood clichés (such as "Pulp Fiction")? What cinematic tricks does it employ? Does it use music to elicit sympathy for suffering, or does it use camera angles that force you to see through the eyes of a villain? Have you seen that special effect with the camera circling around a freeze-framed kickboxer somewhere before?