Movie times can cause problems, but there's a reason for them

• Dear Dann: Why don't movies ever start at 6 p.m.? They're always at 5 and 7 p.m. -- Lawlady

Dear Lawlady: For the answer, I went straight to the man: Ed Doherty, promotions director of Classic Cinemas, based in Downers Grove. He told me that the industry recognizes the 7 p.m. hour as "prime time" for customers who've had time to eat supper before zipping out to see a movie. But there's much more to scheduling than that.

"We use a computer to schedule all our movies so that we don't have all of them getting out at the same time," Doherty reported. "We also don't want all the movies starting at the same time for the same reason: People would be climbing over each other at the multiplexes."

Doherty says scheduling movies has become such an art, theaters even take into consideration the number of likely restroom visits so nobody waits too long. Further complicating the schedule are movie running times. Some films run less than 90 minutes; others stretch for far more than two hours.

In cases where the same movie runs in two or more theaters, you can actually catch a start time on every hour. I hope that does it, Lawlady.

• Attention Dann Gire: Lately, when trying to rent a video or DVD at local video stores, I have not been able to get what I'm looking for in a whole-screen coverage. They seem to be only available in wide-screen format. After talking to a buyer for a video store, I was advised that the studios that produce these videos don't seem to care that many of us are not set up for wide-screen videos. I was also told that a DVD can be produced to accommodate both wide- and whole-screen formats on one disc.

We don't feel that we should have to throw out our current TV, nor can a lot of us afford to do so. Would appreciate anything you could do to alleviate this situation. -- Dot Sheehan, Mount Prospect

Dear Dot: I also have a traditional "Academy ratio" TV set (4-to-5) at home and I enjoy a great many wide-screen movies on it. In fact, I insist on seeing movies only in the wide-screen mode, if that's how they were originally formatted. To watch wide-screen movies on "full-screen" mode would be a violation of cinematic art.

Yes, playing wide-screen films on a regular TV set creates black bands at the top and bottom of the screen. So what? That's better than watching a movie where 20 percent to 30 percent of the original image has been ripped off of the sides, producing scenes where two people might be talking to each other, but you can only see one person.

The proliferation of "full-screen" videos bothered Palatine resident Dave Grelck so much back in 2002, he formed Concerned Citizens For Widescreen, a campaign against the trend of companies releasing movies in full-screen mode, also referred to as "pan and scan," because of the way the videos tried to cram wide-screen information into a virtual square shape. Grelck noted, "Pan and scan is a travesty. It'd be like taking Da Vinci's 'The Last Supper' and cropping out the unimportant disciples."

Dot, we've both got to get with the times. I called up the Daily Herald Video Answer Man, Jeff Tuckman, who reports that video manufacturers who used to provide movies in both wide-screen and full-screen formats (such as Universal Pictures) are now only doing wide-screen. In fact, American consumers are overwhelmingly preferring wide-screen to full, a complete reversal from just a few years ago. Sorry, Dot.

Unfortunately, your options are down to two: Learn to ignore black bands on your TV set or go out and purchase a wide-screen 9-by-16 set.

Since the 1950s, that's the way an increasing number of motion pictures have been intended to be seen, and the way they will be seen from here on in home video.

I, for one, am happy.

Dann gets "Away From Her"

Join me for a discussion after a screening of Sarah Polley's beautifully wrought Alzheimer's drama "Away From Her," starring Academy Award nominee Julie Christie. $9. (630) 534-4528 or www.afterhoursfilmsociety.com.

7:30 p.m. Monday at the Tivoli Theatre, 5021 Highland Ave., Downers Grove

Lake County film fest turns 5!

The Lake County Film Festival ramps up for a fifth time under the supervision of founder and artistic director Nat Dykeman. About 5,000 patrons are expected to attend the more than 100 screenings at the fest. (847) 362-5666 or www.lakecountyfilmfest.com.

Thursday through March 2 at the College of Lake County, 19351 W. Washington St., Grayslake

'Winter Massacre' hits theater

Meet actor Robert "Freddy Krueger" Englund Saturday night when he introduces his 1984 scare classic "A Nightmare on Elm Street" as part of the "Winter Massacre" program at the Music Box Theatre. 1980's "Friday the 13th" at 10 p.m. today will be followed by the Chicago premiere of the French thriller "Inside" ("A l'interieur") at midnight. After "Nightmare" at 10 p.m. Saturday will be the uncut 1982's "Swamp Thing" with a surprise guest. $13. (773) 871-6604 or www.musicboxtheatre.com.

Music Box Theatre, 3733 N. Southport, Chicago

-- Dann Gire