Quick Glance: Renovated historic venue. Re-opened in early 2011. Independently-owned and operated. Aimed at families; only G, PG, or PG-13 rated movies are shown.

Neighborhood: Highland Park Village, an upscale outdoor shopping mall, at the SW corner of Mockingbird Lane and Preston Road in Highland Park.

Parking: Free. Adjacent spaces are hard to come by on Saturday afternoon. Uncovered parking lot on North side of Mockingbird is a short walk away and spaces are freely available.

Main Lobby: Dark wood predominates, in a lovely, well-appointed, though small, space. Ticket-buying stations to the right, stairs and escalator to the left.

Buying Tickets: Two ticket-buying kiosks; credit cards only. Cash users can buy tickets at concession stand upstairs. Advance tickets available for purchase via website, which can then be printed at kiosks.

Ticket Prices: $11.75 adults, $8.50 children/seniors/students. $8.00 matinee (before 5:00 p.m.).

Concession Stand: Prices in line with multiplexes; sample: $7.50 large popcorn, $5.75 small popcorn, $6.00 individual pizza. Also: $7.00 panini.

Waiting Area: Makes good use of small space, with well-cushioned seats available, as well as a lounge with alcohol available for purchase. Drinks can be taken into auditoriums. Ticket-taking stand, with attendant to direct traffic.

Auditorium / Seats: Wonderful. Visited Auditorium #2. Screen appeared to be slightly curved. Divided by walkway into two sections. Lower area has three rows with a total of 37 seats. Upper section has five rows, first four with 11 seats each. Good spacing between rows. Reclining, rocker, high-backed seats in upper section are very comfortable.

Pre-Show: 15 minutes. Rotating slides and short infomercials advertising local businesses; movie trivia. Trailers for current and coming attractions.

Sound / Projection: Excellent. Booming and loud audio system. Digital projection. No complaints.

Other Notes: Temperature cooled considerably by air-conditioning; may be too cool for some patrons, but very welcome on a 100-degree plus afternoon. Facilities available, but not seen: Auditorium #1, two private screening rooms, adjacent restaurant.

Website: www.hpvillagetheatre.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/HPVillagetheatr

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Highland-Park-Village-Theatre/

Movie Seen: ‘Colombiana.’
Date of Visit: Saturday, August 27, 2011.
Screening Time: 3:40 p.m.