With the closure of the nearby Squirrel Hill Theatre, the Manor has become one of the few remaining neighborhood cinemas in Pittsburgh and about the only one showing a mix of mainstream movies and indie flicks. The nearby Regent Square, which I also like, shows art & indie and foreign flicks too, but they don't show mainstream releases.
My mom and I come here quite a lot. Whereas my dad and I bond over music, sports and bad jokes, mom and I enjoy books, museums, & cinema. Notice I said "cinema" and not "movies"! Now my girlfriends and I like action flix, but that's another story. Anyway, Mom and I went here last night to see "Beginners", a terrific story starring Ewan MacGregor, Melanie Laurent, and Christopher Plummer. Directed by Mike Mills, (no, not he of R.E.M. fame), the story is about how Oliver (MacGregor) meets the irreverent and unpredictable Anna (Laurent) only months after his father Hal (Plummer) has passed away. After 40+ years of marriage, Hal had come out as a gay man.
The Manor Theatre won't win any architectural awards, especially on the inside. It's an older theatre cut up into several auditoriums. Still its Tudor exterior is charming. But it's a good place to see a movie, and the atmosphere here is far more relaxed than at the local megaplex.