(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- The ShowRoom Cinema, Asbury Park’s independent movie theater, will reopen under new ownership Friday, October 29, 2021 with two current releases, The French Dispatch and the documentary The Velvet Underground. There will also be a special one night only screening of Halloween (1978) on October 31. 

The French Dispatch will have screenings Friday at 7:15pm; Saturday and Sunday at 2:15pm, 4:45pm, and 7:15pm; and Monday through Thursday, November 4th at 4:45pm and 7:15pm. The film brings to life a collection of stories from the final issue of an American magazine published in a fictional 20th-century French city. It stars Benicio del Toro, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Léa Seydoux, Frances McDormand, Timothée Chalamet, Lyna Khoudri, Jeffrey Wright, Mathieu Amalric, Stephen Park, Bill Murray, and Owen Wilson.

The Velvet Underground will have screenings Friday at 7:00pm; Saturday at 1:30pm, 4:15pm, and 7:00pm; Sunday at 1:30pm and 4:15pm; and Monday through Thursday, November 4th at 4:15pm and 7:00pm. Experience the iconic rock band's legacy in the first major documentary to tell their story.  Directed with the era's avante-garde spirit by Todd Haynes, this kaleidoscopic oral history combines exclusive interviews with dazzling archival footage.

Halloween will be screened on Sunday, October 31st at 7:30pm. This classic horror flick takes place 15 years after Michael Myers murdered his sister on Halloween night 1963.  He has escaped from a mental hospital and returns to the town of Haddonfield, Illinois to kill again.

Tickets for the three films are available in advance on the theater’s website, showroomcinemas.com. 

The ShowRoom Cinema opened in Asbury Park, NJ, in April, 2009, as a single-screen, 50 seat movie theater, with a goal of bringing provocative and relevant independent movies and engaging special events to the city’s budding downtown. In 2012 the theater evolved into a 3-screen, independent cinema and became the leading entertainment destination in Asbury Park’s eclectic, art-infused downtown shopping district.

Through its eleven year run, The ShowRoom brought an important selection of independent, first-run films — including critically-acclaimed domestic and foreign features, documentaries, festival winners and shorts — to the Jersey Shore. It also hosted a variety of special one night only screenings, live performances and community-driven special events. The theater closed in 2020, but new owners Daria Parr and family are excited to welcome The ShowRoom back to Asbury Park. As the last year and a half has shown, the simple pleasure of seeing a new release on a big screen with a roomful of fellow film fans is an experience many of us didn’t realize we would miss until it was gone.

The ShowRoom will continue to deliver the same high quality film selection and impeccable customer service that the theater has become known for while working toward the big picture goal: restoring some of what was lost during the pandemic by inviting our cherished guests to share the energy and fun of going to the movies again.

The ShowRoom Cinema is located at 707 Cookman Avenue in Asbury Park, New Jersey.