A baked movie night is one of the great Chicago traditions, and this city happens to have some of the best movie theaters in the country for it. These are the theaters worth the trip, what makes each one special and how to pick based on the kind of high you're on. No showtimes here, those change every week. Check the theater's own site before you go.
One house rule for everyone: smoke before, not during. Every theater on this list is a no-smoking building (that's state law for indoor venues), and nobody wants to be the person who got the lights turned on. Edibles before the trailers is the classic play. Time it so it kicks in around the opening credits.
Music Box Theatre (Lakeview)
The crown jewel. The Music Box on Southport opened in 1929 and it looks like it. The main room has a dark blue ceiling with twinkling stars and slow-drifting clouds, built to make you feel like you're watching a movie in an Italian courtyard at night. High, it's almost too much. The programming is the best in the city: cult classics, restored prints, 70mm runs, foreign films, midnight movies and an organ that sometimes plays before the show.
If you see one movie high in Chicago, see it here. Get there early and look up. See the Lakeview guide.
Logan Theatre (Logan Square)
The Logan has been on Milwaukee Avenue since 1915 and still has the vintage marquee to prove it. It mixes new releases with second-run and cult screenings, the tickets lean affordable, and there's a bar in the lobby. It's the neighborhood theater every neighborhood wishes it still had. See the Logan Square guide.
Davis Theater (Lincoln Square)
The Davis on Lincoln Avenue dates back to 1918, got a full restoration, and now runs first-run movies with an attached restaurant and bar. It's a comfortable, low-drama Brown Line ride from most of the North Side, and the kind of place where you can grab dinner first and slide into your seat full.
Gene Siskel Film Center (the Loop)
Named for the Chicago critic, run by the School of the Art Institute, and located on State Street in the Loop. This is where the festivals, retrospectives, restorations and international films live. It's a serious film-lover's place, so pick something you'll actually want to sit through. A two-hour restored silent epic is either the best or worst thing to watch high. You'll know which kind of stoner you are. See the River North and Loop guide.
FACETS (Lincoln Park)
FACETS on Fullerton has been Chicago's art-house and film-education nonprofit for half a century, now running as the FACETS Film Forum. It's small, it's weird in the best way, and the programming goes places no multiplex would dare. See the Lincoln Park guide.
Doc Films (Hyde Park)
Doc Films at the University of Chicago is a student-run film society that's been screening since the 1930s, and it's one of the oldest continuously running student film societies in the country. Cheap tickets, smart programming, a crowd that cares, and a campus walk afterward that's prettier than you'd expect at night. See the Hyde Park guide.
Chicago Filmmakers (Andersonville)
A small nonprofit space in Andersonville that shows experimental, independent and local work. This is for when you want to see something no one else you know has seen. See the Andersonville guide.
Alamo Drafthouse (Wrigleyville)
Alamo brings food and drinks to your seat while the movie plays, and it's famous for its no-talking, no-texting policy. That makes it close to ideal for a high movie night: you never have to leave your seat for snacks, and nobody's going to ruin it with a phone. Order early before the movie gets good. See the Wrigleyville guide.
The big screens: IMAX and recliners
Sometimes you want the biggest screen and the loudest sound you can find, and you want it while lying almost flat. Regal City North on Western Avenue has an IMAX screen. Downtown, AMC River East 21 in Streeterville has a big lineup of screens and recliners. For a blockbuster or a space movie, a giant screen plus a good edible is about as good as Tuesday night gets. Book a seat in the middle, a few rows back, and go to a weeknight show if you can. Fewer people, more legroom, and nobody kicking your recliner.
The best stoner movie in Chicago isn't a new release. It's whatever weird cult classic the Music Box is showing at midnight. Go see the thing you've never heard of.
How to pick your theater
- You want atmosphere: Music Box, every time. The ceiling alone.
- You want snacks without moving: Alamo Drafthouse.
- You want cheap and easy: Logan Theatre or Doc Films.
- You want to see something nobody else has: Siskel, FACETS or Chicago Filmmakers.
- You want it huge and loud: an IMAX screen.
Theater etiquette, baked edition
Being high at the movies is a great time right up until you become the person everyone remembers. Keep the snack bag quiet (open it during a loud scene, rookie). Silence your phone and put it face down. Laugh at the funny parts, not the serious ones, even if the serious parts feel very funny. And if you need a bathroom break, go during a slow scene, not the big reveal.
At the old palaces like the Music Box, the crowd is part of the show. Midnight movies and cult screenings get rowdy in the best way, with people cheering at favorite lines. At art houses like the Siskel and FACETS, it's the opposite: quiet, focused, serious. Read the room before you narrate.
Timing an edible for a movie
Edibles take a while to kick in, and how long varies a lot by person and product. The classic mistake is eating one at the box office and realizing during the end credits that it's finally working. If you're going the edible route, take it at home well before you leave and give yourself some margin. Start low. A two-hour movie feels very different when it suddenly feels like four.
The stay-home movie night
Some nights the best theater is your couch. Blackout the windows, pull every blanket in the apartment onto the floor, queue up a double feature, and put out a real snack spread (see hosting a sesh). Chicago winter makes this a regular event for a lot of us, and there's no shame in it. The Music Box will still be there in spring.
Before and after the movie
Eat after, not before, unless you're going to Alamo. A beef sandwich in a dark theater is a crime scene. Most of these theaters are near good late food, see late-night Chicago. The Music Box is a short walk from Southport's restaurants, the Logan is on a strip full of bars and taco spots, and Doc Films is near Hyde Park's cheap eats.
Getting home: Lakeview, Logan, Lincoln Square and Andersonville all sit on L lines (Brown, Blue, Brown and Red, respectively). Hyde Park has the Metra Electric and buses. Take the train. You're in no shape to parallel park on Southport anyway.
