WEEKEND: MOVIES, MOVIES, MOVIESUntil now, West Valley...

WEEKEND: MOVIES, MOVIES, MOVIES

Until now, West Valley movie-goers have had about 20 neighborhood screens (the General Cinema Fallbrook 10, the United Artists Warner Center 8 and the Pacific Topanga 3) to choose from.

But this weekend, the movie options for West Valley residents will almost double with the grand opening of the AMC Promenade 16 Theatres. But will the theater offer different movies or just more of the same stuff?

AMC Senior Vice President Dick Walsh says the new multiplex will offer more limited-release films--foreign films, art films--the ones usually played over the hill or in Orange County. He said the Valley has been underserved in that regard.

His associate, Nora E. Dashwood, an AMC vice president, said that, while AMC wants to screen limited-release films in Woodland Hills, it is ultimately up to the distributors.

Distributors try to book their limited-release films in venues where they can be assured of high per-screen grosses, she said. But AMC management feels that the Promenade 16 will be a very attractive venue to the distributors, she said.

“We certainly have the screens and the right demographics to rival West Los Angeles and Orange County for the limited-release films,” Dashwood said.

The new theaters are state of the art, with wall-to-wall, curved screens, to prevent visual distortion, and eight distinct channels of Sony Dynamic Digital Sound. Each of the 16 auditoriums is also equipped with “love seats,” an airliner-style, high-backed chair with cup-holder armrests that lift up--for moviegoers who want to sit a little closer to one another.

Rows are 46 inches apart for increased legroom (approximately six inches more than the industry standard) and arranged stadium style--each row will be approximately 18 inches lower than the row behind it. No need to peer over people’s heads.

For this weekend’s grand opening, AMC is offering a Bugs Bunny Film Festival in two of its auditoriums at a reduced admission price. Proceeds will go to charity. Also this weekend only, soft drinks and popcorn sell for 16 cents.

* AMC Promenade 16 Theatres, 21801 Oxnard St., Woodland Hills. Ticket prices are $7.50 general; $4.75 seniors, matinees and students after 6 p.m.; $3.75 children under 13. Bugs Bunny Festival prices are $3.75 general, $1 children. Call (818) 883-2AMC.

SUNDAY: THE BREW THAT IS TRUE

Cantor Don Alan Croll will present “A Danny Kaye Revival,” on Sunday at Temple Ramat Zion in Northridge.

Croll has footholds in both secular and sacred music. He is an invested cantor who graduated from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion School of Sacred Music. In addition, he has performed on Broadway and in other productions for the stage and screen.

His one-man show about the life of Danny Kaye, “Songs of the Redhead,” was presented for three consecutive years at the University of Judaism.

Croll’s presentation this weekend will trace Kaye’s music from its early influences to his years in Hollywood to later work on Broadway and as a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF.

* “A Danny Kaye Revival,” featuring Cantor Don Croll, 7 p.m. Sunday at Temple Ramat Zion, 17655 Devonshire St., Northridge. Tickets are $20-$40. Complimentary dessert will follow the concert. Call (818) 360-1881.