Dinner & a Movie

This weekend, Dinner and a Movie takes a relaxed and easterly approach to making plans by heading to the martini and caviar bar Pravda. The bar, which is part of the Keith McNally-owned restaurant empire that includes Balthazar and Schiller's, has just rolled out a Sunday night viewing series of early-20th-century Russian and Eastern European films. Patrons with or without reservations can settle in for the free movie at the Lafayette Street speakeasy. The view is as good from the tables as it is from the bar, where Dinner and a Movie orders one, extra dirty.

DINNER

Pravda makes caviar service less rigid than other famed fish-egg palaces: Beluga caviar, the largest and most expensive of fish eggs that come from sturgeon, isn't on the menu. But the next grade of caviar, osetra, is on offer, ranging between $260 and $412 for a single serving, or between $490 and $780 for two people. For those seeking a less pricey option, it might be best to stick to the three American varieties of caviar: Single servings of salmon and trout roe are $11 and $13, respectively, and American paddlefish roe, which is gray like sturgeon roe, is $48 for a single helping. There are plenty of other menu items to peruse if caviar isn't your style. During the screening, homemade chips and "caviar" dip (a Greek-style dip called taromasalata) are served, and traditional entrées include beef stroganoff, chicken kiev, and a variety of smoked fish with blini. Besides caviar, Pravda's ultimate focus is vodka and cocktails — the broad vodka list encompasses countries such as Ireland and Belgium, and the Russian side includes no fewer than 14 vodkas. Homemade infusions include chili and horseradish, fig, mango, and black plum flavors. (281 Lafayette St., between Prince and Houston streets, 212-226-4944)

MOVIE

Yakov Protazanov's 1924 silent film, "Aelita: Queen of Mars," is loosely based on a novel of the same name by Aleksei Tolstoy. The movie, considered by some to be the first to explore space travel, incorporates a number of theories about revolution by Russia's proletarians and Bolsheviks. The plot follows an engineer, Los, who travels to Mars, where he leads a revolution against a Martian dictator. Los is aided by Aelita, a queen who falls in love with him after seeing him through a telescope. But once the dictator is defeated, Aelita rebuilds her kingdom, complete with slaves. The film features Russian Constructivist set designs and costumes, whose influence can be seen in later releases such as "Flash Gordon" (1936).

(Sunday, 8 p.m., Pravda, address and phone number above. Reservations are suggested.)