As nouns the difference between cinema and theater is that cinema is (countable) a film while theater is a place or building, consisting of a stage and seating, in which an audience gathers to watch plays, musical performances, public ceremonies, and so on.

作为名词，cinema和theater的区别在于cinema(可数名词)可以指电影，而theater则指一个地方或建筑，它由舞台和座位组成，观众可以聚集在那里观看戏剧、音乐表演、公共仪式等。

They can mean exactly the same thing: Americans go to the theater to watch a movie. The British go to the cinema to watch a film.

他们也可以指一回事：美国人去theater看电影，而英国人则到cinema看电影。

But no AmE speaker uses "going to the cinema" to mean "going to the movies" unless that person is joking (possibly while assuming a fake British accent) or horribly pretentious.

但是美国人没有人用“going to the cinema”来指“去电影院”的，除非你在开玩笑(可能是想模仿英式口音)或者装腔作势。

In both countries, "theater" (US spelling) (and "theatre", UK spelling) means a place where you go to watch stage plays.

在这两个国家，当指可以看舞台剧的“剧院”时，都是说“theater”。

如何去电影院看电影?

首先，你要有一部你喜欢的电影正在上映

你可用先问一下电影的上映时间：

When is the release date or premiere of ‘Movie Name’?

《电影名》的上映时间或者首映日期是什么时候?

或者直接简单粗暴地问现在什么电影正在上映：

What’s on?

然后你就可以选择去哪个影院：

Which cinema is it showing at?

这部电影在哪个影院上映呢?

当你到达影院，去往前台购票，服务人员可能会问你：

Which film would you like to see? Which show time?

你想看哪部电影?哪个时间场的?

How many seats would you like?

要几个座位?

Where would you like to sit?

想坐哪里?

在选择外语影片时

You may choose a film where the dialogues are dubbed, which means that you can hear the dialogues in your own language, while you can’t really lip-read them. Or, you may choose to follow the film in its original language, in O. V. (in the "original version" ), listening to "the original soundtrack" .

你可以选择配音的，也就是说电影的对白声音都改成了你能听懂的语言，但是画面还是原来的。或者，你可以选择原声，也就是电影本来的声音。

在所有的选择都决定好后，你就可以对服务人员说：

May I have 2 tickets for the 8 o’clock show of ‘Movie Name’?

我可以来两张8点场的《电影名》的票吗?

We would like to sit in row G, seats 12 to 14.

我们想坐在G排，12到14座。

然后你就可以带着你的小伙伴愉快地看电影啦~