AT THE MOVIES YOU ARE WHERE YOU SIT SEATING CHOICE CAN TELL A LOT ABOUT A PERSON, ACCORDING TO A RECENT STUDY. THE FINDINGS:.

Byline: Harrison Sheppard Staff Writer

UNIVERSAL CITY - When he goes to the movies, Ravel Centeno likes to sit on the aisle and stretch his feet out - a fact that by itself speaks volumes about his personality, according to a new study.

The study, commissioned by British movie theater company Odeon, examined how theater seating habits reflect personality. And as the summer movie season reaches its zenith, the research says you are where you seat.

Psychologist Donna Dawson divided moviegoers into four different personality types based on their seating preferences and cited examples of movie characters who fit those types.

Those who sit on the aisle, like Centeno, are ``detached observers'' - people who like to have their own space, who are observers and tend to be quieter.

``That's funny, because I'm a writer,'' Centeno said Thursday as he waited to see ``A.I.'' at the Cineplex Odeon at Universal CityWalk. ``So that's what I do (observe people).''

One celluloid example of a detached observer, said Dawson, is Jack Nicholson's Melvin Udall character in ``As Good As It Gets.''

Other personality types, according to Dawson:

--The ``front row film fanatic'': Extroverted, assertive and competitive, these are people who like to see movies with others, not on their own. An example from the movies might be Mike Meyers' Austin Powers or Julia Roberts' Erin Brockovich.

--The ``middle-of-the-roaders'': These are the people who like to sit in the middle, fittingly. They are people who are flexible and try to get along with others, such as Gwyneth Paltrow's ``Emma.''

Gloria and Tom Candelaria of Redlands say that seems to fit them.

``We like the middle because it's not too far back and not too close to the front,'' Gloria Candelaria said as she scanned the marquee at CityWalk.

Tom Candelaria said the ``middle-of-the-roader'' label seems to fit them because ``We're easygoing.''

--The ``invisible rebels'': Those who sit far in the back are people who are rebellious and like excitement, but don't necessary seek the limelight, the study said.

A typical example is Clint Eastwood's ``Man With No Name'' and Sigourney Weaver's Lt. Ripley from the ``Alien'' films.

``The back row is where things happen; it's an exciting area of danger and heavy petting,'' Dawson said in the Odeon report. ``It tends to attract people who are rebellious.''

For some people, though, sometimes a chair is just a chair.

``I don't know - wherever there's an empty seat,'' said filmgoer Chris Marshall of Lake Hollywood, when asked where he likes to sit. ``That works for me.''

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7 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Austin Powers

(2 -- color) Gwyneth Paltrow's Emma

(3 -- color) Sigourney Weaver's alien fighting Lieutenant Ripley

(4 -- color) Jack Nicholson's Melvin Udall

(5 -- color) - Steve Cobb, Andrews, Texas 

(6 -- color) - Andy Trenco, Columbia, Missouri 

(7 -- color) - Denise Avilez, Rowland Heights

Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer