I feel your pain for cashflow. You are on the right track for keeping your lighting simple. Dimmable sconces are a great compromise to zoned potlights. Nick had a good idea I took him up on. He suggested 2 zones of sconces dimmed seperately. In my room this meant the two side lights closest to the screen became a zone, and the lights beside the seating area became a seperate zone. This will add the convenience of dim lighting without affecting the screen image with glare/washout. I will add an IR remote dimmer to each zone to keep things simplified (lutron maestro 37$ at HD)

Lighting is highly preference based. Some prefer indirect lamps, others prefer spotlights from ceiling. I find a mix is good. There are great inspirational lighting ideas at houzz.com. I went there and found cheap ways to replicate their looks for some stuff I wanted. Professional theater design pics there too.