Movie theater manners

[Ryanwb]

UGHHHHHHHHHHH I am so glad I was able to find this thread.

Last friday I was at the movies, and we'd gotten there a few minutes early to get a good spot. Well, lo and behold, 5 minutes into the preview, and these to girls asked us to move over. Thankfully the seat next to me was actually occupied, but the person was out getting popcorn, so I couldn't have moved over even if I wanted to.

I would have told them no, and that there are plenty of other seats. I was in a MOOD. And I totally thought about this thread afterwards.

ASFN has taken over my life, me thinks.

Woo Hoo!

Thank you for not enabling those girls like other people do. My favorite thing to do if I'm asked to move is to point down to the rows and rows of empty seats at the front of the theater and say "Why should I move, there is still plenty of seating available"

 

[Ryanwb]

The last movie I saw there was this teenage girl who was text messaging someone. The bright light of her cellphone screen kept bugging the crap out of me are we as a culture incapable of sitting still for 2 hours and just enjoy a movie. If she wasn't a young girl I would have said something of a threatening nature, but I regress.......

 

[dreamcastrocks]

These are all of the reasons my wife and I purchased a huge television, killer surround sound and wait the 3 weeks before a DVD is released... Sometimes on a major release you might even have to wait 8 weeks... And you can usually own it with special cuts and features for about 1/3 the price that the tickets for the family would have cost....

I echo these sentiments. I recently upgraded from 55" to 62" to get an even better experience at home. Everytime I saw a commercial and wanted to go to the movies. I went to Columbia House, or to the store and bought a DVD instead. I love movies and before you know it, you have 600+ DVDs like I have now. That doesn't even include all of the TV shows that are separated from the rest of the DVDs.

Working at a movie theatre in HS also killed the movie going experience for me as well. I did have to see X3 opening night, and it will probably be the only movie that I see all year. For the 3 of us, it was nearly $25 dollars. I could have bought the DVD, a value meal at McDonalds and have had more than enough for popcorn later.

 

[Ryanwb]

I really think the theater owners need to do something in order to improve the experience. I read that DVD sales outsold ticket sales last year. IMO that speaks volumes about the industry.

Dan Harkins should hold a town hall meeting and findout what he can do to improve. They just BARELY started accepting credit/debit cards at the snack bar and I remember not to long ago that you couldn't use your card at the ticket booth at all.

I think getting FCC permission to jam cell phones like casinos, having 18+ only showings of certain movies like during late night showings (where you can't even get in the theater even if your with an adult) would do volumes to improve the industry

 

[Bada0Bing]

I really think there is no answer for them. Home theaters have changed the entire industry. If we have the patience to wait a few months, we can enjoy the movie in our own homes. The experience is just as good, if you have the right equipment. And you can cook your popcorn yourself, so it’s nice and fresh.

 

[CardFan67]

I really think there is no answer for them. Home theaters have changed the entire industry. If we have the patience to wait a few months, we can enjoy the movie in our own homes. The experience is just as good, if you have the right equipment. And you can cook your popcorn yourself, so it’s nice and fresh.

It needs to be much less expensive and a more enjoyable process, simple... They need to reduce the margin of profit or they will never be huge again... There is a multiplex theater next to my city with one huge, I mean massive screen, incredible sound, seats about 1000 people, the price of the admission is about the same, but they show minimal previews (typically the ones that have been chosen to be on that big screen only), no slide commercials. Concessions are reasonable and the lobby atmosphere is great...

The lines for the big theater are long, like the old days, the other 16 theaters are usually empty of full of people who could not get into the big theater...

That is the only place I would ever actually go and pay to see a movie...

Actually next time I go, I am going to take some pictures to show you guys how impressive it is...

 

[Ryanwb]

I really think there is no answer for them. Home theaters have changed the entire industry. If we have the patience to wait a few months, we can enjoy the movie in our own homes. The experience is just as good, if you have the right equipment. And you can cook your popcorn yourself, so it’s nice and fresh.

I totally disagree.... There is no substitute for the big screen and the whole experience. Watching a move on a screen that is less than 70" pales in comparison to a screen that is 100 feet across. No home sound system could compare to the system in the theater that is $100,000+

 

[Ryanwb]

Actually next time I go, I am going to take some pictures to show you guys how impressive it is...

Are you talking about the AMC in woodland hills?

 

[Russ Smith]

I almost never go to the movies anymore for most of the reasons mentioned in this thread. Ryan's original complaint is dead on, I get there early specifically to get a seat I want, in my case I usually pick the aisle so I can spread my legs out since my bad knee cramps sitting that long.

I've actually been in theaters that are so crowded the employees come in and ask everyone to move to the center to make room for the people without seats, and I've seen people refuse to move and state very clearly I got here early for THIS seat, I'm not moving for someone who just got here.

Its' really no different than the person that waits until the last second on a freeway, pull up alongside you, and then puts their turn signal on and expects you to let them in front of you to merge onto another freeway. They bypass a line of cars, and if you refuse to let them in, YOU are being rude?

 

[Louis]

I almost never go to the movies anymore for most of the reasons mentioned in this thread. Ryan's original complaint is dead on, I get there early specifically to get a seat I want, in my case I usually pick the aisle so I can spread my legs out since my bad knee cramps sitting that long.

I usually pick a seat in the aisle, because at 6'5" being stuck anywhere but on the aisle is awfully uncomfortable.

I've actually been in theaters that are so crowded the employees come in and ask everyone to move to the center to make room for the people without seats, and I've seen people refuse to move and state very clearly I got here early for THIS seat, I'm not moving for someone who just got here.

Isn't it common courtesy that when arriving and seating yourself, that you take seats in the middle? That way, people who arrive after you don't have to climb over your knees to be seated?

Plus if everybody scattered (as I do anyway), it then becomes a chore for 2/3 people to find seats together because everyone sat wherever they wanted which usually means groups of people sitting 1 seat apart.

Even if they didn't arrive as early as you/me and others, they still arrived and having seats available would make it easier for everybody including the already seated bunch.

 

[CardFan67]

Are you talking about the AMC in woodland hills?

No it is the Pacific Lakewood Center Stadium 16 - 15 micro and one huge one...

 

[Russ Smith]

I usually pick a seat in the aisle, because at 6'5" being stuck anywhere but on the aisle is awfully uncomfortable.



Isn't it common courtesy that when arriving and seating yourself, that you take seats in the middle? That way, people who arrive after you don't have to climb over your knees to be seated?

Plus if everybody scattered (as I do anyway), it then becomes a chore for 2/3 people to find seats together because everyone sat wherever they wanted which usually means groups of people sitting 1 seat apart.

Even if they didn't arrive as early as you/me and others, they still arrived and having seats available would make it easier for everybody including the already seated bunch.

Well if everyone in the theater is as tall as you and wants to sit on aisle seats when tehy get in, why should they have to sit in the middle to make room for late arrivers?

I used to take my ex girlfriends son to movies all the time when he was much younger. I'd always pick an aisle seat because I knew at some point in the movie either he was going to have to pee, he was going to spill a drink, or something was going to happen that required us to leave our seats, and on the aisle you don't have to ask people to make room for you to leave your seat.

Maybe they should have assigned seating like on airplanes?

 

[NEZCardsfan]

Maybe they should have assigned seating like on airplanes?

My luck is terrible. I'd get stuck next to Cel Phone girl, wearing 8 pounds of perfume, everytime.


I can't stand breathing through my mouth, either. Goes back to my whole hating it when people use the wrong tools for stuff. Nose is for breathing, mouth is for talking.

 

[Bada0Bing]

I totally disagree.... There is no substitute for the big screen and the whole experience. Watching a move on a screen that is less than 70" pales in comparison to a screen that is 100 feet across. No home sound system could compare to the system in the theater that is $100,000+

I guess we just don’t agree then. No, my system did not cost $100,000 nor is my screen 100 feet. However, I don’t need to fill a gigantic room full of people either. I can fire up the sound as loud as I like (I mean as loud as Mrs. Bing allows me to) and we can pause it at any time to go to the bathroom or restock on grub.

However, about once per year there is a movie that will draw me out to the theater. Revenge of the Sith was one last year. The 100 foot screen really made a difference. I also made it out to see Fight Club too. I was really looking forward to that one and I just couldn’t wait.