Why can't people behave themselves in theatres (rant)

[TrogL]

I saw ROTK the second time last night. Some kid wanted to go again.

The first time around it was spoiled for me because I was trapped between two people for three hours and 21 minutes. The one on the right ate a barrel of popcorn...loudly...with his mouth open...spraying me with spittle. Then he went away. Then he came back with another barrel of popcorn, which he ate...loudly...with his mouth open...spraying me with spittle.

Then there was the fat girl to my left. In the course of three hours and 21 minutes she ate:

• a barrel of popcorn
  
• a box of smarties
  
• a box of Glosette raisins
  
• a big package of red licorice
  
• another big package of red licorice
  
• gum
  
• more gum
  
• a whole bag of candy in crinkly wrappers
  

...loudly, with her mouth open, grunting between bites, all the while yakking with her brother next door, who apparently needed EVERYTHING in the movie explained to him.

So, I went again. This time was an improvement. People are capable of eating (apparently) with their mouths shut and without spraying their neighbour. They are not, apparently, capable of shutting up during a movie, especially the climax - the prime moment to discuss last week's hot date.

OK, last I heard the cultural rules were this.

• Get your food and drink ahead of time - a reasonable amount
  
• Don't guzzle so much liquids that you need 10 trips to the bathroom
  
• turn your cell phones, watch alarms and various beepers off (or if you're on call, put them on vibrate)
  
• Sit down
  
• Shut up
  
• Make every effort to make your neighbour's showtime a pleasurable one
  

What changed?

[HEyHEY]

1. SOrry about the spittle I was at the dentist earlier

Seriously though, if ONE drop of someone elses food hits me I'll freak. I am a docial guy except when it comes to stuff like that. That's why I don't go to movies.

I think what changed is people being too dumb to separate their home from a theatre.

[Intelsucks]

2. Because their parents didn't teach them any manners.

No one has any social manners anymore. People are rude and self-centered IMHO.

[tkmorris]

3. Manners

Simply being polite is considered to be "PC" these days, and being PC is a sure sign that you are a doormat. The way of the 21st century so far is apparently to be the biggest schmuck you can be, ignoring everyone elses thoughts and desires. It's the wave of the future and it makes me want to throttle people with my bare hands.
:mad:

[oustemnow]

41. Possibly, but I read another theory about this subject recently

(it might have actually been on DU). Someone made the point that there is a whole generation now that, thanks to the VCR, have had their formative moviegoing experiences in the living room, where it's more acceptable to talk, get up and get a drink in the middle of the movie, etc., than it is in a theater. Subsequently the notion of keeping their yaps shut while watching a movie wasn't drilled into them from the get-go.

Seems plausible, anyway.

[tkmorris]

49. Yeah, that makes some sense

But are people really so obtuse that they need it explained to them that a theatre isn't their living room? It seems like such a no-brainer to me. I mean, regardless of my familiarity with a given situation I am always on the lookout for those around me. I have no wish to crash into anyones cart at the supermarket, nor to block the aisles. If there are people waiting in line I make sure I have my payment ready when needed rather than rummage around in my wallet for the card like I was unaware I might need it. If I have tons of stuff and the person behind me has 2 items, they go first. I let people merge. In FRONT of me. I hold doors open. I say please, and thank you, to total strangers.

Simple. All it takes is an awareness that there are other people in the world and that the things you do affect them. THAT's what has been lost. Too many people act in public as if they are unaware or care that anyone else is there. A society of solipsists.

[FloridaJudy]

55. So what's wrong with PC?

It's what my mother and grandmother used to call "Good Manners", back in the Bad Old Days of the fifties. It consisted of:

1) Asking people how they would like to be addressed, and respecting their wishes.

2) The magic words "please" and "thank you".

3) Asking "how can I help?", and then really listening to the answer.

The RRR condemns PC, and then turns around and accuses us Liberals of being rude? What's wrong with this picture???

[tkmorris]

56. I don't think you understood me

There is nothing wrong with PC. The point I was trying to make is that what people now call "PC" and feel is beneath them used to be known as simple good manners. Hence, they don't practice manners anymore. They should, and I do, as you'll notice if you read my response just under post 3.

I have no earthly idea what an RRR is. Please explain.

[FloridaJudy]

58. Radical Right Republicans n/t

[THUNDER HANDS]

4. don't bring BABIES EITHER

When I saw ROTK (and Freddy v. Jason, which was just wrong) there were at least three couples who had brought their newborn babies into the theater.

Of course, with the loud noises coming from the movie, the kid got scared and started crying, then the other baby cried...then the other.

Of course, that's a horrible thing to sit through. But not as bad as "Why'd that happen dad?" every five minutes as a 6-year-old needs the plot explained to him.

AURGH!!!

[Kathy in Cambridge]

27. It's called "GET A BABYSITTER!!"

I didn't just spend $10 to have the movie ruined by your child just because you're too cheap for a babysitter or too selfish.

[Kolesar]

38. Stay at home and watch Disney's Mermaid for the 30th time

"Isn't he cute"
"No he ain't"
"Just another burden on the welfare state"

[LynneSin]

5. The worse is when they bring babies to inappropriate movies

Ramsey, along with her husband, and I went to see the movie Underworld about 2-3 months ago. This is a movie about vampires and were-wolfs and the movie was playing at 10pm on a Saturday night.

Wouldn't you know it, in walks a mother with 3 small children, including infants.

What dimwit would take their children to a movie that contains gore and violence. And who would be taking them at 10pm at night when those children should be in bed. When the woman walked in with her kids (one was crying), the whole theater booed her and chased her out.

Now I know, I should feel sorry for this poor woman who can't go to a movie anymore because she can't find a babysitter for her 3 kids. Well I don't. Rag me, flame me, but it was just inappropriate for what she did.

[THUNDER HANDS]

7. I'll flame you just for rewriting what I wrote

Change 'Underworld' to 'Jason v. Freddy' and we had practically the same thing happen. :D

[chookie]

13. I admire Apache child rearing methods

When Apache babies would cry, they would take them outside the teepee and hang them in a tree. When the baby stopped crying, they would bring it back in again. Warriors and hunters like the Apache had absolute need for silence at times, so their children had to learn the discipline of silence from infancy. I bet you that woman and her kids were not Apaches!

I was also impressed by how quiet and well-behaved and stoical Bolivian children were. We theorized that the conditions of life are so extremely difficult high in the Andes that any child that showed any disposition towards whining or complaining was killed by its parents for the sake of their mental health.

Compare and contrast that to the screaming brats one encounters at WalMart, hysterically shrieking because its parent will not purchase some plastic object for them....

[Kolesar]

39. Wow. eom

[Ilsa]

47. Our theatre will not allow children under a

certain age for any R movie or any movie after a certain time at night. They do this so people have a chance to see a movie "child free".

[Pithlet]

50. That is a good policy

It's really common sense to not take babies and small children to adult themed movies, especially late showings. As a parent of a baby and a toddler, it would never occur to me to do this. When I went to see Saving Private Ryan a few years ago, someone had brought a baby to it and it screamed the whole time. Not only is it rude, but the poor baby must have been terrified.

[POed_Ex_Repub]

6. Don't forget cell phones!

I was at Matrix Revolutions when a lady accross the isle started yakking on hers. When the guy in front of her told her to shut it off, they got in an arugment (of which it was impossible to hear the movie over). Of my top 10 pet peeves, rudeness at movies make up about 7 of them (I like movies, can you tell?)

[skippysmom]

8. People are so clueless.

Between the loud talking, and seat kicking, and kids at movies they shouldn't be at...argh.

The worst, though, happened when I went to a matinee the other day. The theater was pretty empty -- only about 10 people there -- and some couple came and sat RIGHT NEXT TO ME. You have the entire theater and you have to sit next to me and chit chat? I got up and pointedly moved.

[liberalpress]

9. I go on Tuesdays...

...at least in my area, NOBODY goes to movies on Tuesdays. There are times I have theare all to myself. Plus I sit near the back and on the aisle.

[amazona]

10. it's better than it used to be

I'm afraid that back in the 1970s someone I know -- it might even have been me -- would sit in the back of the movie theater and smoke...whatever...

You would never get that nowadays!

The kids and babies are just wrong but I generally go to matinees when I suppose the little ones are getting their nap so I rarely encounter this.

[chookie]

11. My movie theatre horror stories

1) One of the several times I saw FOTR in the theatre, I had the misfortune of being there at a time when a man who had memorized most of the lines of the movie, which he would recite, rather loudly, to his girlfriend, just before they were said on screen. If it had been Viggo Mortensen showing off to his date, well, that would have been different, but this guy was just a geek. Maybe I should have done the world a favor and throttled him, thereby culling him from the human herd, but I was at the time in a general mode of conciliation with all living things, no matter how stupid, and chalked it up to some terrible deed I had done in a former life.

2) During a movie one evening, a nice looking well-dressed young man of about 25 years old, seated in the row behind me, had a cell phone that rang, which he answered, and started a nice long and fairly volumous chat with his pal who had called. A woman in the row ahead of me turned around and hissed at him, "Do you MIND?" He replied "Shut up, you f***ing b****, or I am going to spit on you." Is it just me, or was that a really bizarre thing to say? Pittsburgh. Scary.

[nostamj]

12. bad enough in a movie theatre....

but when you're paying Broadway prices!

as fas as I'm concerned, people who arrive after the lights have gone down SHOULD NOT BE SEATED. period. put a monitor in the lobby.

it seems that every time I go, it's the three people in the center of the row that decide to show up DURING the first act.

and god help anyone who talks near me.

[Cheswick2.0]

14. You beat me to it

as someone who has been both in the audience and on the stage, there must be a special place in hell for people who talk in a live performance.
As an audience member it absolutely breaks your concentration. On the stage it is not as upsetting because you just see them as a challenge, someone who's attention you must capture.

[TreasonousBastard]

19. heh

You could have had some interesting discussions with Buddy Rich.

Always a notorious bully to band and audience, getting his own club on the East Side didn't calm him down a bit.

I was there one night when someone was twirling the ice in a drink a little too loudly. He stopped the music and threatened to have the offender thrown out-- pointing pointedly to murals of him with his brown belt.

This was before beepers, cell phones, Palms, and (God forbid) Nextels. I can't imagine what he'd do today.

[HEyHEY]

15. Same at hockey games

Some jerk always shows up halfway through the first

[Skittles]

25. YES

and they can't see, so they wait a bit for their eyes to get adjusted - so their FAT ASSES ARE BLOCKING MY VIEW. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.

[Ellen Forradalom]

16. I don't even go to movie theaters any more

unless it's an arty grown-up theater. Certainly not the mall googleplexes. It's an awful experience, from the price, to the smell, to the noise.

You forgot another cultural rule--if you're going to see a James Bond movie, leave the baby at home!

[JackDragna]

17. I've nearly gone to fisticuffs with poorly behaved movie patrons.

I was watching the end of "Kill Bill" when a group of teens walked into the theater. They had entered the wrong theater and proceeded to stand in the aisle and make loud, obnoxious comments about how this moive sucked compared to what they wanted to see. Several people politely asked them to leave. When that didn't work, someone left to go get the theater management. During that time, the teens became pissed at a couple who had asked them to quiet down and made threatening gestures towards them. I and several other patrons stood up and got into a shouting match with the teens. We were about -this- close to coming to blows when a cop entered the theater and chased the kids out. The indelible image I'll have is some teen dressed up in preppy clothes, probably the darling of some suburban family, telling me to "go fuck yourself, bitch."

I really wish beating children wasn't a crime.

[rasputin1952]

18. I have had some "interesting" experiences at the movies...

One particular one involved a guy who insisted talking, and I politely went over asked him to keep it down. He continued talking, and I, impolitely asked him publicly to be quiet so the rest of us could enjoy the movie.

Hmmmmm...no effect, he kept talking. Time for action, I tossed my popcorn at him. That shut him up, but also made him jump up and threaten me, so I tossed my pop at him too.

He left.

Now, I do not suggest others do this. I did make a mess of the theater, and actually went to the manager and offered to clean the place up; (which he took me up on, BTW). However, I was roundly applauded by the other theater goers for getting rid of the bum.

:evilgrin:

[THUNDER HANDS]

20. woah, the dreaded weaponized popcorn defense

You are a true samurai moviegoer. :D

[rasputin1952]

33. LOL.....

A man's gotta do, what a man's gotta do.

Let me tell you though, cleaning up that place was a chore. I feel sorry for those that work in theaters, patrons are really slobs!

I swept and mopped the entire floor, and people can be pigs, let me tell you.

O8)

[Ellen Forradalom]

46. Wow, you're a saint

A samurai saint, but a saint nonetheless.

[Nazgul35]

53. WOW!!!

And I thought my wife was bad!!!

She goes nuclear right off the bat!!!

And it doesnt help that she is scottish, so her voice is incomprehensible to lazy American ears.....

I have a certain defcon level....

Talking is to stop when the lights go down for the main feature (I like the trailers though...but i'm willing to sacrifice)

Defcon 5: They get a look if they are behind me or a loud sigh if they are in front of me...

Defcon 4: a quick shush...

Defcon 3: a longer shush usually followed by "for fucks sake (replace fuck with pete's if children are around...I do live in Michigan and they'll prosecute my ass :evilgrin:)

Defcon 2: "shut the hell up" (children or not) usually followed by "your not in your friggin living room!"

Defcon 1: turn my wife loose on them...if they're too stupid to shut up at this point, they deserve the full brunt of a furious Glagwegian catholic.....

[Darth_Kitten]

21. I once went to a dance performance.....

at this small theatre. It was a very moving performance and the audience was spellbound. I couldn't quite enjoy the performance because this loser in the front row was using part of centre stage as a leg rest. Never mind how disrespectful it was for the performer, it was really hard to watch the performance without seeing this worthless slob's feet on the stage.
After the performance I was majorly p'od so I went up to this pathetic waste of space(man, I was pissed!) and told him if he ever learned ANY manners and maybe he should,etc? He called me a name, and I said the only $$%% was the one who raised YOU, you filthy pig. :(

Maybe it was wrong but man he was a filthy punk. :( Plus, before the performance he was acting like a slob and I gave him a few dirty looks. I moved finally and then he would deliberately do something annoying and would look back to me and smirk. :evilfrown:

[Logansquare]

40. I was at a dance performance where two people came in late

sat in the front row and proceeded to drop what sounded like $10.00 worth of change all over the floor.

[Lisa]

22. I'm starting to wonder whether home video viewing may have an impact ...

A few years ago, my cousin took her kids to their first cinema movie. She reported that her 5-year-old wanted to know if they could "rewind" because he had missed something that happened onscreen.

I've been teaching for a number of years, and my colleagues all report that the number of students approaching them to repeat stuff they've missed, or bring back guest speakers or videos because they weren't listening, has increased over the past couple of decades. Even other students are complaining about the growing number of distractions from their colleagues in class.

Is it possible that getting used to being able to replay things at home has affected our ability to concentrate? Subconsciously we think it doesn't matter if we miss it the first time around?

[Cheswick2.0]

23. isn't it sad?

Isn't it sad that so many people never seem to have experience the pure pleasure or being totally caught up in a movie or theater performance (or even a good television show like West Wing). You know damn well they were never transported to another place and time in a good novel.

[arwalden]

26. Absolutely Brilliant, Lisa...

I'm a ReplayTV addict myself. So even my "live" tv is rewindable. Frequently, I'll be daydreaming while driving and I'll hear the tail end of a commercial or news story that suddenly catches my interest... and I find myself wishing that I could rewind it.

I'm not sure that I'm actually paying attention LESS because I can rewind at home... but I find myself NOTICING exactly when it is that I'm NOT paying attention (simply because my safety-net of rewinding isn't available).

My attention span hasn't changed... it's just more frustrating NOT to be able to fix it and redo life whenever I DO daydream.

-- Allen

[Pithlet]

51. I do the same thing

TiVo definitely doesn't help my ADD. I even found myself telling my husband to "pause" once when he talking to me. Yikes!

[SheilaT]

24. Try going to a theater

that's a little less crowded? Move to Overland Park, Kansas. We are wondrously overbuilt with theaters and movies rarely sell out. Most of the theaters are new with the stadium style seating and people here are generally pretty considerate.

The best of the theaters here, for being uncrowded, is the Oak Park Plaza 6. Only 6 screens, it's nearly twenty years old so no stadium seating, which makes it unpopular compared to all the newer screens and I just LOVE going there. I have more than once been the only customer in the theater.

(In the interests of full disclosure, I must reveal that both of my sons work there and I get to go to movies for free any time I want. And not just at that location but at any of the others of that chain.)

[rasputin1952]

34. Here in Nebraska...

they are still often referred to as "talking picture shows". Maybe that is why some of these people thing they can speak in the theater?

:eyes:

[Lydia Leftcoast]

28. One year I alleviated the boredom of

living in a small town in Oregon by acting in a hokey melodrama spoof at the community theater.

I had a fairly large role (the hero's love interest, but that's another story), and I was delighted when the director told me that a certain night's performance would be videotaped.

Unfortunately, that was the night that some idiotic woman brought her offspring to see the play. They talked and talked and then discovered the joys of throwing popcorn at the stage. The idiotic woman just sat there and let it all happen, as parents of brats always do.

The videotape has a constant undercurrent of childish chatter and glimpses of flying popcorn

[Blue Gardener]

29. Lack of bathroom etiquette is disgusting!

Flush the toilet please!
Wash your hands!
Don't block the sink/mirror for five minutes while you're putting on your face!
Get some manners for crying out loud!

[rasputin1952]

35. You might also add...

that breaking wind in a crowded theater is NOT appropriate behavior!

:silly:

[Nazgul35]

54. yes!!!

sneaking one off is much better...

:evilgrin:

[BlueJazz]

30. I propose that Movie Theaters have people......

....up in the ceiling (kind-of like they do in Las Veges).

They would have 3 BB-Guns , each loaded with a certain strengh of load.

For example: You talk during the show for over 5 seconds?...A mild "ping" in the Ear.

Keep pushing the seat in front of you?....A fairly good shot on your neck.

Talking on the Cell-Phone more than 5 seconds? ...A full-power load to your eye.

[Mrs. Venation]

31. I Think This Boorish Behavior Occurs

because theater managers don't do their jobs! We pay a lot of money to see a movie or a play; theater managers should consider it their utmost duty to ensure disruptive audience members are thrown out! If this happened more often I think people would behave better.

I have a hearing impairment; people talking during performances is very distracting to me. It ruins an experience that is supposed to be entertaining.

[SheilaT]

60. And the reason managers aren't doing this

is that theaters are chronically understaffed.

I know from my sons that at some point during the showing of each movie, a staffer is supposed to slip in the theater and make sure nothing bad is happening, the film is actually showing properly and so on. There's often no one up in the booth to monitor what's going on in the theater (and the booth is soundproofed because it's one big open room behind all the theaters) so they can't tell if some patron is talking too much.

Back in the days of ushers who showed you to your seats -- anyone here still remember assigned seats in movies? I do -- there was more control over audience behavior. These days the sixteen year old who sells you the ticket and the popcorn isn't going to be able to exercise a lot of authority.

My sixteen year old has worked for a little over a year at his theater and is now a supervisor.

[St. Jarvitude]

32. When I saw ROTK...

There was this guy behind me, with his three young kids. Not only would the man laugh at very bad times (basically, whenever some big monster was killed), but he'd occasionally yell out advice to whichever character had a predicament. His kids were bad too, asking him questions every other minute about what was going on.

I think it may be the last time I go to a matinee for a blockbuster movie.

[Dookus]

36. my major peeve....

I LOVE movies. Really REALLY love 'em. And people are always fucking up the experience.

And it's not just kids at blockbuster movies, either. Last year I was at our small, local indy house watching some art film, and a woman in her 60's and her daughter (in her 40's) sat right behind me and kept talking throughout the film. I turned around a few times and asked them nicely to stop, but they continued. I asked again - they said "well if you'd stop turning around and watch the movie, it wouldn't bother you".

I stood up, turned around and said as loudly as I could - "so you think it's all right to talk throughout the whole fucking movie, do you?" The theater applauded. They shut up.

I REALLY hate the people who think that as long as there's no dialog, it's OK to talk. Sorry, it's not - the director WANTED that silence. Or that music. Or whatever.

I agree with the person upthread who blames the theater management. I do, too. For the price of a bucket of popcorn and a soda, they could hire an usher. The problem will change when people actually find themselves kicked out on their asses.

[devilgrrl]

37. When I saw ROTK...

William H. Macy and Felicity Huffman were sitting across the aisle from me! Man, are they tiny people!

Anyway, I got a piece of kernel caught in my throat prompting a raging coughing fit... I felt like an ass. :evilfrown:

[Kat45]

42. Theaters seem to be short on help these days

and since people are ruder and ruder than ever, that makes the situation worse. I can't remember the last time I saw an usher in a theater. When I've gone to smaller theaters, sometimes the same person selling the tickets runs back to the concession stand to get your popcorn. A number of times there isn't even anybody to take your ticket; anyone can walk in and out of the different theaters without any theater employees noticing.

[Missy Vixen]

43. We rarely go to the movies anymore

Here's a few reasons why:

>Then there was the fat girl to my left. In the course of three hours and 21 minutes she ate:

a barrel of popcorn
a box of smarties
a box of Glosette raisins
a big package of red licorice
another big package of red licorice
gum
more gum
a whole bag of candy in crinkly wrappers<

Frankly, we don't like the discussions among other patrons while the movie is playing, ringing cellphones and screaming infants, but the above is almost as offensive to me as the talking.

If she wants to eat, that's her business. If the food has crinkly wrappers, perhaps you needed to alert the management of that fact. I get dirty looks when I simply (and quietly) eat some popcorn and drink a soda during a movie, so perhaps the fat shouldn't go to movie theaters, either.

>Get your food and drink ahead of time - a reasonable amount
Don't guzzle so much liquids that you need 10 trips to the bathroom<

Perhaps there should be a rule that those of us who aren't svelte aren't allowed to order anything but water as well. As I previously mentioned, we've gotten less than positive reinforcement for simply eating popcorn (and sipping the smallest soda the theater offers.)

We sit on the aisle, so we won't offend the other patrons by having to deal with the fat people.

I have a very thin friend who has a bladder syndrome that primarily affects women. She needs to use the ladies' room perhaps once an hour because of this issue. Maybe she shouldn't be allowed to visit the theater, either.

We have learned to wait until whatever we'd like to see comes out on DVD. We can consume whatever snack we'd like without the Food Police's interference, the bathroom's close by, and we don't have to deal with the rudeness of other patrons, either.

It's a nice solution, and ultimately will lead to the closings of even more movie theaters around the country.

Julie

[gardenista]

44. My husband almost came to blows with a jerk

who brought his 3 year old to The Two Towers screening at 10:00pm.

She was bored during the dialog, and banged a water bottle against the seat in front of her. She was of course frightened and crying throughout the rest of the film, with her terror escalating toward the climax. When it got really bad at the end, my husband said something. The apalling response from the completely ignorant mother was, "But she's a child!" As if it is our responsibility to endure the consequences of her totally inappropriate decision to bring a young child into a violent, loud film. Yeah, lady, that's the whole fucking point!

The male of the trio got fully agitated, and stood up, over my husband, removed his shirt to show us he had nice muscles and a few tatoos, and offered to "take it outside". My horror at the situation was not lightened when my husbands response was, "Well, I'd prefer it if you took your crying child outside." response: "Keep your mouth shut, or I'll hurt you, motha****"

I truly thought they would come to blows and begged my husband to just ignore the guy, which he did. The asshole waited for us at the exit and threatened my husband again. The idiot management refused to call the police, instead offering to have their "security" person, a girl of about 19, walk us to our car. Needless to say, we have not been back to that theatre.

Multiplexes are horrible places to see films.

[anti_shrub]

45. I don't go to theaters much anymore

and when I do, I make sure its at a time where there's likely to be small crowds (during the day when school's in session, etc) and I very rarely have any issues with rude people in theaters. I never see movies in their opening week either. The only time I was in a theater when people were loud, it was for the Blair Witch Project and there was a bunch of kids who yelled out "THAT'S THE END? THAT'S F***IN' BULLSHIT!" I didn't mind that because I was thinking the exact same thing myself.

Oddly, most of my rude idiots at the mall rather than the movies. Just a few months ago I was leaving the mall with my girlfriend and there was a teenage kid and his two "female companions", and when we walked past each other he felt compelled to suddenly turn to me and bark like a dog about 4 inches from my ear. I contemplated beating the oversized pants off him, but it wasn't worth the effort. It would have looked bad for someone my size to pummel a kid who looks like Sally Struthers should be sending his family some food.

[curse10]

48. I don't understand why people need to eat and drink during movies anyway!

It's gross!

What, you can't sit through 2 hours without having nachos and a diet coke?

I occasionally get a bottle of water. No popcorn. No candy. And definately not nachos. Ick.

[put out]

52. Hate to tell you this.

My S.O. considers it a god-given right to loudly LOUDLY crunch nachos, rattle ice in the enormous drink containers, and generally treat movie going as a fine-dining experience. We don't go to the movies together much anymore. I'm sorry for that,

But if you ever sat next to us in a theater, I'M REALLY SORRY!

[rasputin1952]

65. ROFLMAO!!!!!...

some people know the finer art of Grand Cuisine at the theater!

I have no problem with people eating/drinking in a theater. I I DO have a real problem with people that have NO respect for anyone else in the theater. A wad of gum the size of a golf ball, in a mouth breather is damn near a death sentence to me. I can think of nothing more repulsive than people who eat with their mouths open!!!!!!!

Slurping is horrendous as well!, But not nearly as bad as the dirt-bags that 'chew', miss their cups, and hit the floor with tobacco juice. I am a smoker, and couldn't care less what people do, as long as they respect others.!

BTW: In case the guy who ate the HUGE Korean meal, complete with 3 quarts of kimchi, that went to "Matrix Re-Loaded" is reading this;
I'll find you, you SOB! :nuke:

O8)

[7th_Sephiroth]

57. i used to work at a movie theatre

we got lots of complaints of crying babies and rude brats at 10pm even midnight showings.

On the other side, when watching a movie, this guy kpt getting LOUD cell phone calls every 2 min and when i told him to turn the phone off he stood up turned around and looked right down the barrel of my gun, needless to say he shut the phone off

[101 Proof]

59. It's because people these days only care about themselves...

and are inconsiderate to others. That's why I hate going into public.

Take the day after Christmas for example:I went shopping, and all over the freaking place were people cramming the aisles, and when the aisles were crammped, people still tried to push their way through, with their carts. Man, that pissed me off.

Or take those who are walking w/ a cart on one of the main aisles. When walking behind them, you notice that they all of a sudden stop, look at a cheap product on sale, and have disregard about those behind them. They don't move. All you can do is say is "Excuse me." Or, you can follow my example, which usually works, and say "Move your fat ass out of my way!"

Man, the public pisses me off sometimes. :grr:

[rasputin1952]

66. I was in a supermarket in AZ a few years back...

and this 80+ guy was arguing about the price of a 19 cent onion to the clerk. The onion was all the guy was buying.

i was the second guy in line, and after about 30 seconds, I asked him, "would you please pay for the onion, so the rest of us can get through"?

I received a glare from this guy, and this just ticked me off instantaneously! More drastic action was needed!

I reached into my pocket, counted out 19 cents, gave it to the clerk.
I then looked this guy in the eye and said, (verbatim); "Look you old fuck, now you have FREE onion! Get the fuck out of here you miserable old bastard. Go buy some damn onion seeds next time"!

I thought the lady in front of me was going to burst out laughing, and the clerk was as red as a beet. But, the old creep moved on sheepishly. I suppose he used that onion as a 'voodoo onion' and stuck a few pins in it before he boiled it up with whatever he was cooking.

O8)

[SheilaT]

61. The theater chain I patronize

(AMC) has a little public service announcement after the previews and before the movie requesting people turn off their cell phones. Doesn't EVERY chain have some such thing?

I think theaters ought to use the technology which I understand is in widespread use in Japan that blocks cell phone usage in confined spaces such as theaters. If you cannot go two hours without receiving a call you should be sitting home next to the phone in the first place.

[Skittles]

62. yes

I am on-call a lot and sometimes will try to sneak in a movie at the dollar theater. I put both the pager and cell phone on vibrate and if either goes off, I excuse myself to the lobby to make a call. No interruption to the patrons whatsoever. It boggles my mind that people actually let the damn things RING and then ANSWER them while sitting in their seats!

[truthspeaker]

63. cell-phone blocking is illegal in the US

Some FCC regulation against jamming radio transmissions.

[amazona]

64. well they're doing it anyway

Hospitals have cell phone blocking. It's pretty standard.

I recently dined in at least one California restuarant that had cell phone blocking.

Many casinos just because of the way they are built have partial blocking and it would probably not be difficult for them to have full blocking if they were more concerned. But there's so much noise in casinos anyway that they have no motivation.

[rasputin1952]

67. I wonder if it would be considered 'cell phone blocking'...

if I shoved one of those up some jerk's ass?

:evilgrin:

[jimbo fett]

68. Not just theaters. It's malls, airports, swimming pools, EVERYWHERE.

What ever happened to manners, civility and consideration for those around you?

My mom always reminded us when in public that we weren't alone and that we should minimize our disturbance of others.

Nowadays, not ony will they talk loud during movies they'll give YOU the dirty look for giving THEM the dirty look for THEIR TALKING.

Arghhhh, this is how people go postal.