cinemiracle
Screenwriter
- Joined
- May 1, 2015
- Messages
- 1,614
- Real Name
- Peter
So many great memories on here. I certainly have mine as well.
But what I miss though is an age of "going to the movies" (or cinema as my grandmother says) that I never really got to experience. See, I never really saw an uniformed usher with a flashlight guiding people that arrived late to their seats or - more importantly - that maintained order during projection. You might ask me "why is that important?" Well, I tell you: I've noticed that going to the movies nowadays is nothing like going to the movies back when I was a kid. People don't seem to be properly educated these days - they speak during the movie, chew with their mouths open (I hate and despise the sound of people chewing popcorn with their mouths open), and - one of my biggest annoyances - people check or just use their smartphones during/throughout the movie, and that annoying blue glare disrupts the experience (it's much worse when it's someone sitting by my side or on the row right in front of me). I effing hate that and I can't understand why anyone would text during a movie. No usher ever told those people to behave. No one really cares. I've seen staff at Regal and AMC Theaters opening doors and sweeping floors after a session but I've never seen them doing much else. Last time I went to the theater was to see Parisite and the AC made trepidation noises - now besides people that don't know how to behave in a theater, there's also places in serious need of repairs. My friend told me that he had watched Iron Man 3 (!!!) in the same theater and the AC made that same noise. Unkept theaters... ugh.
While I agree that no home theater could ever replace the actual movie theater experience, I certainly don't appreciate impolite people spoiling my experience. Movie theaters need to get a grip, rethink their business model, go the extra mile to make "going to the movies" an experience again. And parents need to educate their kids as to how to behave in public spaces... especially movie theaters. I noticed that this "trend" of people misbehaving started in the early 2000s. I wonder if that's a result of the big blockbuster wave that has swept cinemas ever since. I love a superhero movie and all, but even a big budget movie allows you the chance to reflect and just admire what's on the screen. But people seem to be there just to be entertained and talk out loud when they're in a big group. Ugh. I certainly don't miss that. But my home theater won't ever be an IMAX
I had to wear a dinner suit for the evening sessions when I worked in cinemas during the sixties.