What's the longest you've ever waited outside to see a film?

Inspector Hammer! · 01-10-2005, 08:55 PM

I heard a story on the radio today about a guy in Seattle who has camped out in front of a movie theater to see SW EP III The Revenge of the Sith right now, 4 months before it's release!

Which got me curious, what's the longest you've waited to see a film? Any camp out stories worth telling?

Personally I have none to tell, the longest i've waited to get into a film was for Alien vs Predator, it was 3 hours, but I was in a mall with lots to keep me busy until showtime.

RichardLoomis · 01-10-2005, 11:26 PM

Most of the time, that isn't really necessary here. All the REALLY big movies have pre-sale tickets (both online and off) a few weeks to a month before the event.

However, some lining up is involved on the day, so you can exercise the right to use the ticket you just paid for

A few hours if you want a good seat.

However, the two major cinema chains here - Hoyts and Birch & Carrol - have developed a 'fancy night out'. The Hoyts one, called La Premiere and the only 'fancy' one I have used - gives you assigned "lounge style" seats, in a balcony area. For a slightly higher ticket price, you get nicer seats, free popcorn and soft drinks as well as access to a bar, with permission to take alcohol into the cinema. I tend to use this option for the big movies - like Star Wars - and save myself the effort of lining up at all.

Also, our local cinemaplex has assigned seating for regular sessions too, so lining up is pretty much a thing of the past here.

Lynda-Marie · 01-10-2005, 11:35 PM

Hmm, no camp out stories for me, but I do remember getting into line for the opening day of Return of the Jedi at about 10 in the morning, for a show at 4 pm. It was actually fun. I was ducking school [thank God my dad did not find out!] and I not only got to hang out with some friends, who were also playing hooky, but I got to meet and talk to new people of all different ages and professions who were likewise taking a day off.

While waiting in line to see Phantom Menace, there was a 12 year old girl who was complaining that she had been in line for almost 20 whole minutes. I told her that she should have been there for Jedi, and her eyes got big as saucers.

Robyn · 01-11-2005, 12:01 AM

I usually wait for a movie to be out for a week or two because I hate lines, but I did wait for a couple of hours to see Titanic Xmas night of '97. It's the first time I ever sat in a packed theater. Yes, I was a Titaniac.

Didn't someone camp out for months before Star Wars Phantom Menace came out? I thought I saw something like that on the news years ago.

ChuckSolo · 01-11-2005, 12:56 AM

Back in the 1970's I went to see "Superman" in San Diego and waited 2 hrs in the rain. I vowed then and there.....never again. That was way before the proliferation of multi-plex cinemas. We went to San Diego to see the film on the huge 70mm screen at a theater called the Cinema 21. Excellent experience moviewise, but the waiting sucked.

BTW-I saw "Star Wars" there too.:b

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Michael Elliott · 01-11-2005, 01:12 AM

1995 Opening day of CASINO.

My buddy and I were huge Scorsese fans but we got about 2ft. of snow the day the film opened. I begged my father to drive us to the theater and he agreed but he had to drop us off three hours before the doors opened because he had to be at work. The manager wouldn't allow us in so we had to wait outside in snow with the temp around 10 degrees for those three hours. I was frozen during the movie but it was worth it.

I finally thawed out after the trailers had ended then the movie started....the need for a bathroom break hit me right then but I refused to leave that three hour movie.

Matt Stone · 01-11-2005, 01:31 AM

I camped out for Phantom Menace tickets for about 12 hours. It was actually a great experience. The people I sat with were really kewl, and the local TV stations came by and brought free pizza, etc. The movie was disappointing for me, but I really had a fun time waiting for it.

Adam Portrais · 01-11-2005, 02:36 AM

Well I waited outside the night of both Ep. I and II (will for Ep. III as well) just to get good seats (tickets were presale). On both of those I waited about six or seven hours each. My best is not exactly my longest wait for a movie but it is the longest I've ever spent at a movie theater. It was the LOTR Trilogy Tuesday. I was living in Orlando but tickets there sold out in two hours so I had to go to Tampa. It was about and hour or so drive and I waited outside of the theater for about four hours (my friends said they couldn't handle it so I braved it alone). There was a Krispy Kreame doughnut and coffee guy who supplied the line with breakfast and the people around me were pretty cool. Once in we watched FOTR and TTT (both exteded editions) and then ROTK an hour before midnight. We got cool lanyards and pizza between TTT and ROTK, great deals on food and drinks not to mention a film cel display from Sideshow Collectables with a frame from each film in it. I ended up leaving the theater at around 2am and then I had an hour or so drive home. All and all I spent over 12 hours in the theater....and would do it again at the drop of a hat.

David Williams · 01-11-2005, 05:06 AM

Quote:

I heard a story on the radio today about a guy in Seattle who has camped out in front of a movie theater to see SW EP III The Revenge of the Sith right now, 4 months before it's release!

My local news station covered this story (a Tulsa ABC affiliate of the Seattle station) and no one in the studio knew what a Sith was and much talk was made at the end of the broadcast and guesses were made (The metereologist joked that it was like acne). Promises were made by the anchors to look it up on the internet for the 10 o'clock broadcast.

You'd think that was something they'd do before they went on the air (of course, in my geekiness I was screaming the answer at the TV screen :b).

As for the question at hand, the most I ever waited outside for a movie was just about 1 hour to get tickets on opening day for Independence Day. This only slightly tops the 45 minutes I once waited for Jurassic Park opening day.