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Ads before the film? (1 Viewer)

Mendoza

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I for one am sick and tired of all this screen time devoted to the actual films. Think of all the cars which go unadvertised because some Hollywood shyster can't figure out how to tell a goddamn story in less than an hour and forty minutes! Commercials are like mini-movies; except for stuff you can buy. So really it's like getting 10 movies for $10 dollars. Anybody that knows anything knows that.
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DaveF

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Agreed. Fortunately that's not done at my local theater. But ads post-movie time would get me to change my movie-going habits.
 

mtlfilmguy

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Get the coffee pot and sandwiches ready people,i will be posting tonight and its gonna be a long one.Long enough to need an intermission.

But the good kind of long like Lawrence of Arabia and not the bad kind like a Ken Russell film.

Ben
 

mtlfilmguy

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Hi folks,

One of the first things you learn in filmmaking is keeping your cast and crew happy by feeding them.
The results of this pampering always inevitably shows up on the screen.

I got ham,turkey and cheese and tomato sandwiches
Got Coke,coffee and 3 kinds of juices.
And last thing,i got brownies,cheesecake and yogourt.

What i dont got is bottled water,that means no Dasani or Aquafina.

Now we can begin the serious talk.


This problem isnt going away anytime soon.But then neither am i.

First off,let me make it clear that one of the options mentioned here and there isnt an option to begin with.
I am not going to say "if you dont remove the ad,i will not go see the film".Boycotting is nonexistant in the equation.
I am a movie LOVER,movie FAN and my passion lives within me.It is the perfect abode for the seventh art,
so why would i methaphorically remove one of my arms only because the mosquito is making me scratch.

This weekend,i sent emails to both www.commercialalert.org and most importantly www.captiveaudience.org which is dedicated to informing people on how to effectively deal with advertising in the movie theaters.I have yet to receive feedback from either of them.

Right after this i will be sending one to http://www.shinybluegrasshopper.com/nomovieads/ and www.badads.org.

On the captiveaudience site,i suggest you start with the FAQ which explains why this practice is unfair to you and your
hard-earned money.
Second,go read the articles.Its important you read the articles so you'll know the fighting chance DOES exist.
Next,see that tiny bit of Netflix advertising at the lower left?,click on the word advertising right below it.Youll have a clear view
of the differences the business models of ads where ads are needed.And where they are NOT.

And then,go read the petition,take your time,drink the words so you have a clear and much better
understanting as why you will be signing it in a minute.The next powerful step in this process is of course to
sign the petiton on petitiononline with the sign the petition link right there on the left.
I did.I'm number 3014.

It took me a minute at most.One single minute.60 tiny microscopic seconds of my life to try and change things for
all you movie lovers out there.

Youre welcome.

But 3000 sigs isnt going to cut it.Not by a mile.I'm not sure how many would convince them,but 3000 is a priest and a rabbi joke.
And we're missing the rabbi and since were missing a rabbi,we are letting others write the punchline for us.

At the bottom of that petition is a send this petition to a friend link,but it should say send it to everyone.Your friend,your mom
the next door neighbor,that guy who sold you the shoes last week.Hell, while you're at it send it to Philip Anschutz and make him go catatonic at 6 in the morning.Someone tape it and put it on any of those.

http://web2.econsultant.com/videos-h...-services.html

Thats my big idea.

If one single one minute video is posted on EACH of those,we will create a social shockwave of happy petition signing
people all over North America.It will be the backward chaos theory and we will bring back order to all this perpetual incessant overload of unwanted commercials.

My other plan is to find 5 of the best and biggest film forums on the net and repeat this process,create a new thread,communicating our
nonstop frustrations and stop being sheeple(sheep-people) regarding this issue.

In the sharing of information and knowledge and the domino effect of posting comments that will in turn make more people aware

In the 90's i read an article in Movieline from a gentleman named Michael Atkinson about the performance of Jon Voight in
Deliverance.He listed minute details about the fear in his eyes,his mannerisms,his undeniable panic and his outburst while eating
the peas and corn.

Right then,i started looking for more details in all the films i saw.In the performances,the score,the editing,the photography.And questioning the motives of the characters or it how this or that relates to my life.

I stopped being passive and became an active member of the audience.

the word is gratifying,and its one of the better feelings on this blue planet of ours.

or if you like,

I'm just one guy,but there are millions of me on the net.



Ben
 

Lucia Duran

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We have a local theater here that plays cartoons or old shorts before movies. It is of course a theater that shows older movies and not the new releases, but I love that they do not play ads or trailers.

I won't be going to theaters anymore to see films. It will no longer be in my budget after Sept. I'm okay with that as it was getting quite expensive to see films newly released and most of our theaters just rasied their prices (from $8.50 to $9.75). The concession stand upped their prices as well .

I have a quick OT question: Have most theaters around the US started incorprating a curfew? Here kids under 18 are not allowed to go to movies that start at 9:30pm or later, unless they have a grown up with them.
 

varybarry

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I have a theater that does the same thing and it's great. I wish the big time movie theaters considered doing that.
 

DaveF

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You've said that you're so mad about ads you're going whine about it online and sign electronic petitions. But you'll still pay for tickets to see the movies. You'll never make any headway. Unless there is an economic disadvantage to showing ads before movies, it will continue and increase.
 

mtlfilmguy

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Benoit Tisseur
Hi Davef !

I understand your point about economic disadvantage,but i offer you to read my statements on that particular matter again.

Heres my reasoning about this and lets pretend i assume the boycotting position :)

1.I boycot (which i dont want to do,because i love films)
2.i have to see the films at the non-ads theaters (not all the films i'd like to see play at those and i believe we have 1 dollar cinema here in Mtl with 4 screens)
3.We all tell the chains we will boycott their theaters.How many people will that take before it is taken seriously for them to remove the ads.6 months?
A year ?
4.I am now forced to watch them on dvd,which i dont want in view of my philosophy which says the best place to watch movies is STILL a movie theater.


or this speculative look on it.

(fast forward to 2009)

Regal and Loews: "For the love of Michael Bay! Look at all the money we've lost this year.i guess we will have to lose these ads if we want to bring them back....

...and set the popcorn at 6 dollars".

We're paying for the film,paying for the ads,paying for the popcorn.
And that with the knowledge that in the last few years the video game industry has had more success than the movie revenues.

Now do you think theyre not talking right now on how to fix this ?

With a solution that only benefit them,not us.
Again.

Ben
 

TravisR

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I'm not trying to be an antagonist but I don't understand your solution to this. A mass boycot is the only thing that would end ads and that isn't going to happen. People can sign every petition in the world but until they stop going in HUGE numbers (millions of regular people- not just people that post at message boards), the ads are going to stay. Probably every person that goes to a movie theater doesn't like ads but at the same time, it isn't something that they get that worried about either.

Like I said, I'm not trying to be a jerk but I don't see the ads leaving.
 

mtlfilmguy

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Benoit Tisseur
Well,whether it be a petition or boycott,the fact is we still have to gather momentum and speak to the people who go to the movies ,am i right?

I too am talking millions of people,which is where the 4,5 or whatever billions in box-office revenues comes from.

I think that most of the movie lovers just havent been made aware or come to the conclusion that they are forced to watch the ads and just accept it as fact.

But you know what?
I believe that this creates in return,the problem of other disruptions.Cell phones, people who think they are still in their living rooms,crying babies and in french,we have a unique one ,french people going to english films TRANSLATING the film to their non-english friends :angry: :laugh:

so first and foremost,lets just get the word out.
As i said,if we get a tiny one minute video posting on ..oh i dont know lets say 10 video-sharing websites such as the almighty Youtube, how many people are we reaching now ?

Did anyone take a look at that list i linked to up there ?

We didnt have that kind of power 3 years ago.
Now we do.

I've always learned that in order to fix a problem with a neighbor,you go knock on his door first,if he doesnt listen then you go to the landlord.

So do we let the major chains know beforehand that we would boycott if they keep pushing ads on us?

I said i didnt have the perfect plan,but i also said im trying to find one and i for one am tired to complain about stuff but then when i get screwed more i just complain more ?

Such a waste of valuable time,wouldn't you agree ?
And that goes for everyone's time.Complaining without solving things should never be a way of life.

I fear i was right in saying my soapbox rants would be falling mostly on deaf ears in a hometheater forum

The one thing i dont want is to let them win by just saying they will win no matter what.

And really,has anyone bought a car BASED solely on the impact the theater ad had on them ???

Okay,maybe that ONE guy over there.

Ben
 

John Dirk

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Wow! I didn't know this one was still going on. Ben. You've created quite the spark here. Great job on that. As for the issue at hand, however, I think I must agree with Dave and Travis. While you sound like a very passionate individual which is commendable, in parlance dear to my heart, your suggestions amount to pulling a gun without the express intent of using it. It just doesn't work (except in the movies :))

Since we are all movie enthusiasts here, let me refer to a scene from the ever classic Scarface. You should be watching this film at least anually.;) Anyway, remember when Al Pacino and Steven Bauer were talking to F. Murray Abraham [and the other guy] in the car outside the restuarant in Miami. The dialog went something like this.

*******************
Pacino - The going rate on a boat is $500.00 a night, man. You know that.

Abraham - First you gotta work you way up, chico.

Pacino - And that repaying a hit in Freedomtown, what was that, a game of dominoes?

Abraham - Don't you think we could have gotten some other space cadet to hit Revenga cheaper. 50 bucks?! [Speaking to Bauer] What's up with this dishwasher!?

Pacino - Then why didn't you!!! And don't be calling me no dishwasher, or I'll kick your monkey ass...
*******************
Ahhh, but I digress...

Aside from me just loving to quote movie dailog [especially from Scarface] the point is, this is the only type of approach hardened business types like studio execs will ever respect. Had Pacino accepted the disrespect proffered by Abraham [as Bauer was willing to do] it would have changed his relationship with Abraham and ultimately Ray Loggia [Frank Lopez], because both would have known that they could get away with disrespecting him.

Nonetheless, in my opinion, this train has already left the station. I do not believe trying to bring it back is a good use of our collective energy at this point. Instead, we should be looking for the next undesirable train. I already see one, and that is this infernal pseudo-war between HD DVD and Blue Ray. It's another example of greed blinding the judgement of otherwise intelligent [presumably] human beings. Had all of these companies worked together to produce a decent and affordable HD format, we [the general public] would have embraced it just as we ultimately embraced DVD. We still have a chance to slap some sense into the greedy execs on this one. But will we actually do it? It will require us to completely and totally reject the inferior alternatives we have been offered to date, even if they do contain some cool features. The features won't go away if we do this. They will simply be represented at some point in a package we are willing to accept. I do realize that this topic may not interest everyone today, but at some point, it will affect you. What message will we send through our actions this time? A message of unwavering resolve, or a message of resignation?

As always, just my opinion.

Gunny
 

ZacharyTait

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I don't mind watching movie trailers before the feature, but I loathe watching TV commercials at the theater. To reference the Simpsons movie, why should I pay money to see a commercial that I can watch for free at home? :)

I would gladly pay $1 extra to not have to watch ads before a movie. Trailers are fine however.
 

mtlfilmguy

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The whole point of my thread is not to make us,the consumer PAY more for anything.Not the ads,not the popcorn,not the disruptions.

So paying a dollar EXTRA to have something we are already entitled NOT to have jammed down our collective throats is really NOT the best idea,and we're simply giving the theater chains more ammunitions that way.

and im thinking the word chains is now used in reference to the moviegoing public now.

Ben
 

mtlfilmguy

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It seems that ive hit a wall here.

The wall of reluctance to act collectively.

Dont get me wrong folks,this issue is nowhere as important as the environment or any grand scale debate of your choosing.

But it still shows i think the lack of good people gathering the necessary drive or motivated state of mind to put an end to the big companies deciding how we are to spend our hard-earned cash.

Its just wrong enough that we dont act,just keep complaining and be frustrated constantly about it.Or even for some of you accept it with a smile.

And as for waving a virtual gun without the intent of using it,i must repeat that one man alone cannot do it.but many thousands can.

the train has left the station because we decide that it be so.
Any train.

Even the High-def-one-standard-to-rule-them-all train.

I must admit that i am surprised seeing so many intelligent people and comments here yet,so far abolutely no one has brought forth specific comments or feedback regarding the ideas i did mention.

A couple of days ago, i did receive a reply to the email i sent to Captiveaudience.org and the general feel i got was that it wasnt worth the fight anymore,yet if you go look on the website the articles are updated somewhat regularly.

Well ,is it or isnt it?

Is it time for me to get a yay or nay vote from the proles?
(although it might be right there already in front of me...)
and move this to another actual movie-related forum and not one related mostly to formats and home theaters ?

Maybe.My bad,but what brought me here in the first place was undoubtedly my love of celluloid.

Maybe i should start locally too..
Right here in good old Montreal and check the pulse of the crowd here first.

Well i guess this signals the end of this tread for me but not any other threads in all other sections.There are still many beautiful classics scenes moments tearjerkers and monsters to be discussed with you wonderful cinephiles.

I guess its always a matter of spending our energies in the right places at the right times,something i have to work on daily.:)

Ben
 

Beau

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Like another poster said, the theater chain in my area (Regal) plays all the "commercial" ads in a 20-minute pre-screening. At the showtime the trailers start. The "commercial" ads when they used to start at the showtime really bugged the hell out of me until they swicthed to this way of doing it, which by the way was over 4 years ago. I'm really surprised more theater chains havent picked up on this yet.
 

John Dirk

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Ben. By now you should know that I'm on your side. I already do my part by never going to commercial theaters except for the rare times my wife insists on it. I even avoid DVD's that place excessive previews on the disc and then will not allow you to skip them with either the chapter or menu buttons.

Where we may disagree is on the proposed solution. I think anything short of a massive boycott will be largely innefective, and you [along with others] have already stated your unwillingness to do that.

Anyway, I look forward to discussing other subjects with you in the future.

Gunny
 

Charles_Y

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Beau's right. In my area (suburban Philadelphia) with the Regal Theater chain it's called "the 20" and thankfully it does end with out further ado but can bug those who get there early for better seats.

As for the trailers I think the complaint is ridiculous. Many are thankfully included on DVDs and have been a basic component of the movie going experience since the early sound era (maybe earlier?).

Back then one would get cartoons, short subjects (travelogues, musical numbers - the first music videos?, etc.) and trailers (which I believe followed the first film as most evenings I guess you got double features). Now, they precede the movie (just one folks) hence, Preview.

History lession over students. This is all to say that trailers should remain and I'm surprised it was ever included.
 

DaveF

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Ben, what actions are you calling for? To grouse about it online? To post some video link at websites? You've said you want millions of people to do...nothing? But do it passionately and so persuade theaters to stop showing ads. I have no understanding of what you're calling for.

Pre-show ads will not disappear without substantial economic incentive. Theaters losing money by customers not frequenting their theaters due to ads (and/or going to theaters with fewer ads) might do it. Perhaps they could make more money selling premium tickets for adless showings.

A million-man kvetch won't get you anywhere. :)
 

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