One reason people no longer go to the movies…

The last time I went to the movies was probaby 2021. I went to an early afternoon showing of In The Heights. I was one of fewer than 10 people in theater. Afterwards, I took myself to lunch at my favorite restaurant; it was my birthday.

Are theaters busy in the afternoons, assuming you are going to a kiddie movie like Despicable Me 4?

I guess you ain’t never been to the movies in Harlem or Bed stuy in the late 90s, early aughts. Cunts always did this.

The stereotype of the “Times Square movie audience” has always existed, R2. But it’s EVERYWHERE now.

R1, I was the only one in the theater besides the family. It was afternoon.

OP is not wrong. One of the last times I went to a movie, a guy brought three kids (the youngest was maybe 3), wholly inappropriate for the R-rated movie, and the youngest was just playing the entire time, not watching the movie, and trying to CLIMB ON ME. I kept pushing the kid away. It was infuriating. I couldn't focus on the movie at all. The guy was completely IGNORING the kids as well, just looking at his phone the ENTIRE TIME. Why the FUCK was he even there?

Hell is other people, and I rarely go to the movie theater anymore.

sad wimps afraid to do the right thing and SPEAK UP

R6, in a world where people stab toddlers in parking lots, I’m not saying shit. Too many belligerent nutcases out there.

This is the result of 50 years of the GOP allowing, encouraging and defending people acting poorly in public. You know, fuck your feelings and all. And it's going to get a whole lot worse before and if it ever gets better because this is who the GOP in America represents: fat, racist, stupid, uneducated, lazy, and worse of all, entitled.

another reason they don't go is because there are no more freakin' theaters. Our closet one is now 35 miles away and takes 45 minutes to get there. Who wants to travel an hour and a half to see a movie? Especially at night with all the deer and wildlife on the roads.

I went to the movies to see Oppenheimer and Killers of the Flower Moon. But I like to go in the middle of the week in the evening and there aren't many people there. But you're right about the uncool behavior. People are really ill mannered. One tip I can give you. Avoid the multiplexes with too many kids movies. I try to go to the smaller neighborhood theatres. I have two in my area. One features mostly Indie movies.

Back in the 90s, hubby and I went to the movies every other week or so. One of the chains opened a dine-in-the-theater experience which included alcohol, so they blissfully had adults-only nights. It was heaven. But, the crotchfruit manufacturers complained long and loudly and the chain gave in and allowed children, ruining the experience. And it was funny because they went from packed to half-empty auditoriums within a month. The local paper even ran a story about the falling attendance, but chalked it up to the novelty wearing off and the slightly-higher ticket price (plus those expensive meals!) completely ignoring the fact that for 3 months before allowing children in, it was packed to capacity and everybody had a great time.

Really? The last time I went to the movies it was 1993.

The last movie r12 saw was Hocus Pocus.

For me it was 2010's The Social Network.

It may be just me, but I no longer have the patience or maybe attention span to sit through 90 minutes or more of anything! When I watch films at home, I can watch in shorter sessions - though even still, I'm not interested enough in most things to bother.

There's so much Internet content that is easier and more entertaining - and you can just click off the minute you're bored.

I went to the movies last spring to see "Chevalier" with a group of other academics at a local multiplex. We were the only ones apart from less than a handful of others at an evening showing in the middle of the week. But that was due to the film.

I hadn't been to the movies since going to see "Moulin Rouge" in 2001.

I just don't go.

Last spring I was completely amazed at the lounge reclinable seats.

[quote]This is the result of 50 years of the GOP allowing, encouraging and defending people acting poorly in public.

R8 What is wrong with you. Are you autistic or something?

Talking in movie theaters is culturally acceptable for black audiences. Did the Republicans make black people talk in movies?

Going to a black movie theater for the right film can be one of life’s great joys. I remember one DLer was lucky enough to see the original release of The Exorcist with a black audience, with audience members becoming “possessed” and performing exorcisms on each other.

Fuck Off, racist.

R16 is right. I Remember going to see Fatal Attraction at a movie theater with a predominantly Black audience and it was so fun! I was dating a Black guy at the time.

People think that if there's only a few of you in the theater that they can talk and carry on like they're at home. This happened to me at several matinees.

I go maybe twice a year, if that. I don't think obnoxious behavior is as bad as it used to be to be honest.

I've asked people to be quiet several times. Once there was just my friend and myself in the afternoon, with four people about 4 rows behind us. They would not shut up. Finally I turned around and told them they were interfering with our enjoyment of the movie. They stopped talking.

Once a woman behind me draped her coat over the back of my chair. I was enveloped with her coat looming on both sides of my. Fuck, I paid for that chair, bitch. I asked her to remove it and she did.

We have an art theater nearby that shows independent films. The audience is older and well behaved. I like to go in the afternoons, too, because it's less crowded. I've had more problems in the big commercial theaters that show blockbusters.

All true. I have not seen a movie in a movie theater in years. The Beetlejuice sequel will be my exception.

I wait until the movie has been out for a week and the I go to the 10:30 PM Wednesday showing. Never go to a movie on Friday or Saturday night, especially if it's a mainstream PG-13 movie. It's easy to avoid the kind of trash OP is talking about.

Your closest movie theater is 35 miles away r9?!

Hon, you can't blame other people that you live in the middle of nowhere.

I haven’t had a bad movie experience in years

Because I go to matinees or very late showings

It’s really not that hard

Same here, R23, except we go to the earliest showing. The only movie I went to relatively recently that was packed was a 70mm showing of Oppenheimer. Fortunately, the audience was rapt, so not a peep was heard except the occasional person exiting for the bathroom.

I've seen nine movies this year in a theater, the most recent being on Sunday. Maybe I've been lucky, but I haven't experienced any assholes at any of them. I typically go to early showings on Sundays when I can,. There are fewer people to deal with at those times. I also usually go to theaters that have the recliner lounge chairs, which give you a little more space and distance from others so they're not as distracting.

I go every week to a close-by AMC Multiplex and it’s fantastic. The seats are insanely comfortable and the theatre is spotless. Maybe it’s where I live but nobody misbehaves, no talking or cell phones. On Tuesdays the tickets are reduced price. I absolutely love going - I like watching movies on a big screen and I like the whole experience.

For me nothing beats the experience of watching a movie with a crowd on a giant screen. Sure I can enjoy it fine a home, but it will be never hit the same as in a theater.

And I agree that sometimes a little bit of an loud crowd actually makes the experience better, I want to hear people laugh, or gasp or whatever at parts.

r24 It wasn't like this when I moved here. We had about 3 theaters and the towns surrounding me all had theaters. But like everything else all stores and theaters have closed.

Imagine my surprise when I found iout people do this at $300 a ticket Broadway shows now. This is what refusing to have standards leads to.

I saw the recording of a drunken, unruly theater-goer screaming at a performer during a performance. The theater manager asked the performer to leave the stage until the drunk was removed but the male lead broke character and tried to reason with the drunk. This awkward moment was extended because the actor did not follow the instructions from the theater manager.

James Holmes.

Years ago I had a flash of inspiration. Two old biddies would not stop talking during a movie, so I just started repeating everything they said in a conversational way and a normal volume level.

"Do you want to stop by the supermarket on the way home? I need to get some things ... "

I just said it right back to them.

The first time they looked at me in horror, but five minutes later they were back at it again, so I did it again. It stopped after that.

I went to a matinee.

But I also live in Brooklyn so…

Even at the Angelika in Manhattan people are ruder.

They bring their 3 year olds to a loud violent action movie and have them watch a kiddie show on an iPad.

I'll only see a movie at The Alamo. They kick people out if they talk during the movie.

Many many years ago when I was very young I would go to the movies at Radio City and sometimes the orchestra would be full. That's 3,000 people. All of them would be quietly watching the movie. I can't begin to imagine that today. And more often than not the movies weren't even very good! People were just better behaved.

A friend is an usher at The Outsiders. She says the audiences are a nightmare. I remind her she's not ushering for South Pacific in 1949.

Going to matinees is a wonderful experience. There's usually only a few people in the theater, especially if you wait a couple weeks after the movie releases, so you can sit anywhere you want, with several seats between you and the closest person. It's quiet and relaxed. If you go during the week, then it's mostly retired people, who are quiet and respectful. Not to mention that the tickets are several dollars cheaper.

I only go to afternoon shows, usually on Sunday. My last time was Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. It was mostly elderly people in the audience (and they found the flamethrower sequence hilarious).

People farting in the dark

The last movie I saw in a theater was Parasite (a matinee at the Castro Theater). While I agree that there are some movies that really should be seen on a big screen with excellent sound (I wish I’d seen Oppenheimer in a theater), the high prices and the endless ads at chain theaters and people’s bad behavior tend to keep me away. But I really loathe theaters with assigned seating. If a bratty child sits behind you or the person in front of you won’t get off their phone or — and this happened to me —if a guy decided to bring his lunch of Pad Thai to eat in the theater and his seat is next to you, you can’t change seats. At least you can’t until the movie’s been showing for 15 minutes or so and you can scope out an empty seat that you hope will remain so. Screw that. Most of the movies I’m interested don’t really need to be seen on a big screen and look just fine on my HDTV at home where I can eat my own damn Pad Thai (I love it but don’t want to smell it at a movie).

The last film I saw in its release was "The Conjuring", in the summer of 2013.

I'm rarely interested in theatrical releases anymore. It's all pointless remakes and reboots, surrounded mostly by garbage. And while the engineering of the costumes interests me, I couldn't care less about the superhero/comics genre, either. I almost became a fan when introduced to "Jessica Jones" several years ago. I really enjoyed it (especially Carrie Anne Moss). But they yanked it after three seasons. I subsequently rid myself of NETFLIX. Though not just because of that.

The late 90s & early 2000s was a nice time for film, even if some of them took themselves way too seriously, with the Weinstein company buying Oscars. It was a high point in my movie theater-going experience. The films interested me, and I went to see them. But that was at least twenty years ago.

In the last year, I've been doing a dive into my list of unseen films from the past. I love old movies, and have a surprising amount of territory to cover. So I'm still seeing films that are new to me. They just aren't current. I don't even pay attention to new releases anymore. Truthfully. I'm terribly jaded.

My friend told me that in NYC, the celebs tend to go to later showings (9 pm and later) on weeknights.

Or they used to.

I stopped going because the volume was too loud, my ears felt like they would bleed.

Last film viewing of mine in a theater was about 2004–but then again, I tasered all the completely loud and obnoxious other moviegoers in attendance all around me that afternoon. So chances are they’ve probably not returned to see a movie at a plex since then, either!!

[quote]One reason people no longer go to the movies…

Because there aren't any more gay porno theaters!

I went to an 11pm showing of an R-rated movie, and still had to deal with kids running up and down the aisles, jumping on seats, kicking the back of my chair, turning around and staring at me.

Other people are hell and other people are the reason I don't go see movies in theaters anymore. And I don't give a shit what "culture" you are, TALKING IN A MOVIE IS RUDE AS FUCK.

We try to see as many Oscar nominated movies as we can. I saw Zone of Interest at the theater. I'm glad I did. When I saw it for the second time at home it loses a lot of it's power.

And GET OFF MY LAWN!

Too many ads i can't stand paying to be advertised to.

We go to CInebistro occasionally. Reserved seats. Cocktails and food served to your seat. Never had any disturbances from enjoying the movie. Saw Barbie and Argylle most recently. Argylle was bad.

I would go to the movies just to experience the crowd yelling at the screen like it's the Rocky Horror Picture Show. What else is the purpose? You can watch the newest movies on your own devices now.

Ops experience

This is op

Haven't been since 2008, but the guys from South Park described being in a movie theatre with a mostly black audience and it sounded awesome, with people dancing in the aisles and cracking each other up.

A crowded new release with someone actually funny yelling stuff out was often fun. But I just don't have the time or patience to spend 90 minutes in the dark with strangers, especially since Covid. Planes and movie theatres are not highly desirable places for me to spend my spare time.

I want to watch a movie, not have it interrupted by and to keep being distracted by fucking assholes who think we're all there for THEM. Jesus Fucking Christ, sit your ass down and shut your mouth up and WATCH THE DAMN MOVIE. I paid to see the movie, not to hear you talk.

I’m relieved that other posters stopped going to movies in the early 2010s.

These Los Angeles repertory theatre folk are something else too. When I get stabbed for telling some cunt to stop taking pictures during Kiss Me Stupid at The Egyptian, you guys can have my stuff.

[quote]Going to a black movie theater for the right film can be one of life’s great joys. I remember one DLer was lucky enough to see the original release of The Exorcist with a black audience, with audience members becoming “possessed” and performing exorcisms on each other.

I remember when I saw Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles in a black movie theater, everyone was in the aisle pealing potatoes and washing dishes.

The last time I went to the movies was in 1987. The problem wasn't the audience, it was the movie.... a matinee of NUTS.