Firstly, I just wanted to say that I am not someone who posts my problems or rants online. I personally don't do it because I know nothing will get resolved and it might even be dramatising something that was not all that bad. However, I am really done with the behaviours that I occasionally witness in movie theatres and was wondering if anyone had encountered similar situations.
I will start off by saying that I am a frequent movie watcher and I also love seeing musicals and operas. I am very used to seeing small things like children refusing to sit still, people talking so loudly from behind me that I can tell you who their least favourite cousin is and what their new conditioner works wonders for and so forth. These are a given and I have never been majorly annoyed by this but I do get angry if people push their boundaries.
Yesterday, my sister, my partner Alex and I went to see Crazy Rich Asians. Mind you, I have been wanting to see a movie like this since its conception. Every time I would watch a Hollywood film, I would get so easily distracted whenever I see an Asian actor/actress. I would literally turn to whoever I'm watching it with and say "Look! It's an Asian actor/actress/*their name if I know them." To be able to see a film with the scale of representation that this film did was immensely important to me. But I'm not here for a movie review. I'm here to recall the (excuse my language) bullshit we experienced by the people sitting in our row.
My partner and I booked seats E5, 6 and 7; there was supposed to be two seats next to us taken, which were E8 and E9, and then the next two seats were taken, so E10 and E11. Now, we got the theatre ten minutes before the advertisements had even started and Alex counted the seats to check if we were sitting in the right spots. We definitely were because we checked the seats, counting from the left and right sides before sitting down. A couple sat in E9 and E10.
Oh wait! But weren't they supposed to be in E10 and E11? Yes they were.
Ten minutes into the movie, two ladies came up the stairs and realised there was only one seat between my sister and the couple. Miss Rude Person, as I will call her, took her TORCH LIGHT OUT FROM HER PHONE TO CHECK IF WE WERE IN THE RIGHT SEATS. Her phone should not have been on at all, as instructed by every cinema, but she already missed that message from being late to the movie so I was going to excuse her for that.
But what she did next made me completely regret even considering that. She goes to the couple sitting in the wrong seats and says "sorry for disturbing you", WALKS IN FRONT OF MY SISTER AND SAYS "you're in the wrong seat, we're supposed to be sitting here so can you move?" I said in the most blunt way possible "My partner, my sister and I are sitting in the right spots. We checked."
She retaliates with "No, you're not." Her friend, clearly the more rational one of the two, suggests "Let's just sit somewhere else, there's plenty of seats" but she refuses and asks my sister a second time to move. She stood there with her arms crossed and we all knew that if we didn't move, she was going to wait until we gave in.
Because we were not going to pick a fight with someone who was not worth our time, the three of us shifted down seats. She was lucky that I was enjoying the movie or else I would have made a scene. This is also not the first time this has happened to me. I have been asked to move places WHEN I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN SITTING IN THE RIGHT SPOT MORE TIMES THAN I CAN RECALL. IT GREATLY ANNOYS ME.
MISS RUDE PERSON TOOK OUT HER PHONE TO CHECK THE SPOTS TOO SO SHE MUST HAVE KNOWN THAT THE OTHER COUPLE WERE IN THE WRONG SPOTS UNLESS SHE WAS HONESTLY MISTAKEN AND SHE JUST DIDN'T WANT TO DISTURB THEM AND DECIDED TO PICK ON THE KIDS INSTEAD. NOT TO MENTION, SHE DIDN'T EVEN WATCH THE MOVIE.
SHE SPENT HALF OF IT ON SNAPCHAT ON HER PHONE
WITH 100% BRIGHTNESS COMING FROM THE SCREEN.
YOU MADE A BIG DEAL ABOUT WHERE YOU WERE SITTING ONLY TO NOT WATCH THE MOVIE? PLEASE DO US A FAVOUR AND GO SIT IN THE CORNER THEN IF YOU DON'T HAVE ANY RESPECT FOR THE PEOPLE WHO MADE THE FILM AND FOR HOYTS' SERVICES.
I was so angry like I actually wanted to tell her off after the film but all I did was give her the fattest death glare and I hope she is offended because she deserves it.
My basic summary is as follows;
- Phones should not be on for whatever reason during a movie or in any theatre setting. If you have the need to use it, take it outside and not distract everyone with your phone screen.
- Arrive at a reasonable time so you can sort out any confusions with surrounding people and seats.
- I am going to reinforce that phones should be off. You can use your phone any other time. If the movie is that uninteresting to you, then leave. Don't ruin other people's experiences.
- If there is a problem, ask nicely and be polite about it.
- If there are free seats elsewhere, save yourself the embarrassment and sit somewhere else.
- Apologise if you are in the wrong. It is not hard to admit it and nobody will blame you for anything if you do.
That's the end of my rant for the day. If my expectations for theatre etiquette are too demanding, please do let me know because I would like to hear other opinions on how we should act in the theatre. Thank you for reading and if anyone has had any similar experiences, once again, I would love to hear about them in this thread.
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