Originally Posted by inri222 (Post 11872549)

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2013...-years-a-slave

Madonna 'banned' from cinema chain after 12 Years a Slave screening row

A world famous Texas cinema chain with a zero tolerance policy towards anti-social filmgoers has "banned" Madonna from all its screens after she was reportedly caught texting during a screening of 12 Years A Slave at the New York film festival.

The singer is reported to have spent much of the premiere, at the Walter Reade Theater in New York's Lincoln Center, for Steve McQueen's Oscar-tipped tale of a free black man sold into slavery in the antebellum south tapping away on her Blackberry, much to the annoyance of other filmgoers. When one woman tapped her on the shoulder and requested the singer stop, Madonna is reported to have remarked: "It's for business … enslaver!" and continued texting away.

Now the Alamo Drafthouse, which is known for its strict policy towards unruly customers, has taken the largely symbolic step of banning the singer from all its premises. "Until she apologizes to movie fans, Madonna is banned from watching movies," tweeted co-founder and CEO Tim League. He later told Entertainment Weekly that while his promises initially manifested as an "offhand joke, a spur of the moment 140 characters" and was "more of a means to get the issue out there, that it is rude to text during movies," he was remained determined to stick to his guns. "Now that it seems to have taken hold, sure, I'm going to enforce it," he said. "I'm serious, but I don't think it really affects her life that much."

Alamo Drafthouse, a chain of boutique cinemas famous for its provision of food and alcoholic beverages to cineastes, screens anti-texting adverts prior to films. One famous example features an answerphone message apparently recorded by an unhappy customer who was ejected for irritating other filmgoers during a screening.

Twelve Years a Slave stars McQueen's fellow Briton Chiwetel Ejiofor as a real historical figure named Solomon Northup whose 1853 autobiography details the free New Yorker's capture by slavers in Washington DC in 1841 and his subsequent travails on the plantations of Louisiana. The drama won enthusiastic reviews and the influential People's Choice prize at the Toronto film festival in September. It is amongst the early frontrunners for Oscars glory next March.

Originally Posted by Sub-Zero (Post 11537807)

When I was young, my Grandma took me to see Dances With Wolves and around the middle of the movie, suddenly the screen went white and the picture and sound was gone. After a couple of minutes, my Grandma told me she would go talk to someone, and when she got back, the movie had not resumed, but she told me that apparently the projectionist took their break before changing the reel. Surprisingly there was nobody else who worked there that could restart the movie, and everyone had to wait another ten minutes until the projectionist got back from their break. Of course, there was no apology offered.

Originally Posted by Tracer Bullet (Post 11039466)

The only thing that's ever gotten me to complain is misframing. It always blows my mind that I always appear to be the only person complaining about it, too.

Originally Posted by The Bus (Post 11872873)

This would definitely be brought up. Occasionally, managers will forget to turn the lights off.

As for audiences, I have gotten pretty good at avoiding most rude people. I can count the bad theater experiences of the last decade (audience-wise) on one-hand and I have seen hundreds of films.

It is pretty simple:

Some theaters will tend to draw a bad crowd. Avoid those.
Some showings will tend to draw a bad crowd. Avoid those. (Anything past 5pm on a weekend for an adult film, anything before 9pm for a family film)

For certain genres (horror, family film) you will need to be extra careful. Your best bet for genre films is to go on opening weekend, as those showings will be filled with fans.

Originally Posted by TomOpus (Post 12164153)

I usually hit the earliest showing and have never had a bad movie experience.

Originally Posted by EdTheRipper (Post 12164216)

I almost always see early morning shows. If it starts before noon, the crowd is generally respectful and just wanting to see the movie.

Originally Posted by joliom (Post 12164139)

Geez, that's nothing. I've experienced far worse things at the movies: kids literally running around the theater screaming, people engaging in loud conversations on the phone, crying babies that the parents just ignore for the entire duration of the film, a lady who decided to change her baby's diaper in the theater, a whole group of guys smoking weed, teenagers laughing and yelling out dumb remarks during quiet dramatic scenes, a drunk guy rambling nonsense and rolling empty beer bottles down the aisle, a woman smoking meth, two guys fighting, a family eating some disgusting smelling ethnic food they brought in with them and then spilling it all over the seats and floor, and even one time a couple performing oral sex on each other. That's the type of classy experience I now associate with going to the movies, and why I only go on weekdays to early matinees.

Originally Posted by Why So Blu? (Post 12164342)

Shit like that never happens at nice theaters with reserved seating.

Originally Posted by My Other Self (Post 12164373)

Well yeah, because the people that act like idiots aren't going to pay that much for a ticket or go out of their way to actually plan ahead their movie going experience. Everything nowadays is spur of the moment.

Originally Posted by My Other Self (Post 12164373)

Well yeah, because the people that act like idiots aren't going to pay that much for a ticket or go out of their way to actually plan ahead their movie going experience. Everything nowadays is spur of the moment.