Movies where you simply had a bad experience in the theater.

[Prudence]

National Treasure - Never mind that I'm not fond of Nicholas Cage, the people in the theater were horrible! A stranger sitting next to me took my popcorn and yelled, "You need to lose weight!" Right. A tall, size 0 girl of 14 years needs to lose weight. (Twas 14 when this movie was released.) Then this random man stood up in the seats to tell everyone his life story like so:
"When I was in first grade, my parents divorced and we couldn't fit the Christmas tree in our apartment."
The people to my left complained about the most stupid little things through the entire movie. "A boat would be further underground!" "One of his ears is bigger than the other!" "I don't like his eyes!"
Just. Shut. Up.

Cars - The little kids! The theater was packed with children who acted MUCH too young to even be anywhere in public. They were running all over the place and making messes. Their parents didn't even try to stop them!
In addition, there was a man who kept yelling, "THAT'S DIRTY!" at every other line.

~*~

Any similar experiences?

[Escapay]

I'm pretty sure I talked about a couple in this thread.

*Runs off to check. Spot a penny on the ground, picks it up. It's nice and shiny. So pretty.*

I'm sorry, what was I going to do? Oh yeah, check the old thread.

*Runs off again. Scans the first page, laughs at netty's "Gottle of Geer", comes back*

Yeah, I made a post there:

When a whole bunch of us (Me, Kram, Jane, Aunt, two cousins) went to see Disney's The Kid, there were probably two or three other families in the theater, that was it. Anyway, the movie's okay for what it is, nothing really great about it, but the best part was sometime in the middle, when either behind us or a couple rows over this little kid says to his mom, "I want more juice!" The whole row of us were convulsing over trying NOT to laugh. It was friggin' hilarious. Don't know why, exactly.

And I think my worst experience in a theater was during Kicking and Screaming. I had gone with a couple friends to see it, and either there was a prom in progress or a prom was over, because a whole bunch of these dressed up kids were at the theater. Anyways, the movie is okay, but I HATED HATED HATED that we had to go that night. Apparently these prom kids saw the movie already, or they didn't really care what movie they were seeing, but the entire time, they kept getting in and out of their seats, usually just moving to another seat to talk to friends. At one point, they all got up and left, then came back like 10 minutes later. It was ridiculous. They were always in and out of the theater, and it was always distracting because they sat in the front row, so anytime someone got up, it would obstruct the view slightly. I wanted to go over and just kick them all out.

Another worst experience for me would have to be Spider-Man 2. It was a great movie, but the theater was packed, and there were these stupid tweens in the back who were doing nothing but laughing the entire time. I was pissed that they were laughing, because one always seemed to be making an "auugh!" sound every five minutes. Of course, I found out later that the "auugh!" was coming from a mentally challenged person, so I can't exactly get pissed at that, but the tweens were so stupid, and I couldn't stand hearing them laugh through half the movie.

Escapay

[Prudence]

Ye gods and little fish, I would have gotten angry with the "AUUUUGH!" person regardless.

I shall remember more of these sorts of adventures at a later time.

[jeremy88]

The last two times I went to the movies, Ive had a bad experience...

Black Snake Moan: There was this incredibly annoying noise that over powered the sound from the movie...we watched the first 15 minutes hopeing they would fix it...instead we swapped our tickets for a later showing. (AMC Theater)

Today at TMNT: Sound Problems again...Except this time...the music was blaring loud while the dialouge was unbearably low...we exchanged our tickets again. (Edwards Cinemas)

A stranger sitting next to me took my popcorn and yelled, "You need to lose weight!" Right. A tall, size 0 girl of 14 years needs to lose weight. (Twas 14 when this movie was released.) Then this random man stood up in the seats to tell everyone his life story like so:
"When I was in first grade, my parents divorced and we couldn't fit the Christmas tree in our apartment."
The people to my left complained about the most stupid little things through the entire movie. "A boat would be further underground!" "One of his ears is bigger than the other!" "I don't like his eyes!"
Just. Shut. Up.

what a rude jerk...if I was there I would have popped him one.

[Anthony]

When I went to see Ice Age: The Meltdown, a couple of aisles behind me there was a man and a woman. Throughout the entire movie, the female interpreted the dialogue to the male in their language! Also a couple of aisles in front of me, there was an ADD hyper kid who felt it necessary to laugh really loud at just about everything and make his own comments about the story whenever he pleased.

This is one of the reasons I dont go to the movies that much anymore.

[Prudence]

Hmm, I was thinking of bad experiences with the other movie viewers. During The Pink Panther, the system messed up. The technical difficulties screen came on so much that most of the people left.

Whoever was in charge of turning movies on forgot his or her job in one case. I waited 45 minutes in the dark before someone went to ask the staff to actually play Under the Tuscan Sun.

I apologize for replying to my own topic with more memories so quickly, but I also thought of two other times with annoying audiences. Pat, my little sister, cried throughout Toy Story because we didn't buy snacks. I actually ignored it and watched the movie, but when someone asked my father how the movie was, he said, "I wouldn't know. My youngest cried throughout it."

Let's see. There were other times, but what I'm thinking of at the moment was the day a little boy cried at random times during Raise Your Voice. (Perhaps he was too young for the movie? Then again, he cried when Sloane said, "Kiwi is a weird name." The scene where Terri's brother died shocked me.)

[Disneyfreak1990]

i haven't had any since i don't go to the movies that often but the closest was when Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was in theaters. the movie started but there was no sound for two minutes. everyone including me and my dad were yelling that the sound wasn't on. other than that i've always had good experiences

[Anthony]

Hmm, I was thinking of bad experiences with the other movie viewers.

Ohhhhh - Why didnt you say so?

The only one that comes to mind is when I was watching Bride and Prejudice the theatre blew a fuse and we were left in the dark for about 10 minutes right in the middle of the movie. But we got a refund so I guess it wasnt that bad.

Also years ago when I saw The Sixth Sense, I dont know if the theatre bought a cheap copy of the film or something, but through the whole movie you could see the microphone on the top of the screen! Very distracting!!

[memnv]

I have seen the boom in several movies in recent years the worst2 were Van Helsing and Stranger than fiction

[Chernabog_Rocks]

I've actually stopped going to the movie theater just because of how annoying people can be now especially since I have a small amount of patience , but here's a small handful of what I can remember.

Funniest

Lion,Witch and The Wardrobe - My friend had never read the book, so during the entire Stone Table scene she was practically yelling at the White Witch , everything from "You can't do that! WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT! to " YOU EVIL HORRIBLE B****" I just shrank down in my seat and listened to everyone laughing at her.


Worst

X-Men 3 - A few comic book lovers were behind my friend and I and kept pointing out any slight change from the comic book versions of the characters, after a half hour of us I turned around and told them off, everyone around them clapped after I was done, so I guess I wasn't the only irritated one.

and....than the worst expierience I've had is when I went to see The Grinch, our teacher suprised the class with a special treat to the movie's, and everyone was disappointed with the movie choice, but we didn't care since we weren't in school and it was fairly empty. But my friend had amazingly never seen the movie so she was paying attention to it, and some teen beside us was talking on his phone just loud enough so it was annoying. I turned to him and started to telling him off, but our teacher came by when he hung up to deal with me, so I ended up being sent out in to the lobby for a lecture on manners while watching a movie

[RachelSmachel]

When I went see "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe", I was totally absorbed in the movie. During the scene where Lucy and Susan are at the table with a "dead" Aslan, a loud little voice pipes up:

"Mummmmmmmy, is Aslaaaaaaaaaaan gonna be alright?"

Way to ruin the moment kid.


That's the only one that sticks out in my mind, other than a few times when the film was a bit grainy and it distracted me a couple of times (Marie Antoinette had a particularly bad patch in one corner)

[DarthPrime]

The last movie I had a bad experience in was Rocky Balboa. Went to a 10pm showing on Chrismas Day, and the crowd was odd. Anyway a whole row of guys a few rows in front of us came in and basically did Mystery Science Theater to the whole movie. Tons of "Yo Adrian" stuff from them.

The short turn around time of DVDs lately has made me only go to see "must see in theater" films. A lot of stuff I just wait and watch at home now.

I love going to midnight openings though. Being there waiting in line to get in with tons of people that have eagerly anticipated the film opening is great. At least during these times your almost guaranteed to have a good theater experience.

[Princess Stitch]

Being that alot of movies I go see are animated/family movies, there are usually LOTS of kids around.

I remember when Cars came out, I went opening night, but specifically waited for the latest show of the night (I think it was 10pm or something) because I figured there would be less kids. Well 2 minutes before the movie starts, some lady comes in with a kid about 5 years old, and a toddler! About 5 minutes into the movie the kid starts wailing. She fussed with him for a few minutes, but at least she took him out of the theater after that.

Yesterday I went to see TMNT. This time we went to a really early show (4:30pm) because I figured there would be more of a crowd after dinner. The theater wasn't really full, but there were a bunch of young boys sitting in our row with their parents infront of them. They kept asking for more snacks, slurping their icee drinks very loudly and because of all the food there was constant wrapper noise. Maybe I'm being picky, but I hate having "extra sound effects" added to my movies.

[TheSequelOfDisney]

I had this in the "Bridge to Terebithia" thread:

Oh yes, I forgot something from my last post. If you do go, and if you find yourself among a huge population where the age is less than 10, please find a space empty from them.

I had a very difficult time trying to enjoy the movie. To my left was a lady with about 3 children. One of the children, about 3 or 4 years old, decided to sit upon her lap. And, lucky me, the child just happened to lean towards me, and one time he was on top of me. Not very fun. I feel sorry for really anyone who can actually understand the movie because they will have a difficult time when 4/5 of the people there were less than 10. I feel sorry for myself.

It was a bad experience.

[PixarFan2006]

I do not remember having many problems with movies, but I remember when I saw The Flintstones when it was first released, the picture stopped briefly after a scene where Fred halted his car.

[Disneykid]

Let's see...

Tarzan: Some kid sitting behind me had obviously already seen the movie and had to spoil it for everyone else. He kept telling his father (whom I assume didn't see it with him the first time) everything that was going to happen about 10 seconds in advance, so surprises like each time Sabor comes out were ruined for me.

Chicago: This didn't have to do with the showing itself, but it's just an annoyance. When the film was over, an old woman leaving the theater behind us said, "There was too much singing in it." I wanted to turn around and say, "What the crap were you expecting from this, then?" I understand people who don't like to be spoiled at all before seeing a movie (I've heard of people who even avoid movie trailers at all costs), but at least know the GENRE of the movie you're about to see.

Spider-Man 2: There was this mother who brought (I kid you not) at least six kids with her of varying ages. Throughout the whole movie, her baby kept crying, and the kids kept pestering each other audibly (and by doing so, were pestering the rest of us).

The Exorcism of Emily Rose: This was easily the worst experience I've ever had in a movie theater, and it wasn't because of the film itself (which I thought was great). The theater was FILLED (Mad Hatter and March Hare: "No room! No room! No vacancy! No room!") with obnoxious teens. I don't think I've ever been in so loud a theater before. There were people fighting over seats and calling out to their friends across the room. One girl sitting in our row kept coming in and out because her friends were indecisive of where to sit. She stepped on my mom's toes, and the thing that you need to know about my mother is that she doesn't take crap from ANYONE. We're talking Queen of Hearts-level patience here, so Mom snaps at the girl who in turn snaps back and cusses her out, and the girl's boyfriend has to drag her away before the two of them claw each other's eyes out. The whole atmosphere was so horrid that they actually stopped in the middle of the previews, and the manager had to come in due to various complaints. He said that an extra theater was open in which the movie would start in about 20 minutes. All of the older folks in the room (including my family) got up and went to that showing while we heard the manager berating the kids for their behavior. Needless to say, the showing we got was great. I was the youngest person there since apparently all the other teens were too lazy to leave their seats. I just thank God all this happened before the movie got underway, otherwise the movie itself would've been ruined for me. When I went to go see Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, a group of mentally handicapped kids were there, and those kids were amazingly well-behaved throughout the whole thing. How sad that most teens (in my area, anyway) can't comprehend that level of courtesy.

Over the Hedge: I don't know what the heck this kid's parent was thinking, but a boy of about four years old kept wandering the entire theater during the movie. When I say the entire theater, I mean literally the entire theater. He'd walk up and down the aisles and go THROUGH aisles. He kept making his way down my aisle at least three times (even though his mom/dad/whoever was towards the front while we were in the back). Eventually I got so annoyed that I stuck my feet up when I saw him approach again. He kept bumping into my legs trying to move across, and eventually he had to crawl on the floor to get through. He didn't come back.

The Black Dahlia: This was no one's fault, and heck, it wasn't even really a bad experience, but it's worth mentioning here. Halfway during the film, the electricity goes out. An usher came and told us that there's a storm coming, but that the electricity should be back in a few minutes. During that time, he was nice enough to entertain us ("Looks like someone didn't pay their electric bill...") and made us all laugh. After about 10 minutes, the film proceeded. About 20 minutes later, the electricity goes out again. The usher comes back and says we can wait for it to come back if we want, or get a free ticket. We decide to wait, but after about 10 minutes, it's obvious the electricity wasn't coming back on. The theater was nice enough to give each of us a free movie pass to see anything else we wanted at any time, which I appreciated considering this wasn't even their fault. The electricity had gone out on the whole block, including the traffic lights. I only mention this here because it was a different experience, plus I didn't get to see the last 20 minutes of the film (which was only okay to begin with, anyway).

[carter1971]

My worst was Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Just about everything that could have gone wrong did. The picture was badly out of focus. The sound was constantly switching from analog to digital. But even worse than that, there was an entire row of teenagers sitting near the front who talked loudly throughout the entire movie. And to top it all off, every time Ian McKellen appeared on screen, they'd yell, "He's gay!" follow by Beavis and Butthead type laughter. Numerous people got up to complain about all these issues and nothing was done about any of them. No one even came in to speak to the rowdies. Needless to say, I never returned to that theatre.

[Lazario]

The worst experience I had was Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III. I could not enjoy a single minute of the film because of the frickin' noise kids were making. Not a single minute. One of the most annoying things during any comedy or silly movie is when people in the audience repeat the freaking joke or one-liner after a character says it and while people are trying to laugh at it. Needless to say, during the entire film- this happened. So I couldn't laugh at anything, because somebody would always repeat the freakin' joke. Plus, little kids were wailing, parents didn't do anything about them, children talked, nobody complained about that (BUT ME!), and the kids wouldn't shut the living hell up. The entire 80/90-whatever minutes - pure childnoise. It drove me insane. And my family hated me for it.

[AwallaceUNC]

How about every single theater experience in the last several years? It seems like no matter where I seat, the people directly behind me will be "the loud ones". Maybe it's just that people are getting increasingly rambunctious in theaters or maybe I'm just noticing it more these days, but it's getting frustrating. On my first of three (so far) viewings of <i>Dreamgirls</i> in theaters, the people directly behind us apparently didn't realize it was a musical and proceeded to make fun of the movie everytime someone started to sing (which, as those who have seen it know, is very often).

Some of the worst experiences that immediately come to mind would have to be when <i>Harry Potter</i> was misframed and projected partly on the screen and partly on the wall and when my viewing of <i>The Santa Clause 3</i> provided a realistic simulation of North Pole climate, courtesy of a supposedly broken heater.

-Aaron

[Dottie]

When I went to see "Harry Potter and the prizoner of Azkaban" suddenly the power went out and they left us sitting in the dark for about 15 minutes and nothing happened. When the movie finally started again, it started like 5 minutes later then when it had stoppedm which really sucked.
But they gave us a free coke, so it wasn't that bad.