I agree, Junior Mints are about as much a aprt of the movie-going experience as the popcorn. Unfortunately, Junior Mints can really fuck up the taste of Sprite/7-Up/Sierra Mist, as this is usually what I order for a drink at the movies.
At most I’ll order a drink and then share a large popcorn bucket with another person and go halvesies on it. If I want candy I’ll smuggle it in to the theater.
No, it’s their inability to understand a complete sentence that makes me seem like a fucking genius in comparison. It’s being so wrapped up in a corporate scheme that you can’t LISTEN TO THE CUSTOMER. It’s being so braindead that English words don’t hit until you’ve heard them over and over. It’s not doing your prep work. I’m never “billegeran” to anyone in these situations (the “grrrrs” are internal). Confirming that you heard my order correctly is one thing. Me having to say the same thing four times before you even notice moves you into the realm of stupidity (or apathy), which one is entitled to wallow in, but it should come as no suprise that this makes for unhappy customers.
I suppose that most people smart enough to perform well at a job like that would be smart enough to get a better job. Minimum wage jobs suck (yes I have worked them - briefly, very briefly). I don’t envy them or target them. To be fair, plenty of cashiers have been fine. They hear my order and they get it and then I pay. It’s really pleasant. It’s not hard. No problem there.
And I only write emails when I cannot get ice. I spend $10-$20 on concessions (depending on if it’s a date) and can’t get a cup of ice? If they are not behind the counter the manager should be able to track some down (and then should make sure his employees properly set up their stations in the future). If he can’t track any down then he should give me another cup and suck up the difference - it’s their fault not mine.
I’ll play. Let’s see, hmmm, here we go, this ones tailor made for punk bitches:
Lookie, it’s a psychomonkey (the rookie), who’d a thought that a dick could be a pussy?
We having fun yet?
Ahhh, my favorite rant. Seriously, my friends are sick of hearing about it.
So, where to start?
I know the price of the tickets just cover the cost of renting the film. This just raises the question of why the movies cost so much. So Jim Carrey can make $20 million? How many times in one’s life does one need to make $20 million? I propose a cap on actor’s salaries the way they do with athletes.
I know the theatre makes most of the money to cover its overhead from the concessions. But its definitely making a profit, too. I don’t begrudge them a profit, but how you gonna charge me $4.00 for $0.01 of soda? The very same soda I can get for a buck at Wendy’s?
So now I go to find a seat after having paid $10 for a ticket and another $10 for a small popcorn and a small Coke, only to discover that you have pulled the same stunt the airlines pull of cramming as many of the smallest seats you can find into the space. If I can’t sit on the aisle, my knees hurt from being pressed against the seat in front of me. Forget reclining, I’d be in some guy’s lap.
And then, THEN, you show me 15 minutes of commercials. Why the fuck am I paying so much when there are commercials on everything? All over the lobby, on the bags of popcorn, on the soda cups on the tickets themselves and in the movie. Oh, and don’t forget the lovely slide show before the commercials start.
And of course, the experience itself. The theatre is almost always too cold. If it’s not too cold, it’s too hot. The floors are sticky. The sound is always too loud. And there is no crowd control at all. Children run wild up and down the aisles while their parents talk on their cell phones and the 15-year-old usher is flirting with that girl from his Biology class and all 28 of her girlfriends, who all giggle at insanely high pitches at everything he says.
The really sad thing is I like going to the movies. I love seeing a movie on the big(ger than my TV, but not by much) screen, sitting in the dark with my pals and letting the magic happen. It just doesn’t happen as much, because of all the distractions.
Look, you left a few thing out of the post that makes a difference, you left out the not getting ice, you left out the 4 repetitions, just as I left out a “t”. Its a pain in the ass when people exaggerate complaints for free stuff. If your going to make a post like that tell the whole story, ok so it was an over-reaction, but there was alot of anger that has never made it into a pit rant before. Im sorry you had to be the one to hit that particular trigger. In a gesture of good faith, I offer this tip. AMC company policy says that you cannot stop a customer from bringing anything in except liqour, and even then we couldnt check for it. Also no glass bottles. This means you can bring in a 2 liter of coke and a bucket of fried chicken if you feel like it.
dalovindj…
Being a “retard” teenager…
Lay off them a bit! There is often tons of noise (popcorn machine and other orders being taken) behind the counter, if you speak up it might help them a bit.
There getting paid shit all minimum wage to take all the abuse from ppl like you, that comes with a min. wage crap job.
Although I don’t think I would have the trouble remembering a simple order, still it happens!
Re-read it, man. I asked for ice 5 times in that mini-play! Then I said “They are supposed to have cups for ice for those drinking high priced water. If the manager will not provide them, I have on several occaisions demanded a refund for the popcorn and the movie tickets.” It was all there. Anyway . . .
No worries. I’m not really offended as much as amused. No hard feelings. I also dislike people who are intentionally out to give people a hard time - especially if their targets already have a shitty job. If the service is competent I got no beef and even then I am typically polite about it.
DaLovin’ Dj
I sir, am an actor. I ALWAYS project. That said I will concede that not all cashiers at movie theaters are retards, and point out for clarity that it is the ones who ARE that inspire such an insidious disdain in my heart, and it is they (the mindless) whom I target here.
Now, I’d like to buy the world a coke. No ice.
DaLovin’ Dj
Wintermute, the reasons athletes have salary caps is because their clubs (using the British term because I don’t know what we call 'em in the US) would go bankrupt and the sports industry would collapse without stop-gap measures. Even some univeristies, which don’t “pay” their athletes, have substantial, damaging debt due to athletic programs that believe money = competitiveness.
As long as movies pay for themselves, there’s no reason to cap salaries.
As for movie theaters suffering under the costs of the movies, yup. But there are steps they can take, like refusing to play films that are too expensive. Cite.
I never minded the ads. I like ads.
As for the food issue…I was going to staunchly defend dalovindj but then he revealed his asshattedness (But upon the second preview he’s retracted his asshattedness, so argh!). So I’ll just say that even though it took me three tries with the Valley Girl to get half the food I wanted when I went to see “The Hulk,” I know that I have a much better job than she does and I thank the lord.
Always a bridesmaid, huh? I would say that I gave further explanation to clarify, as opposed to retracting anything. Anyway, your “There but for the grace of God go I.” mentality is most admirable in the face of such incompetence. “The acid test of intelligence is its ability to cope with unintelligence.”
~ **William Feather **
DaLovin’ Dj
My mind boggles that people are actually willing to pay for movie concessions. I’ve bought theater concessions in the past–at mom-and-pop movie theaters that actually (here’s a ridiculous notion) sell stuff at a reasonable price. But as it is, astoundingly enough, they are making enough money off the X% of the movie-going population that’s–well, I don’t want to say stupid, but what else do you call paying the price of a meal in a sit-down restaurant for popcorn and a soda?
If people would stop buying it, they would be forced to bring their prices down, and I could enjoy some popcorn at the movies.
Of course, if people would stop responding in any way, shape, or form to spam, the spammers would stop spamming.
Either way, I’m not holding my breath for the Forces of Capitalism to create Rational Behaviour.
I always bring a bottle of cold water and a big tupperware thing full of grapes to the movies.
If the concession stands sold something less toxic and more veggie-friendly, like maybe fruit salad or regular salads or tofu dogs, I would be more than willing to support them. Or falafels! Everyone likes falafels.
There’s a nice twenty-screen theater just ten minutes from my house, complete with comfy seats, Stadium seating, electronic box offices, the works. I don’t go to the movies as often as I like, but when I do, I deliberately make an effort to buy something to eat and drink, and gladly pay the higher-than-in-the-real-world price for them, because I want to support my fun local theater.
(And yes, you have to get soda and a popcorn at the movies – it’s part of the experience! 
)
The best movie food smuggling incident I’ve ever heard about was described by Mystery Science Theater’s Kevin Murphy in a book he wrote (can’t remember the name). He spent a year going to theaters every single day and wrote about the experiences he had.
On Thanksgiving, he and his family smuggled in a full Thanksgiving dinner, complete with portable tables. Turkey, stuffing, potatoes, cranberry sauce, the works. They sat in the front row so they could use the tables to set the food out.
Right after started serving themselves, the manager came into the theater to adjust the thermostat and spotted them. He stared for a moment (who wouldn’t?), smiled, said “Happy Thanksgiving,” then left.
–Patch
First of all, I always get a discount on the movie. I send off for Entertainment discounts and I’ve never had the ticket person say I couldn’t use it, even within 2 weeks of the movie being released. That saves $2.50-3 a ticket right off the bat. Or I go to the matinee.
Secondly, I too, stop at the convenience store on the way over. They think it’s the bomb that they are allowed to pick out a candy bar. They’re never allowed to do this at the grocery store. And I save a bundle.
When we spring for anything at the concessions, the girls share a drink and my husband and I share a drink. Since my husband can’t live without the popcorn with the fako-o butter (aka liquid lard) on top, we spring for that.
When you cut where you can, you don’t feel as bad when they rob you for the stuff you don’t want to cut.
Cool and the gang. A friend just called to offer an extra ticket to a Sneak Preview of T3 tonight. He said they are already setting up barricades for the 10:45 show!!! Something tells me that the universe is just setting me up for the worst service ever tonight as some sort of Karma joke. A mobbed theater, extra security, late show, drunken fools like myself everywhere, and it’s a Tuesday. If a popcorn machine is too distracting, some of these kids just may explode this evening.
And to those of you lawless bastards who sneak things into theaters, I hope you someday own billion dollar corporations and rip millions of people off daily so that you can know what it feels like to be robbed of your 8525% profit. I’ll bet you people even all into Dumb and Dumberer (after you saw a movie you HAD paid for) just to save a buck. I mean why else would that movie be doing so poorly? (Yes, I paid to see it, and yes, it blew with a ferociousness unmatched by a hurricane, and it did indeed suck harder than a crack ho’ on the first of the month). You guys are disgusting. . .
DaLovin’ Dj
Here’s the “snuck” I owe youse guys from that last post:
snuck
Oddly, my habit of buying the largest soda & popcorn has done me well on at least one occ. I was sent by my employer off to the depths of Dallas, TX- in the summer no less. Hot AND boring.
However, I has skipped a few recent moveis, and figured I see them there. I went to a large Multiplex on a slow Saturday, bought my tickets, and “the usual”. Finished my flick- wanted more. Spoke to a Manager-type about seeing another film. He looked at my large (and profitable to him) concession purchases still in my hands, and said- “Well, as you might know, we make most of our profit from concessions, and as you can see, it is rather slow- so be my guest.” Saw 2 more filsm- AND they had free re-fills. I bought some Junior Mints out of gratitude. I agree about Junior mint, but now I prefer See’s dark chocolate covered mint patties.
I only occ sneak things in- and then ONLY when they don’t have the snack that fills my “niche”. For example- I drink only Diet, but late at nite I don’t want more caffien, and all they have is Diet Coke, thus I sneak in something diet/caffiene free. When I go on the low-carb diet, I bring sunflower seeds in (Note to all- please do not spit these on the floor).
scablet- I hate, despise & loath falafel, which to me looks & tastes like something you would scrape off the bottom of your shoe after a walk thru a cow pasture. 
On the other hand- pardon me if I am wrong- but I though “corn” was a vegetable? 
Thankfully, it appears to still be a vegetable - for now. But movie theaters tend to incorporate a plethora of ingredients that are either not of vegetable origin or are of an unsavory fat content into their popcorn. I occasionally bring a bag of some nice air-popped corn from home, though.
And I can’t believe I just addressed a falafel hater. May you burn in a delicately spiced HELL!
Not true. To pick one fairly typical example, according to the financial statements of Carmike Cinemas 55.2% of admissions revenue of $342.8 MM went to film exhibition costs (which includes film rental and advertising costs net of coop recaptures) during 2002.
However, your broader point is correct. “Other theater operating costs” of 53.3% of admissions revenue (which costs regrettably includes salaries, utilities and sundry related to concession sales, muddying the waters just a bit) would make a theater unprofitable. Fortunately for the industry, direct concessions costs (the stuff) was a mere 11.6% of the $164.4 MM of concessions revenue.
I always buy food from my local small town theater: a small popcorn is $1.50 and a lemonade is $1. The line for their concession stand is always long. The line at the big chain theater (where I never buy anything), generally non-existent (YMMV). Isn’t there some slightly lower price that would generate enough additional food customers for the chains that the profit would be greater? Or where you guys live, do people actually line up to pay those prices?