You know how the whole situation would have been avoided? Stick your coat on the seat next to you and tell anyone who comes by “Yes…someone is sitting there. I think he went to get some popcorn.”
Sorry, I’m late to this thread (:D) but I have two big points to add:
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When I get to a movie theater seat, I usually try to get the best one for me. Once the movie starts (not the previews or commercials, but the movie itself) I’m most likely not going to move. Why? Because it’s Minnesota and I’ve got my jacket, my popcorn, two drinks in the holders, napkins in their spots, and my shoes are slipped off. I’m comfy cozy and ready to get immersed into a movie. If it were any time before that, then I’d be willing to accomodate.
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WHAT MOVIE WAS IT!? SIX PAGES OF POSTS AND WE STILL DON’T KNOW WHAT MOVIE THIS IS ABOUT!
Bad move in my opinion. All you had to do was ask your SO to get up and move two seats.
It is common courtesy to optimize row usage when you are in a tight theater (and don’t tell me that there were 5 rows in the front because those are terrible seats and they shouldn’t have to sit there because you can’t be a little nice and make good use of your row).
Yeah you didn’t have to do it. But you don’t have to tip either. No one is going to file a legal notice if you don’t tip them. But still it is common courtesy to do so.
That being said, that couple’s behavior was inappropriate but I can completely understand where they were coming for.
A word of advice: you are lucky your boyfriend was supporting you. Most guys would have either asked you to get up already or would have gotten up themselves.
The OP acted like an asshole, as did the late couple. Moving over a seat is no big deal at all. It would never even occur to me to say no to such a request as long as the seat I was moving to was just as good.
In Bruges -
Ken: Tell mademoiselle to change her seat.
Ray: Do I have to?
Ken: Do you have to? Of course you don’t have to…It’s Jesus’ fucking blood, isn’t it? Of course you don’t fucking have to! Of course you don’t fucking have to!!
An intended intimidation tactic?!
What kind of bizarre world do you people live in?
From what I’ve gathered, some people arrive to movie theaters hours early, so they can do some sort of “settling in” that is completely foreign to me, as it apparently consists of much more than putting your soda in the cup holder and purse on your lap. What are these people doing that makes them so “settled in” that scooting over is a major burden? Placing their custom-fit seat covers? Concealing a skinny hooker under the seat for a mid-show blow job? Mixing frozen margaritas? I don’t know. But between that the ruination that would come from seeing the screen from a position 17 inches to the left, apparently it is far to much to even ask.
Then, they attempt to watch the movie despite an attention span is so squirrel-like that even the slightest movement around them takes them immediately out of the movie, ruining the “experience” they bafflingly thought they were going to get in a public theater. Even in the credits, this is unforgivable. I would, heavens, hope these people avoid movies that run over an hour or so, since lord knows what disappointment and darkness descends on them when another patron destroys their evening by having to get up to pee.
And oh, the other patrons! Where you and I see a bunch of people watching a movie, they see something else. They see oozing snot sprinklers, readily infecting everyone and everything in a five seat radius. They see combative conspiracies, where couples use carefully plotted intimidation tactics to take what is rightfully theirs. The world is a land of dangers, of people waiting to deprive you of your health and comfort.
Lo, the movies, to some, is indeed a trying experience. I would highly recommend that such people watch it in a place where they can be unmolested by the malevolent masses, undistracted by the ungrateful fidgeting crowds, and in a seat of absolute and perfect comfort, where all is in perfect control and nobody can ruin your night by trying to sit next to their girlfriend. Maybe someplace like your own home.
You’re a little late for appeal to reason. We’re well into desperate white nail gripping to indefensable positions now. The f-u carpet bombing will commence in 10…9…8…7…
One where a man stands there in front of his female companion during a movie that is 10 minutes in to make some sort of point. Note that he is blocking the people behind her while he is doing this.
And yes, I thought it was odd.
'Course things would probably be simpliest and least disruptive if moviegoers on the whole just came in with the expectation that if they’re late and don’t see two seats together, rather than disturb others they just sit apart.
Naw, I don’t much think it’ll happen either.
I would have sat next to you and made your experience miserable. Little comments about the movie, leaning reeeeeeally close to you, hogging the armrest, eating the popcorn really loudly. Would you have had a problem with that?
I have a hunch that the boyfriend gave her a hard time after the movie about the situation, or at least felt she should have moved, which is likely the impetus of this entire thread.
No he didn’t.
He typed a short response yesterday. What you saw in quotation marks was his writing, not mine.
What is with people calling me a liar?
I imagine the other patrons would not be happy. But as long as you got your “revenge” on me, screw them, right?
So for the defenders…Let’s say I decide to go to the sold out midnight opening of the Harry Potter gritty reboot. I decide to go with my ice dancing team, and so me and 55 of my best friends show up early to get our preferred seats. And our preferred seats are…across the premium rows, spaced exactly one apart from each other.
Totally cool, right? We got there early, so we get what we want, right?
To answer your question, no, it’s not cool. But I’m not sure how your scenario relates to this thread. I’m not sure who in this thread has said that anyone who arrives early gets anything at all they want. It has been addressed earlier in this thread that we were not dealing with a sold-out situation in the OP’s scenario. Also, the OP and her date were not sitting one seat apart from one another, nor did they set out when they sat down to create one-seat buffers.
So, explain your point.
I would always move to an empty seat in a movie theatre if requested (unless there’s a puddle of barf on the seat or something), but I have declined to change seats on an airplane on at least one occasion.
The rudest people in the movie example were the texters, though. Shining your cell phone light in my eyes at a movie should be punishable by 20 years at hard labour.
Kind of like, “I could be nice, shift one seat and let the couple sit together but I got here first so screw them, right?”
So leaving out the noise. What if I just sat really close to you and wanted my half of the armrest. You wouldn’t object would you?
Nope, that would have been fine. Go for it. It would have been better than what they actually did.
And you can only sit so close to me in a theater with 3 or 4 inch wide non-movable elbow rests.
How is her post an appeal to reason? let’s see:
First of all, we arrive “hours” early. I have never arrived to a movie more than 30 minutes early and usually it’s like ten minutes. 30 is only if I know the movie is going to be full and I want good seats.
I don’t care about a seat “17 inches to the left”. And they shouldn’t care about a seat one row down. If there is room, I’d rather not sit elbow to elbow with complete strangers.
My attention span is not “squirrel-like” but it is insane to say that someone opening their phone, lighting up the seats around them (and those lights are bright) and texting away isn’t distracting. And if it happens over and over again?
I don’t mind if they have to go pee, that’s a necessity.
And if you think this is an appeal to reason:
Then you have obviously never seen reason in any shape or form.