I just saw Doctor Strange (loved it!) and in the row right in front of me, there were three (count 'em, 3) people will cell phones. The little blobs of light are very distracting when you’re trying to watch a movie.
I haven’t completely decided, but I’m damned close to vowing never to see a movie in a theater again.
(I told the theater manager about this, afterward, and she said, if that happens, to come and get a manager or an usher. But that not only means I miss part of the movie, I also cause a much greater disruption than the assholes with the phones are causing! It’s like burning down the garden to kill the aphids!)
I have no compunctions about yelling loudly at them to turn the damn cell phone off. And if they don’t, I will get the management involved and get them thrown out of the theater. Management usually gives me a free pass for my inconvenience as well.
I’ve seen this also. Even if the person with the phone is five or ten rows away from me, the smartphone screen is a distraction. Last weekend, the person with the phone was directly in front of me, so I leaned over her shoulder and asked, quietly and politely, for her to turn it off.
I arrived at that position a couple of years back. I’m sorry to say that the cinema just isn’t an enjoyable experience for me any more - the final straw for me was people sitting around me trying to eat a whole meal while they watched the film - hot dog, nachos, ice cream, sweets, large drink, popcorn, etc. FFS - I mean, I know all of those things are traditional accompaniments for this medium, but it doesn’t mean as one person, you need to eat all of those things in one sitting.
By the way, devices like the Apple Watch are just as distracting, even if they’re smaller.
I do wear a watch to the movies, but it’s a real watch. (My game is to see how long it takes between the official start time for the movie and when the previews end and the actual movie begins. It’s usually 15-20 minutes.)
There’s a reason you should spend $22.50 on a jumbo sized drink at the concession stand before the movie starts. We may have to put up with insufferable bastards who hide behind their anonymity on the internet but in real life you should do something about it. If you’re not able to take action yourself then get the usher or manager to put a stop to it. Inaction is the problem.
This is exactly why I haven’t been to a movie theater in over five years. I can handle the ticket prices, the cost of snacks and drinks, and even the people who talk to the screen (“Don’t be going in there, girl!”) Illuminated phones, pads, and even laptops simply make the theater intolerable.
While my wife and I don’t go to see movies anymore, we do attend quite a few concerts and shows. The problem is almost as bad at these venues. One woman, who insisted on using her cell for calls and other purposes during a concert, called my wife a “Fu**** bi***!” when my wife politely asked her to put it up. Now, this was a Billy Joel concert and my wife is a 5’, 64 YO, grandmother. I wish I could say this is the exception, but it’s not.
I will, however, single out UNC-CH, where we recently saw Richard Thompson, as being extremely good about squashing cell phone and tablet use during the concert. The staff would swoop down on offenders within seconds.
The nearest was just messing with some app, not holding the phone up at an angle to record the movie.
I whispered to the nearest, “Please turn your phone off.” Dead silence, no move to comply.
After the movie, I talked to the manager, who said I can come and get them to talk to the miscreants. But as I noted, that is more disruptive, to everyone else in the theater. Plus, I miss a few minutes of the film!
The manager offered me an admission pass, but I didn’t take it. I asked the manager to look into ways of monitoring the theater. But that would take manpower, and that would increase movie ticket prices.
I guess I was lucky; I was merely ignored.
(I long ago vowed never again to see a movie in a theater on opening night. The last time I did that was Batman Begins, and it was one of the worst experiences of my life.)
