# Worst Movie Experience? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 3, 2020, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087 "2020-05-03T22:41:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/122 "2020-05-07T18:24:41Z")
> [@The Vorlon](#): > > Just think of the fun you can have with a mile long disk of film… Or [sixteen projectors](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdPKGNCw7lM) and a lot of free time. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/123 "2020-05-07T20:07:31Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > Or [sixteen projectors](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdPKGNCw7lM) and a lot of free time. That’s pretty frickin’ amazing! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Vorlon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@The\_Vorlon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Vorlon)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/124 "2020-05-07T20:13:49Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > Or [sixteen projectors](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdPKGNCw7lM) and a lot of free time. AAARRRRRGGGHHHHHH!!! I’m going to be twitching for weeks at the thought of a 4 booth, 16 screen interlock, with no accumulators… ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/125 "2020-05-07T20:29:57Z")
> [@The Vorlon](#): > > …4 booth, 16 screen interlock, with no accumulators… Mylar leader is strong enough…it’ll tip the make-up tables enough to catch a bit of anti-slack. :eek: Don’t know if you read the comments on the video, but apparently some poor soul did a 16-screen interlock of _Pirates of the Caribbean_ and had a disaster with 16 sold-out theaters. What can you do in that situation but run and change your name? ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/126 "2020-05-07T21:50:03Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I think I’ve seen how these work. > [@The\_Vorlon](#): > > When it is show time, you pull the ring, lace the leader through the payout head in the center of the platter, lace up the projector, and when you get back to the platter attach the leader to the ring you just pulled, on another deck. As the film plays, it rewinds itself. Thank you both. Long story short, film reels can play from the centre of the reel, is that right? And thank you, OP, for another brilliantly-told story. For some reason (alcohol I expect) I found this one of the funniest lines: > [@Master\_Wang-Ka](#): > > I was glad I’d brought my big blanket. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Vorlon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@The\_Vorlon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Vorlon)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2020, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/127 "2020-05-08T03:55:23Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > Mylar leader is strong enough…it’ll tip the make-up tables enough to catch a bit of anti-slack. :eek: I think the first thing to go would be the ceiling would be ripped down. There were rollers up there, and it was probably being held up by wires. When mylar film stock became in vogue, mini guillotines were added above projectors to keep them from getting pulled over.:smack: ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2020, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/128 "2020-05-08T04:41:28Z")
I’ve had several bad experiences, but the one that comes most readily to mind was _28 Days Later_, which I thought was a terrible and wildly over-rated film, coupled with me being a few seats away from an imbecile woman who _shrieked_ whenever anything mildly startling appeared on screen. The theater was sufficiently crowded that I couldn’t move away from her. In retrospect, I should have walked out. ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2020, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/129 "2020-05-08T07:36:30Z")
Another story, when I went to see **12 Strong** I saw it in a packed theater (military town) the group directly behind us in the theater was a group of young men with their girlfriends. The men were quiet during the entire movie but their girlfriends very obviously didn’t want to see some action military movie, so about 20 minutes into the movie the 4 or so GF’s obviously bored decided to play a “game” where one of them would stomp their feet onto the ground, then another one would stomp their feet back in response, until it was basically a series of loud stomps as each woman responded to the others stomps. This happened for 3 or so minutes until one of the boyfriends turned to one of them and whispered something in one of their ears and they all stopped. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2020, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/130 "2020-05-08T13:31:31Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > Thank you both. Long story short, film reels can play from the centre of the reel, is that right? Yes. Here’s a [picture](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movie_projector#/media/File:Nonrewind.jpg) of it in progress. Now that I think about it, this system must be more complicated than I thought. The linear speed of the film through the projector must be constant, 24 frames per second. But as the film gets fed out from the center of the reel, the rotational speed of the platter can’t be constant. And the film isn’t pulled taut, so there must be a motor turning the platter. So how does it know how fast to turn? If I had to guess, it looks like those two red rollers that the film passes between can move back and forth a bit. If they move a little to the left, the motor needs to speed up a bit; to the right and it needs to slow down. Does anyone know if that’s correct? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Vorlon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@The\_Vorlon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Vorlon)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2020, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087/131 "2020-05-08T16:00:02Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Yes. Here’s a [picture](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movie_projector#/media/File:Nonrewind.jpg) of it in progress. > > Now that I think about it, this system must be more complicated than I thought. The linear speed of the film through the projector must be constant, 24 frames per second. But as the film gets fed out from the center of the reel, the rotational speed of the platter can’t be constant. And the film isn’t pulled taut, so there must be a motor turning the platter. So how does it know how fast to turn? > > If I had to guess, it looks like those two red rollers that the film passes between can move back and forth a bit. If they move a little to the left, the motor needs to speed up a bit; to the right and it needs to slow down. Does anyone know if that’s correct? Most systems were controlled by a nine dollar microswitch, which worked until it failed, and spun up the playout deck, tossing the print on the floor :smack: Then, at 0200, I got to replace the 31 microswitches in the booth. Other brands of platters used solar cells, our system had carbon piles for a while, until I had enough evidence that they were crap and retrofitted everything with the microswitches. The takeup platter was controlled by an accumulator on the back of the main beam. Strangely enough, the motors and rubber drive wheels on the platter seem to have been lifted from vacuum cleaners. 🆒 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-movie-experience/853087.md?page=6)