I went to see Top Gun the same week it opened. The audience was absolutely crazed during the entire movie from start to finish. I’ve never seen anything like it before or since. (Not counting Rocky Horror.)
Then there’s the part in Aliens where Ripley says "Get away from her you bitch! The entire audience cheered.
And one time I went to go see a movie, and the trailer for 8 Mile came up. In the brief silence after the trailer, I said with mock seriousness, “Eminem? Isn’t he gay?” and most people in the audience had a good laugh.
Oh, I have another one. I don’t remember this myself, but my family is more than happy to let me know about it whenever they can. Apparently when I first saw ET, I had a moment (I was five at the time). Near the end, I don’t even know what part but I assume it’s near when ET wasn’t feeling too well, the entire theater was dead quiet. At this point, I apparently let out the most pitiful, loud sob and the entire audience chuckled and said “awwwwwwwww.”
hogwash, I suggest you jump on a plane, come to America, and watch a movie in a predominantly Black urban community. We talk to the screen, it’s part of the culture.
I went to see the forgettable “Who’s The Man?” (featuring Ed Lover and Doctor Dre - surely you remember?) at the Aquarius Theater on Riverside & Pleasant Valley in Austin. (Hell, we saw everything there. They had the dollar movies there.) I actually had a better time listening to the audience commentary than the film itself.
Some dudes got into a fight during “Menace II Society.” I also remember some crazy highjinks during Ghostbusters II.
Yeah, I don’t recommend watching any movie and telling people to shut the fuck up in any of the theaters I normally watched movies as a youth. You might - no, I guarantee you will - get seriously hurt. Then again, it was more or less known that you would need to go to a show on the west side of town if you wanted to listen in silence…
Opening night of Jurassic Park. I was 14 and pumped, because I loved the book. Everyone in the audience was sparkling with anticipation… it was a really fun experience.
I’m not spoilering this, deal. Laura Dern is in the little shed turning the power back on, the arm falls on her shoulder and every one jumps, a few scream. I laugh a little, as do most folks, giggling at themselves.
Then the raptor hits the door. I screamed bloody murder and threw popcorn at my brother. The audience burst in to laughter at the sheer volume of my shriek.
People clapped during all six opening nights of Star Wars, but that’s to be expected.
I’m usually in mushroom mode at the movies but one picture I just had to participate. I arrived late to the third Austin Powers movie, Goldmember, its opening weekend in Myrtle Beach. I missed all the previews and arrived just before Austin causes Britney Spears’ head explode. I joined the rest of the audience in cheering, practically a standing ovation.
The following weekend I was in central Missouri, saw the same movie from the beginning, got to that part and started cheering. Those Mizzou students who were so raucous during the previews turned to churchmice. I was so embarassed! My generation gap was showing in that silent auditorium.
Yep - lots of clapping for Episode I when the big burst of horns plays and “Star Wars” shows up, big as life, onscreen on opening night. There was also clapping for the other two, but not as much (probably due to the general crappiness of Eps I and II).
<hijack>Hey, Mr. m and I used to go there all the time when we were at UT! I had forgotten the name of it, but we saw tons of movies there. Not quiet and shiny-new, but cheap and a good deal for impoverished college students.</hijack>
The one that came to mind for me was when we went to see How to Make an American Quilt with my mom. There were only a few people in the audience, and one of the women a few rows down sobbed loudly through the entire movie. We could hardly keep from laughing. In fact, I think we were laughing openly by the time the movie was over. She glared at us when we were all leaving the theater, but we just couldn’t help it.
When we saw Narnia, a couple had brought their toddler. Now, the baby didn’t cry, but it was obvious she wasn’t interested in the movie, as she cooed and giggled and yelped the whole time.
As you may remember, there were several quiet spots during the movie, and I’m trying to appreciate the moment, when this kid yelped and gurgled.
So, during another silent part, while the kid is laughing and giggling, I yell, “Shut that kid up!”
My family gasped, the audience went “Ooooohhhhh” and I didn’t hear another peep from the baby for the rest of the movie. Look, I’ve had to leave a movie with a baby that wouldn’t settle down and we couldn’t afford a sitter. It’s part of being a parent. Suck it up.
I think most audience cheering and clapping comes on opening night. That’s when the diehard fans show up, who have to see it on the First Day, and the crowd is full of enthusiasm.
In high school my boyfriend and I went to see a horrendous movie called BladeMaster. Barely five minutes in we were rolling our eyes, and someone down front muttered, “Bullllsheeeet.” That was the signal for everyone to heckle the movie, and we had a blast.
But there was a setup for this one: this time some hecklers thought it was funny to laugh and yell during the scene were officer Murphy gets his limbs shot. The movie became amazing to me when it showed the hecklers what happens after the “fun” part, when they take Murphy to the ER and the (surprisingly more brutal)blow by blow efforts to save his life virtually strangled the throats of the hecklers, an amazing feat. Of course then it was ok to cheer when Murphy as Robocop gets his revenge and then after we fear that his human side had disappeared we get the scene were the big OCP boss says:
-Nice shooting, son. What’s your name?
RoboCop [turns and looks at the boss and smiles]: -Murphy.
Had to cheer with the rest of the audience.
For the Movie *Ghostbusters * in the part where Dana is possess by Zuul:
Dana Barrett [in bed talking to Venkman]: Do you want this body?
A friend of the family, from the back of the theater, let out the most horniest imaginable “YYYYESSSSSSSSSssssssssss!!!” in history and the crowd broke down.
I always feel the movie is missing something when I see it on DVD nowadays.
I saw Clones opening night. As soon as the people in the audience read the name “Count Dooku” in the opening crawl, they started laughing. That really set the tone for the night.
The funniest thing I have ever seen during a film was at Glastonbury in 1997. After a long night’s partying, drinking dancing and enjoying various chemicals we attended a showing of Scream in an open air amphitheatre. At the very end, where the bad guy gets up and gets shot right between the eyes, this one guy shouts out “Ladies and Gentlemen, Miss Courtney Cox” the crowd broke up and we returned to our tents practically crying with laughter. Awesome.
While in college, I went to see The African Queen with some friends. At one point, Bogie calls Katherine Hepburn Schweetheart. The entire audience cheered.
Also when I was in collge, a friend and I went to see Clash of the Titans (Hey, we had free passes, so don’t hit me). My friend, me, and two guys in the next row up Mistied the hell out of that movie. My favorite line was when Medusa came out, I yelled, “Eat your heart out Farrah Fawcett!”
At the end of Silence of the Lambs, when Dr. Lecter told Clarice, “I’m having a friend for dinner.” The crowd went wild!
We were at the first night of *Gangs of New York * in a large cinema in Dublin.
You know that line of Irish that you didn’t understand*?
Well, it had the entire cinema in stitches, even though it’s not that funny, just because they got it.
If you’re interested, it means “I don’t speak English”.
A friend and I went to go see a movie and there was a couple a few rows in front of us with a couple of young kids (maybe 5 yrs and and a 1yr?). We rolled our eyes at each other expecting loudness throughout the movie.
Kids didn’t make a peep - the older kid watched the movie or colored in a book while the baby ended up asleep on a pillow they’d brought with them.
I was very impressed.
/hijack
My personal finest moment in terms of real-time commentary to a film involved the Marilyn Chambers’ horror B-movie “Rapid.” For those spared this “masterpiece,” the plot involves Marilyn’s suffering a road accident, after which she receives plastic surgery from a mad scientist…as a consequence of which she becomes a sort of rapid vampire, with a retractible “biting” spike in her armpit (I am not making this up).
Once “bitten” her victims become (spikeless) eaters of human flesh, mindless and voracious (thus the title “Rabid”).
Halfway or so through a college showing of this film, a family in a station wagon is set upon by a mob of high-rise steel workers, one of whom plunges a jackhammer through the driver’s door into the man’s side, to horrific effect.
In the instant’s silence following this shocking attack, I called out “Fucking unions!” to no little laughter.
Laura Dern is in the little shed turning the power back on, the arm falls on her shoulder and every one jumps, a few scream. I laugh a little, as do most folks, giggling at themselves.
yelled out: