Sometimes, you just want to kill the audience

Chaos Angel · Post by **Chaos Angel** » Sat Oct 19, 2002 5:31 pm

I was watching The Ring with my roomate, his girlfriend, and my friend, Angel. I liked it, it had some genuinely psychologically creepy moments and it progressed nicely, I think, in terms of the narrative and the plot progression, although I think it would have been more effective if they hadn't explained everything as they went along. However, the theater experience was utterly ruined for me by one thing.

The god-damned audience. Stupid fucking dickheads.

First-off, a few guys left their pagers on, which is bad but nothing to get worked up over. What really pissed the hell out of me, however, was several things that are bad in and of themselves, and make for a horrible movie experience when combined. Movie spoilers follow, so be forewarned.

1. The movie had several instances where bizarre, creepy images flashed by very fast. It created a great sense of reality-distortion, but the effect and suspense that had been built up was ruined by the audience screaming "THAT WAS SO FUCKING COOL!!" loud enough to echo off of the walls of the theater.

2. The 8-year-olds in the bodies of 18-year-olds that kept shrieking loud enough and high enough to break glass at every scene that was gross or disturbing.

3. The people shouting about how awesome this or that special effect was, especially near the end when the girl steps out of the TV. They did not shut up for at least five minutes after that, I shit you not.

4. After every creepy or scary part where they shout and yell about how awesome it was, they all talk about it loudly for a minute afterward. Some of them were actually laughing after the parts that really scared them, because they couldn't believe how scary it was.

And this isn't the people near me. I could have asked someone to remove them. No, this is more than half the ENTIRE GODDESS-DAMNED THEATER!!

When the movie ended, I couldn't hold it in anymore. I had been suppressing the urge to yell SHUT UP!! all throughout the movie, so when it ended, I shouted it as loud as I could. Angel joined me. It was quite theraputic. I wanted to cuss them all out, but I chose the path of restraint.

One of the girls at the snack stand, when I told her about it, said that she had been in there when they were all doing it, and she sympathized.

Why can't these people wait for video if they want to talk through the whole fucking thing? It was really fucking annoying to have the psychological build-up ruined at every opportunity by the idiots I had to share a theater with.

::stress::

SuicideKyd · Post by **SuicideKyd** » Sat Oct 19, 2002 7:37 pm

well next time it happens have them removed and yell at um it may have made you feel better , plus maybe a free fight, jk , but i know what you mean people act retarded at the movies , im sorry man.

FirestormXIII · Post by **FirestormXIII** » Sat Oct 19, 2002 9:20 pm

I feel your pain Chaos, that's why I don't go to the movies with most of my friends. They tend to talk through the whole god-damned thing. Why not just sit at home with the TV on and talk instead of wasting 5-10 bucks? Same effect, only cheaper.

SarahtheBoring · Post by **SarahtheBoring** » Sat Oct 19, 2002 9:32 pm

I'm really fricking picky when I go to the theater (surprise!!!), and any talking can distract me... That's the good thing about DVD players, although it would be SO nice if people would just have some basic manners and STFU during the show. Some people go to the movies and attempt to carry on regular, non-movie-related conversations DURING the movie, which REALLY pisses me off. Go to a freaking restaurant, morons!

So yes, I definitely sympathize.

Flint the Dwarf · Post by **Flint the Dwarf** » Sat Oct 19, 2002 10:11 pm

Oh man I totally know what you mean. My biggest problem was when I went to watch Fellowship of the Rings. My "friends" were there with me along with my brother. And my brother's like, "Hey guys we have to be really drunk when we go see this, so we can watch it again and not remember any of it." It was opening day so I had to go. I don't drink though and they sure did, so they laughed at everything! At the end, they kept laughing at Sam and Boromir.

And then, someone else in the audience had to comment at the end. He's like, "Oh yeah of course they don't finish the story, have to make us come back for the next one!" Arrrggh!!

[/end rant]

Me feels your pain Chaos.

Chaos Angel · Post by **Chaos Angel** » Sat Oct 19, 2002 11:13 pm

Laughing at Sam and Boromir? Oh, Goddess.

My condolences, Flint.

FirestormXIII · Post by **FirestormXIII** » Sat Oct 19, 2002 11:26 pm

flint_the_dwarf wrote:Someone else in the audience had to comment at the end...like, "Oh yeah of course they don't finish the story, have to make us come back for the next one!"

I swear to God that there was at least one person who said that very same thing at every showing of Fellowship of the Rings at every theatre on the planet.

Someone said the same thing both times I went to see it. Dammit, read people, read!!

danielwang · Post by **danielwang** » Sun Oct 20, 2002 2:10 am

Some goddamned guy was um,talking on the phone in mine.

Ugh. Sometimes i am just so tempted to just lean over and dump my coke on that guy's freaking phone.

dokidoki · Post by **dokidoki** » Sun Oct 20, 2002 3:06 am

A recent Slashdot post ("Star Wars Producer Says Box Office Is Doomed") ended up as a thread partially complaining about audiences, theatres, and such.
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/phpBB/v ... .php?t=289

One anecdote was about one theatre in Wichita with a balcony that serves alcohol. Because of this, that portion of the theatre is 21+, so you don't have yakking teenagers. (you could still have morons with cell phones though)

Chaos Angel · Post by **Chaos Angel** » Sun Oct 20, 2002 10:39 am

Heh. I live in a college town, so lets just say a 21+ alcohol serving balcony would have made the theater experience worse...

BTW, I think you linked to the wrong thread, Doki Doki. Either that, or I'm an idiot and the joke was lost on me.