DFW, TX Heh. Nice editorial, Rob...

Buddy, you gettin' tired of the uninformed masses, buddy? =)

Well, all I can really say is that you were kinda asking for a pretty dumb crowd if you went to see a Freddie Prinze Jr. movie, you know? I know, girlfriend duties and all, but at those kinds of things, you gotta just grin and bear it. =)

I've found that larger groups of friends going to movies works better, because you don't notice the dumb conversations around you, and any of us are going to be much louder than they are, anyway.

Now then, next week we have the next Ridley Scott (supposed)masterpiece, Hannibal. I don't think we're going to have problems with that kind of crowd once Dr. Lecter starts eating people. The uneducated movie-goer has a notoriously weak stomach. =) And heaven forbid the film is longer than an hour and a half, right?

"Worst screening ever."

 

I have been to some free screenings in the past. One was about 10 years ago for White Men Can't Jump, and while the movie sucked the crowd wasn't bad and it wasn't very full.
Then a coupla years ago I saw Baseketball by the South Park guys and it was exactly as you said. Too many promotions and way too many people.
The one good thing like your Crouching Subtitle lady I had one sitting next to me that said "I dont get that" when Jenny McCarthy handed that guy a clean trailer hitch. Her husband said "Yea, I dont either." like he DID get the joke! (rent the movie if you dont know what I'm talking about).
Anyway I hate going to the first showings (except for Star Wars of course) because of those reasons you have stated. I cant stand when people talk throught the movie and usualy wait till it has been at the theatre for a few weeks before I go.
Cheer up. Like you said it's free.

 

I used be a Manager at a movie theatre in San Antionio and I hated having to "prep" special or private screenings. Most of the ones we held were through "free pass" deals on the radio and local businesses. No one really gave a rats-ass about shutting-up and watching the movie. They were getting in free; what did they care. Even the screenings that people payed for, they thought they were "special peaople" and acted as if they were watching it in their own living room and couldn't sit still. The critics, in their private screenings, behaved alot better of course. Usually they would all have left the theatre 15-30 min before the end of the film. Not that they didn't like the show, I guess they just decided they could predict the end.

In my opinion, like you said JarvisW, I think a full theatre full of people who really want to see the film are the best audience. Usually the 7:00ish show on the fist opening Fri of Sat are a good audience too. One of the best audiences I was a part of, other than the first showings of ROTJ and TPM, was Batman the movie. Everyone was so psyched. The best audience I was ever in was at the Colorado Star Wars convention in 1999. That was the coolest thing I had ever experience. They crammed so many people into a giant outdoor tent and had a killer sound system cranked up. They showed to many SW medley videos and topped it off with all TPM "mood" shorts. They did this 10-12 times each day. Each time they snuck in some new "unseen" clips from the SW movies or had some surprise guest show up. There was almost a riot to get into the last show on the last day. That was so coooool.



ooops...sorry about straying from the topic.

 

Thanks for the feedback, guys. Good to know that somebody's reading my stuff.

The problem is that it wouldn't have mattered what movie it was. The spares just keep coming back in DROVES.

There is one part of the story I forgot about... consider this a "deleted scene".

Right before the movie started, one of the gossip queens thought it would be a good idea to touch up her perfume in a crowded theater. LITERALLY. She spritzed this stink water that could have killed a moose, and did it in her seat, with no open air around her. For about ten minutes of my life, I felt like I was in Army basic training the day they put everybody in a trailer and gas it up without the help of gas masks.

Narf.