How to (Easily) Ruin a Movie for People

When people think of how to ruin a movie for people, some very typical things may come to mind.  Allowing your cell phone to ring, actually talking on the phone, throwing food, etc.  What I propose is somewhat different, but to a fairly regular moviegoer, I believe it can be just as annoying, and maybe even fully ruin the movie.

I’ve always told people that when you pay for a movie, you pay for the whole thing.  This includes the preshow (even though you might not enjoy it), any food you might buy, the previews, the feature, and the credits.  The credits are important because there are people who like to sit through to the real end of the movie, perhaps see someone’s name that they know.  Even more importantly, there may be something after the credits!  Regardless of whether or not you watch them, the credits are part of your movie.  That being said, when I work and clean theatres, I try to wait until the credits are over before heading in there if at all possible.  IF someone is watching, I will try not to disturb them.

Well, today, it became pretty obvious that the average moviegoer does not feel the same way as me.  While waiting for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button to end, I was standing at the exit door, and there were a few people heading out.  I took a peek in, and saw that the theatre was still very dark, but that there were people who were pretty intently watching the credits.  It was very quiet in there, when suddenly, people started walking in behind me, talking quite loudly.  They were walking pretty fast, so I had to chase them, trying to whisper to them that the previous show had not ended.  They responded by loudly saying “Well when can I go in sit?”  After guiding them out, I informed them that when the theatre was cleaned, they could go in and sit, but the previous show had not ended yet.

Adding to that, people who had left some of their things in the theatre kept walking in and out while talking on their phones, insisting that I help them find their things.  It became more and more difficult for me to comprehend that they did not understand they were disrupting a movie!

I understand that these people may not have understood that the previous show was still going on…. despite the theatre still being dark.  Like I said though, when I go to a movie, I try to enjoy the entire thing.  Is it just me being picky about when a movie ends?  What do you think about people walking in before the previous show is over?

In my opinion, these people are great examples of Jerks at the Movies!

Movies This Weekend! 12/19/08

It’s about to get really crowded in theatres… well, at least in terms of product.  If you’re closer to a smaller location, you might want to go check out that movie before it leaves the theatre because that’s bound to happen a lot sooner now that we’ve got more movies.  Three this week (in wide release), then a few more on Christmas day… which doesn’t leave much room for older movies.  Let’s take a look at what’s going to be offered on Friday.  I think it’s a pretty strong slate actually.  It’ll definitely make things interesting for the Christmas holiday in terms of what people choose to go see.

The Tale of Desperaux, Directed by Sam Fell, Rated G

In the kingdom of Dor, there used to be magic in the air, laughter, and anything you could possibly want.  However, a terrible accident left the king broken-hearted, and the kingdom became despondent.  Hope in the world was lost, and everything became grey.  Then Desperaux Tilling was born.  A small mouse, he cannot stand to be confined in his world, and is banished when he refuses to follow the rules expected of a mouse.  He refuses to be weak, despite being wheezy and having oversized ears.  He soon meets up with Roscuro, a fellow outcast; a rat who refuses to live in the underground like his kind.  Together, they embark on a noble quest to change the way their world is.

Yes Man, Directed by Peyton Reed, Rated PG-13

Carl Allen was never one to say yes to anything.  He lived a sheltered life, avoiding anything that could possibly be bad.  However, when he signs up for a self-help program that is solely based around saying “yes” to everything, he finds that his life can be changed in amazing and crazy ways.  However, he also discovers that it’s not always good to open your life to endless possibilities.

Seven Pounds, Directed by Gabriele Muccino, Rated PG-13

Will Smith is reunited with the directors and producers of The Pursuit of Happyness in this emotional drama.  Ben Thomas is an IRS agent with a secret, and must embark on a journey of redemption.  On his way, he will seek to forever change the lives of seven strangers, a task he must complete in order to obtain redemption.

Joe’s Weekend Outlook

As I mentioned before, these are very strong films.  We’ve got a good children’s movie coming out in Desperaux, a serious drama in Seven Pounds, and a comedy in Yes Man.  Basically, if there’s something you want to see or take someone to, you’ve got options this weekend.  However, with how close it is to Christmas, and all those gift cards yet to be distributed, I think that we’ll be disappointed at the Box.  I’m going to go with Seven Pounds in the number one spot, only because its hard to bet against Will Smith recently.  Desperaux will follow that in my rankings, and Yes Man will finish in third of the wide releases.

What do you plan on seeing this weekend?  Or will you just wait for Christmas?

Don’t wait. Guarantee your seat before you go and avoid a sold out show. Skip the box office lines and buy movie tickets at Fandango.com.

Images for this post were provided by Movie Poster dot Com.

Weekend Wrap Up: The Box Office Stood Still… Almost

Well, the holiday shopping season is now in full swing… and it did reflect somewhat at the Box Office.  Keanu Reeves’ The Day the Earth Stood Still did manage to grab the top spot, but following right behind it was Four Christmases, which remained strong.  Hard to believe that movie has made $87.8 Million Dollars!!!  Here’s how the rest of the box office looked (after the jump):

Rank		Title	Weekend	Gross
1		The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008)	$30.5M	$30.5M
2		Four Christmases (2008)	$13.1M	$87.8M
3		Twilight (2008/I)	$7.95M	$150M
4		Bolt (2008)	$7.46M	$88.8M
5		Australia (2008)	$4.17M	$37.8M
6		Quantum of Solace (2008)	$3.72M	$158M
7		Nothing Like the Holidays (2008)	$3.53M	$3.53M
8		Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (2008)	$3.18M	$170M
9		Milk (2008)	$2.6M	$7.59M
10		Transporter 3 (2008)	$2.35M	$29.4M

A little bit of a shift after last weekend, but nothing really significant.  Nothing Like the Holidays entered the top 10, but posted a very weak showing, pulling in just $3.53 million.  Guess not all holiday movies are made equal.  I’m actually pretty surprised that The Day the Earth Stood Still actually made that much money, because it was absolutely dead at the theatre this weekend.  Unfortunately for me, I had a guest get mad because it wasn’t busy enough.  Well, there’s  a little bit more to it than that, but I think it’s deserving of its own post.

Other than that, another uneventful weekend, but it’s definitely not going to stay that way.  Check out the Movies This Weekend… coming soon (writing it as soon as I publish this!)

‘New Moon’ Gets a Director: Fans Probably Won’t Care

I’ve just read from a couple places (Variety and The Brock and Roll Blog), that Chris Weitz has been tapped to direct New Moon.  For those of you who haven’t caught onto the Twilight bandwagon, New Moon is the second in a series of books written by Stephanie Meyer.  The basic plotline is that there are vampires among us, and the main character, Bella, falls in love with one of them, Edward.Crazy things happen to the two as various conflicts arise, werewolves, and other vampires come after Bella.  Edward also has some sort of dark teenage angst where he can’t control himself cuz he wants to drink Bella’s blood, but at the same time doesn’t.

But let’s get to the point here.  While its interesting news to me, being very interested in the film industry, will fans of the movies really care who directs them?  Personally, I don’t think so.  Yes, there are some film buffs out there who really care who directs their films, but a majority of moviegoers who will go out to see Twilight aren’t in that category.  Summit had released Catherine Hardwicke from her duties for the second film because they were not happy with the way the film turned out; I can understand that.  I saw the movie myself and was less than impressed with the way it looked.  However, the movie has still brought in over $144 million domestically, and that’s no small feat.

As for Chris Weitz, this is obviously a good thing for him and a potential big payday.  Like I’ve said, the fans of these movies will likely come out as long as the movie doesn’t totally suck, and even if it does they will see it at least once.  His most recent work came in directing The Golden Compass. Weitz also wrote the film, which wasn’t a domestic success but performed well overseas, bringing in $300 million total.

What is most important to Twilight fans is that Robert Pattinson will be back to reprise his role as Edward Cullen, and Kristen Bell will be back to play Bella (though I’m not sure how many people were fans of her).  The film should be released in 2010, with Melissa Rosenberg, who penned the first screenplay, also penning this one.  While this series is definitely not as big as Harry Potter, you can’t deny that it has had some success, and a new director should have little impact on the second film.  Now if he does a great job, then it will be good for him and the third film…. but I don’t really see people caring about Weitz at all.

Movies This Weekend! 12/12/08

We’re getting closer to the holidays, and yes, the holiday movies are starting to come in.  One movie that’s supposed to be huge, a kids movie, and another holiday movie.  Yep, that’s right…. another holiday movie.  I’m actually pretty happy about that because it’s what people are looking for around this time of year.  It may be corny, but christmas and holiday movies tend to do well around the holiday they are about!  Let’s take a closer look at what’s in store for moviegoers this weekend:

Delgo, Directed by Jason Maurer, Rated PG

The land of Jhamora is inhabited by two peoples who are extremely prejudiced against each other.  There are the Nohrin, winged masters of the skies, and the Lockni, who live on the land, and have harnessed it’s powers.  Delgo is a reckless Lockni teenager who develops a forbidden friendship with Kyla, the Nohrin Princess.  When their people find out about their friendship, hostilities rise.  In this time of trouble, the old exiled empress takes the opportunity to reclaim her lost throne.  Delgo is imprisoned falsely, but to escape, he must put aside his differences and join forces with his enemy, travelling through the land of Perran.

Nothing Like the Holidays, Directed by Rick Najera, Rated PG-13

The Rodriguez family is coming home to Chicago to celebrate the holidays, and the return of their youngest brothers from combat overseas.  Each one in the family has their own issues to deal with.  Returning home, Jesse finds his feelings for an old flame rekindled, while his sister has been trying to acheive her goal of becoming an actress for years with nothing to show for it.  To top things off, the oldest Rodriguez son has brought home an executive wife, much to the dismay of his mother.  When their mother reveals that she will be divorcing their father, the three siblings begin to think about their past a reconsider their futures.  Suddenly, when one of them is faced with a real life crisis, the entire family pulls together, and discover that they are much stronger than they ever realized.

The Day the Earth Stood Still, Directed by Scott Derrickson, Rated PG-13

A remake of a 1951 sci-fi classic.  Keanu Reeves plays an alien who comes to Earth, trying to convince them that they need to save their world.  An unstoppable robot is dispatched to Earth, and only one phrase stands in it’s way “Klatuu Barad Nikto”.  Fans of the old film will be glad to see that this made it into the movie, but you’ll have to listen carefully to hear it!

Joe’s Weekend Outlook

I think that there are three strong films coming out this weekend.  Four Christmases should be dethroned as the number one movie this week, especially with a second holiday movie in Nothing Like the Holidays.  The advantage that Four Christmases has is that its a comedy and is easier to watch (comedies are generally easier to watch, in my opinion), than Nothing Like the Holidays should be.  We’ve also got a potential blockbuster in The Day the Earth Stood Still.  A lot of sci-fi fans should be heading out to see if this compares at all to the original.  I’m actually pretty interested in that movie, so I’m going to try to check it out, but I’ve got plenty of catching up to do as well.

I’m also really far behind on the Christmas shopping… will you make it to the movies this weekend?

Don’t wait. Guarantee your seat before you go and avoid a sold out show. Skip the box office lines and buy movie tickets at Fandango.com.

Images for this post were provided by Movie Poster dot Com.

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