LMAO…as if I needed another excuse to never set foot in one of these big chain movie theaters again:

quote:

AMC Now Charging Moviegoers Extra For "Preferred" Seating


AMC Theaters is taking a page out of the airlines' books to try and help salvage its business.

The company announced this week that it is going to be rolling out a new pricing system, wherein it charges different prices for different seats within the theater. For a while, customers have been able to select their seats when buying their tickets.

Now, it looks like those coveted premium seats...will come at an actual premium…

Good luck with that!




Rest of article here

My preferred theater is the Star Cinema Grill. Dinner & a movie, sometimes in 2-seat segregated booths.
Otherwise, I'll just stream at home from my couch.

Reason #117 why I don't go to the movies.

It takes a rare film to get me to step foot inside a theater these days. I can almost count on one hand the number that I've seen in the theater in the past decade-ish, and that was basically just for the fully-immersive experience.

Fury
Dunkirk
1917
The Batman
Maverick

... That's about all that comes to mind.

I might consider the new Avatar, if I was particularly interested in the Avatar universe. Seems like it'd be the type of film that visually might justify seeing on as big of a screen as possible.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
Reason #117 why I don't go to the movies.

It takes a rare film to get me to step foot inside a theater these days. I can count on one hand the number that I've seen in the theater in the past decade-ish, and that was basically just for the fully-immersive experience.

Fury
Dunkirk
1917
Maverick

... That's about all that comes to mind.

Add Ford VS. Ferrari to that list.

I agree. Plus home TV's have gotten so good and large enough, that few movies are that much better on the big screen.

quote:

Originally posted by jimmy123x:
Plus home TV's have gotten so good and large enough, that few movies are that much better on the big screen.

That's where I'm at. I have a high quality 80+" TV and a Sonos Atmos sound system at home.

There are very few films whose visual effects and sound design would end up being noticeably better in an actual movie theater.

I just went to a movie this weekend. Not my choice. Wife and sister brought me along. 9 people in the audience. They had an employee come in before the movie and try to get everybody to join their app and their monthly “plan”.

We will be telling our grandkids about theaters like we tell our kids about 8 tracks. They are doomed.

quote:

There are very few films whose visual effects and sound design would end up being noticeably better in an actual movie theater.

True, Maverick though fits that bill, IMHO, we saw it on IMAX, it was actually nice to be back in a theater watching a movie again...

Although, haven't been back, nothing so far meets the screen test like Maverick does...

Bwahahahahahahahaha!

We went and saw Devotion a couple months ago - there were 3 other people in the entire theatre! So are they going to post a guard to make sure you say in your "un-preferred" seat?

Most movies suck, and its crazy expensive. People aren't coming, so lets make it even more expensive.

Yes, this will be another nail in the coffin. I used to really like going to the movies, but there is little I want to see that bad anymore, and the cost has now exceeded what I am willing to live with. Its gone way past, "well this movie looks OK, and yeah its a little pricey", to "that looks stupid, and these prices are just flat ridiculous"

Hard to beat the "premium" of sitting in my recliner, eating a nice dinner or snack, no assholes, no crotch fruit, no 30 minutes of stupid previews, etc. And its cheaper.

Good luck with that. Just another reason I don't go to theaters. Yeah, big screen, big sound is great. But not that great with this shit.

I am surprised they never did this before. Every other performance and sports venue has done the same thing for as long as I can remember.

The problem is not the theaters it is the options the theaters have to play. Movies flat suck right now, have for quite anwhile, and if it does not change folks are correct and theaters are doomed to be a thing of the past.

Yes, some movies are absolutely pointless to watch on the big screen and suffice just fine at the house.
But the action packed blockbusters that Hollywood used to put out.
Maverick
Top Gun
Behind Enemy Lines
The Transformers
Days of Thunder
Star Wars
Indiana Jones (the originals)
Brotherhood of the Wolf

I could go on and on. But these are meant to fully engulf you.
Granted my home theater is quite dated but the in-laws have an 85” 4K Sony that is absolutely beautiful paired a full Sonos setup.
And while Maverick is certainly enjoyable to watch there I’d gladly pay to see it in the theater again.

I’d love to see a theater open up that does not do much in the new release world but shows old movies that really deserve to be in a theater.
Though I am probably the only one since I don’t know of any.

They were all nearly sunk during the "pandemic". Things start to get back to normal and they pull this shit? Bad business if you ask me.

I'm honestly surprised AMC and other theaters came back after the Pandemic. It seems like a lot of people I know stopped going to theaters during the lockdowns, and discovered that they didn't really miss it. Even though they could go back, many of the people I've talked with don't really care to. At least, not with any frequency.

Personally, I still like movies, but haven't felt much need to go back to a theater to watch them. Even Maverick, which I actually considered, I ended up watching on the TV in a nice hotel room while I was on vacation with the wife. The sound wasn't as good, but I could pause it to take a piss, which seemed like a good trade to me!

- Bret

The premium seats is just location?

Will they be cleaner? Or just as sticky or maybe stickier than other seats?

Will they be isolated somewhat from assholes using their cellphones during the movie?

Are they more comfortable? More legroom / hip room? Nobody behind you to kick your seat? Nobody in front to block your view?

The market will figure out if it's a viable change. It's not greed or anything other than trying to find a way to turn a buck. It's capitalism as intended.

COVID did them in and people got used to streaming and watching the big screen at home. You can fart on the couch, pause things and eat less expensive popcorn.

I like the big theater screen but I've grown accustomed to watching at home. I can pay $4.99 to download a movie and these days, that's the price of gas just to get to the theater.

AMC can charge what they want if they think the public will go for it. I doubt they will.

I rarely go to the movies, like maybe once every other year, so I’m hardly the target audience for movie theaters. Having said that, I’m of two minds about this. On one hand, movies have already gotten stupid expensive and the idea of paying anymore is unappealing. However, on the other hand, I hate getting to the movie theater super early. If a movie starts on time there’s still 10 minutes of previews, which I don’t like and would prefer not to watch, so even getting to the theater 10 minutes early means that I’m Waiting for 20 minutes before getting to see what I want to see. In reality, it seems like I need to get there even earlier to get the seats that I really prefer so that’s a bummer. If I could pay an extra couple bucks for exactly the seat I want, and stroll in during the previews I might actually be more inclined to go to the movies. Since I don’t go to the movies often, an extra $5 per ticket would really not bother me. So I really could see this as a good thing if it’s handled well.

I haven't been inside a movie theater in over 40 years, so this really doesn't bother me.

Most other venues charge based on the "quality" of the view or such. Seems ok to me.
I guess it depends how much the premium is.
If they make it too much, people will just stay home.

Maybe a return to the days when uniformed ushers walked theaters. Used their flashlights to tell ya to get your feet off the seats. In todays world folks get shot now.

I stopped going to movie theaters many years ago. The quality of the experience gradually changed for most of the reasons cited here. Much more enjoyable to wait a while and see a movie on my widescreen TV without the expense and hassle. Also, the movies coming out are also "woke" in content, no desire to see them. In my area, movie theaters have closed one by one. Some remain but I have no reason to go.