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This topic comprises 3 pages: 1 2 3
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Author
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Topic: should infants be let in free?
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Carl Martin
Phenomenal Film Handler
Posts: 1424
From: Oakland, CA, USA
Registered: Feb 2002
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posted 02-12-2002 06:43 AM
i've read posts about crying babies but not with this twist. it is
the policy of my theater to let kids under 4 in for free (i think
they still have to be accompanied), the rationale being that they
can't appreciate the movie anyways and parents would be outraged at
having to pay (the cheaper kids' rate) for them.if you ask me, people who are not there to watch the movie should
not be there. charging at least a kids' price for toddlers would
(i think) encourage parents to consider whether their toddler is
mature enough to get something out of a film, or just likely to
cause a disturbance. let's not discourage the use of babysitters! this theater does get a fair share of kiddie movies that you could
almost excuse parents for taking their crybabies to. but parents
also bring them to much more adult movies as well. i am not suggesting banning any age group, which i consider
discriminatory but many of you will no doubt advocate. i think
any judgment whether a film is suitable for someone has to be
made on a case-by-case basis. and letting little kids in free
discourages those judgments from being made. i brought this issue to the attention of 2 managers, both of whom
couldn't conceive of charging admission for infants. am i just
overreacting to a recent bad experience? do other theaters have
similar policies? what do you folks think? carl
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John Walsh
Film God
Posts: 2490
From: Connecticut, USA, Earth, Milky Way
Registered: Oct 1999
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posted 02-12-2002 09:22 AM
We used to say, "If it walks, it pays."If crying babies are disturbing other patrons, managment just has to go to the parent and tell them to take the kid outside. You would think parents would do this themselves, but they don't. If it's a kiddie movie, then all the kids are making noise so it doesn't matter. Sadly, I've seen stupid parents bring 5-8 year old kids to midnight shows of Blade, The Crow, etc. They should make you get a license before you have kids!
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Evans A Criswell
Phenomenal Film Handler
Posts: 1579
From: Huntsville, AL, USA
Registered: Mar 2000
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posted 02-12-2002 09:33 AM
If it were me, I'd ban all kids under a certain age, like 4 or 5. All the younger ones do is disturb others in the auditoriums that are trying to enjoy a movie. How many of you went to showings of "Dinosaur" when it opened? The auditorium was full of little babies and young kids that cried during most of the movie because the movie scared them. Most kids under the age of 5 have attention spans of just a few minutes (look at the way "Sesame Street" works). 15 minutes into a showing of "Tarzan", a young girl said to her mother, "I'm tired of the movie." About halfway into "Big Fat Liar", a young kid asked her mother, "When is it going to be over?" Long movies are not for young kids. They get restless and start making noise. I'd love to go to a theatre where kids under 4 or 5 were not allowed in.This policy, along wth a ban on cell phones, would make moviegoing much more enjoyable. ------------------
Evans A Criswell
Huntsville-Decatur Movie Theatre Information Site
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David Stambaugh
Film God
Posts: 4021
From: Eugene, Oregon
Registered: Jan 2002
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posted 02-12-2002 10:17 AM
As someone else said, if the infant is carried in, free seems appropriate. Just tell the parent at the time the ticket is bought that if the baby acts up, they must leave the auditorium. Crying babies seems to be a pretty rare thing, and most parents will quickly take the baby out to the lobby if needed. If they don't it's up to theater staff to make this happen (fat chance).If I go to a movie that appeals to kids (like Shrek), especially a matinee, it's a given the audience will be full of restless kids. So I decide up front whether it's worth the aggravation. Sometimes it is. Young kids brought to strong R-rated movies disturb me more than anything. The parents should be reported to child welfare and be made to attend parenting classes. At Regal in Eugene, staff always walks the auditorium, usually twice during the show. They walk all the way down to the front, stand off to the side and "observe" for 30 secs or so, then walk out. Usually this is done by a pair of ushers so they cover both sides at once. ------------------
- dave
Look at this! His chin strap has been cut!
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Mike Blakesley
Film God
Posts: 12767
From: Forsyth, Montana
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 02-12-2002 10:43 AM
I've had far too many movies ruined by babies, but they are a necessary evil I guess. Our policy is to let kids 2 and under in free. What amazes me is the difference in ways kids behave. You can tell the ones who have good parents at home...they are quiet, they say "thank you" and they don't run up the aisles.We do have a kid free zone...the balcony. Nice big sign there saying "reserved for adults (age 21 and over) only." Even then, you would not believe the people who still try to take their kids up there. What's most hilarious is when the KID says, "Dad, I can't go up there...see the sign??" and the dad says, "Oh it's ok, you're with me." So then I step up and say, "I'm sorry, but the kid is right, he cannot go up there." I have probably embarassed a couple of people, but I don't care...if they're that stupid, teaching their kids to ignore the rules, they deserve it.
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Brad Haven
Master Film Handler
Posts: 300
From: fremantle, West Australia
Registered: Aug 2001
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posted 02-12-2002 11:24 AM
up untill xmas we had a monthly event called "babes in arm's" at 10am, where we would encourage any mother's or father's with young babies to come, we would not allow anyone in without a baby .
we would even leave the light's on low (very low, GM's decision) so they could feed and change nappies in the cinema without leaving. adult's paid a cheap price $8.50(oz) and bub's in free.
we persisted for a couple of years but it was never a success, but that was mostly due to our inferior promotion's manager at the time, it was a great idea but now it is no longer!.
i agree babies dont belong in the cinema, especially arthouse cinemas, a woman brought a baby in with her to see mulholland drive the other day, we had a couple of complaint's,apparently the baby was mumbling.
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Richard C. Wolfe
Master Film Handler
Posts: 250
From: Northampton, PA, USA
Registered: Apr 2000
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posted 02-12-2002 04:12 PM
My policy has always been to start charging at 12 months. What I would really like to do is ban any babies under 12 months... as a matter of fact I'd like to ban anyone under 5 for most movies (non G rated) and ban under 12 for R rated movies. I think parents should only be able to bring in teens for R rated movies, not kids. I've thought that charging $10.00 for infants that should be at a baby sitter would be fair. It would still be saving the parents some money.Parents can be so inconsiderate, or just plain dumb. I have an older theatre with what used to be called a standee area in the back. Parents will take their crying kids back there as if that has solved the problem, when in fact they are then standing just feet away from other people trying to enjoy the movie. When you suggest that they go out into the lobby beyond the doors they say, How will I see the movie? It seems to me that NATO could organize an advertising campaign with a trailer that would educate filmgoers of proper etiquette that should be followed when in a theatre. I know that parents should be doing this, and possible schools as well. But, it's just not happening. So if we want to help solve the problem we will have to do it ourselves. It would take all of us to become involved, so that regardless where people go to the movies, they will see that the policies are the same. I often get the remark from people when I inform them of a policy: "Nowhere else do they do that". We tend to be so afraid to offend our patrons in fear that they won't come back. But what about the other patrons that they are chasing away? In the long run, by policing our theatres and getting rid of the bad, we should build a stronger patron base from the good. Those that really want to enjoy the theatre going experience would be able to do so, and the rest can watch video at home and do whatever they want.
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Brad Miller
Administrator
Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99
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posted 02-12-2002 05:14 PM
If they aren't old enough to walk in on their own two feet (handicapped aside), then they don't get in!No one under the age of 5 admitted to the 10:00 round of shows. No exceptions. Parents who do not control their disruptive children will be promptly shot by the projectionist/sniper for being a stupid parent. (In Cinemark terms, that would be an Usher-S!) At least that's what I would do. Well, I probably couldn't get away with the sniper part, but at least the rest of it should work. 
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