movies

Cinemark & Utah Movies

by Lucky Red Hen on June 11, 2013

movies filmed in Utah

Do you love learning back stories about movies like I do? Click here to read all about the Top 10 Movies Filmed in Utah and some fun facts! It forgot to mention one of my favorite motorcycle movies The World’s Fastest Indian.

Have you seen Anthony Hopkins (he was SO good) in the recent film Hitchcock? The behind-the-scenes story about how Psycho was made fascinated me and my husband. He’s a big movie buff, so he was more interested in the lighting and I dug how “Hitch” helped the Scarlett Johansson shower scene come to life!

Want to know another cool movie tip? Okay, I’ll tell you… Cinemark has an app that REWARDS you for good behavior! I’ve used it once and already have a “Free Medium Fountain or Regular Frozen Drink” coming to me (and with the price of concessions topping eleventy-hundred dollars…) To earn your reward, simply:

  • silence your phone
  • tap CINEMODE in the app
  • tap Turn CineMode On
  • put away your phone
  • tap Turn CineMode Off when your movie is finished

This worked really well during our family movie day seeing Epic with the kids. I’m glad we earned something free because the wailing of a kid whose parent wouldn’t take them out (they finally did once or twice after many minutes of the shrieking disturbed our movie watching) less than pleased me.

There was also a group of 12+ kids with four adults in front of us that ruined it for us, too. The kids were fine, it was the rude adults who kept standing up in front of us during the movie to tell their friends where they were sitting (the rest of their party kept coming in after it had started) and moving seats leisurely like nobody was sitting behind them trying to watch the show.

Note: especially if you have a large party of people to manage, get there early (or at least on time) to get everyone settled in their seats.

After the third time one of the adults stood up blocking our view, my husband leaned forward and said, “Would you please sit down so we can see the movie?” She snapped back, “I’m working on it!”

It’s a good thing I’m not a violent person because I would’ve punched her in the throat. But I didn’t.

Following the movie and as we tossed our trash in the garbage, I thanked the employees who were about to head in to clean the theater and asked who was in charge so I could discuss my experience. Ms. Fisher was the manager on duty and professionally listened to my gripes and suggestions as well as my praise for the Cinemark app that rewarded me for good behavior. Yes, I can be bribed.

Here’s what I think: prior to a G or PG movie starting, theater staff could remind people in person (live, in front of the screen or outside the door as customers enter) to remove noisy children. She explained that they have a policy of giving those parents who end up in the hall a free movie voucher for their courtesy; I dig that. Staff should patrol the theater more often to remove patrons AS THEY SAY THEY WILL IN THE PREVIEWS.

It’d be nice if parents would be courteous to others in the theater and teenagers would be taught to behave during a movie, or I should be a gazillionaire so I could rent out the theater and have a private viewing without the distractions. Wouldn’t THAT be something?!? I’d totally invite you to join me, if you would behave, of course.

 

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Movie Nuisances + Phlegm

by Lucky Red Hen on May 17, 2013

As a society, we are on a downward spiral when it comes to public behavior.

Back in the old days, men wore suits in public, ladies had fancy hats, we minded our p’s and q’s, kids were taught to be respectful of things and people, and trash wasn’t strewn all over the place.

Jump forward to today where guys show more underwear than pants, gals advertise on their derriere, cussing is overheard and seen everywhere, kids are given free-reign by their lax parents, and some people have no qualms about tossing garbage out their car window or onto the ground.

Remind me not to attend a movie opening weekend unless I want obnoxious teenagers trying to impress each other to ruin my experience (also remind me to always sit on the back row so I won’t have a kid kicking the back of my chair throughout the movie).

Iron Man 3 opened on a school night and we thought the 10:40 pm show would be late enough to avoid the crowds. Not so with two-thirds of the audience filled with loud, cell phone using teens (I understand using it up until the movie starts, but during the show I shouldn’t have to see it, thus the messages before every movie that says turn off your cell phone).

The other thing that shouldn’t be at that movie? A baby. With a shiny helmet. That poor little thing jerked at the loud explosions and shooting (it’s Iron Man, there is always LOTS of exploding and shooting) with scared-looking wide eyes taking it all in. Thanks to the parents for the baby sneezing our direction, all over our straw and into our bucket of popcorn… mmm, baby phlegm.

It’s not the baby’s fault it doesn’t know proper public sneezing etiquette (away from others and into your elbow if not a tissue or inside your shirt/jacket). And every time the baby would move it’s helmeted head the glare off it from the giant screen would flicker our direction, like the sun glazing off a mirror. Awesome.

“Wah, get over it,” you say? Yeah, I know people who are pro-baby’s-at-movies and pro-teens-doing-whatever-in-public that think I’m uptight or overly sensitive. But I don’t think it’s bad to wish there was more common courtesy in the world. I’m not at a playground expecting kids to be quiet or at the swimming pool wanting more coverage (come on already with all the side boobage and nipple slippage). In a movie that I’m paying for, I’d like to enjoy it without unnecessary distractions and phlegm.

Speaking of phlegm (how many times can I write phlegm in one post?)… We were at a scarcely attended movie a while back with a continual cougher; like he had bronchitis kind of cough, over and over and loud. It was obnoxious and annoying to miss movie dialogue because his coughing drowned out the sound. Not fair. He did this throughout the entire movie, not like when you get a coughing fit and leave to cough it out… he never left, he stayed and coughed. If I have a cough, I stay home until I don’t. If I get a coughing fit during a movie, I get rid of it by leaving and getting a drink. If that doesn’t work then I ask for a movie voucher to come back later.

People are expected to be quiet (whisper) in libraries, so we should teach and expect similar manners in other public places.

Don’t get me started on the screaming/crying kids at Old Navy every time I am there. Every. Time.

EDIT: The next Sunday after this post, I happened to sit in front of some kids at church who couldn’t not kick the back of my pew. What a coincidence.

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