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Topic: Refunds or Passes for controversial content in movies

Jerry Chase
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1068
From: Margate, FL, USA
Registered: Nov 2000

posted 08-09-2001 02:01 PM

Jim, you are certainly correct on all of your points. Perhaps what is needed is something similar to pay-per-view, where the first five minutes of a film are free. Monitors in the lobby could play loops of the first five to ten minutes of each film so that customers would be more able to choose more wisely, or there could be a cable channel that had nothing but the first five minutes of each current boxoffice release. We can't continue like we are with continuing drops in moviegoer percentages. It may be time for some drastic changes.

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Paul Turner
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 115
From: Corvallis, OR, USA
Registered: Apr 2001

posted 08-09-2001 02:02 PM

I generally try to screen my films before i show them. When playing "Sexy Beast" I warned my senior crowd that it was violent and the accents make the dialogue unclear to the best of ears. Many declined to see the show. If a customer wants a refund half an hour into the film, they get it. After that, it's a case by case basis. We played a really bad film: "Forever Mozart." For some reason about half way theu the film the decided to just occasionally grace the audience with subtitles. Somewhat annoying to the non-French speaking members of the crowd. I was giving refunds throughout that whole film.

It seems the best way to avoid problems for me is to post and having on the recording as much info about the film as possible. But, a polite and somewhat articulate cpmlaint will almost always have me going as far as i can to make them happy. If a customer goes into high maintence-bitch-mode, then I do what makes me happy.

The fact of the matter is, it's MY theater. I will rarely show a film that doesn't have some redeeming quality. If the recoding or the website or the mass-emailing didn't scare you off. If when I'm selling you the ticket I tell you that there is objectionable material in the film doesn't stop you, then it ain't on me. Since it's my theater, and I don't like bible thumpers, homophopes, eco nuts(or fanatics of any stripe) , or people who talk on their cell phone when driving, chances are all your going to get is a short apology and a blank stare until you get tired of talking and leave.

However, always remember, the best thing you can do is ask them, "What will it take to make you happy?" The answer is often much easier than their ire would suggest.

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Michael Gonzalez
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 790
From: Grand Island , NE USA
Registered: Sep 2000

posted 08-11-2001 06:45 PM

I think that the quickest way to clean up the movie industry would be for the theater chains to start offering refunds if the movie sucks.
Unfortunately with the state that the industry is in, most of the movie studios would go bankrupt.

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Joshua Voorhies
Film Handler

Posts: 45
From: Overland Park, KS
Registered: Apr 2001

posted 08-13-2001 06:03 AM

Mike-
The studios would never let the exhibitors do that. Also, unscrupulous customers would take advantage of that like they do everything else.
While I would like to hardline customers who watch the whole movie and then try to get refunds/passes, I fear they would go to my boss and get me in trouble. Why? Because my boss fears they'll go over his head and get him in trouble.
Corporates policy is pretty much kiss the customers ass no matter what. Those of us in the field have to walk the fine line between doing what it takes to run a theatre well and hoping the customer doesn't write a letter to the corporate office. As a result of this, adults can get away with a lot more criminal behavior than teens because we know adults are more likely to send a nasty-gram to corporate.

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Michael Gonzalez
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 790
From: Grand Island , NE USA
Registered: Sep 2000

posted 08-13-2001 08:19 PM

Of course the studios would never allow it. Thats the point. Far be it for them to be held accountable for the crap that they put out. I wasn't being serious, I was offering an "in a perfect world" kind of scenario.

I'll present a more realistic approch. Represenatives from NATO and the studios should get together and come up an estimated gross (for the entire run)for each and every feature that is released. Then the Box Office split should be determined baised on how the movie actually performs against the estimated gross. This will prevent studios from hyping the hell out of movies for their opening when they are getting an 80% (or what ever it is) take and having us take it in the ass when the movie dies a week later.

I highly doubt that something like this will ever happen either. However, something needs to be done about these two week and their gone movie releases. Studios have to be held accountable somehow.

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Charles Everett
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1470
From: New Jersey
Registered: May 2001

posted 08-20-2001 11:16 AM

Refunds? Passes? NO!

You'll only be encouraging the bluenoses and religious fanatics to go after you.

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Christopher Duvall
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 500
From: Denver, CO
Registered: Dec 1999

posted 08-20-2001 11:23 AM

Amen brother...

Also, as I said before, this encourages people to complain (beg) for passes as well. The theatre should be held accountable if the theatre does something wrong. Hollywood should be held accountable if they do something wrong. ok ok ok...rant mode off............

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Dave Williams
Wet nipple scene

Posts: 1836
From: Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Registered: Jan 2000

posted 08-28-2001 02:47 AM

I had a lady demand a refund because we had rated R previews on a PG film. ACTUALLY, we had previews for rated R films on a PG13 film. The previews were for training day and for jay and silent bob, and the film was tomb raider. The previews were appropriate as the crowd that was there for that film had a likelyhood of wanting to see the films I had previews for. The movie was more offensive than the previews anyway.

Dave

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Joshua Voorhies
Film Handler

Posts: 45
From: Overland Park, KS
Registered: Apr 2001

posted 08-28-2001 07:42 AM

Did she ask for the refund after the movie, or did she walk out after the trailers?

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Bob Ferreira
Film Handler

Posts: 15
From: Conway NH USA
Registered: Jul 1999

posted 08-28-2001 11:32 PM

Our theatre has signs proclaiming that there are no refunds for film content, which also covers the pass issue too. Why should people get their money back on a movie? If the movie is rated R, (which about 90% of the time it is) people should know what they are getting into. My favorite is when people take their kids to an inappropriate film and when they find out, they want a refund. The person working box office always asks parents if they know a movie is rated R when they are getting children's tickets, or in the case of some of the more raunchy movies (such as American Pie 2 or Freddy Got Fingered) we show them a write up on the movie. More often than not, the people had no idea what a movie was about and they will change their minds about going, whether they are alone or with a child.

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Bruce McGee
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1776
From: Asheville, NC USA... Nowhere in Particular.
Registered: Aug 1999

posted 08-29-2001 10:43 AM

As a non-theatre owner/operator, maybe I can be enlightened here:

Some of you are giving out passes or refunds because a certain title does not appeal to someone?

The viewing public is getting awfully childish in the way that they expect you to be their mommies and make everything all better.

Do people that have "pay per view" on cable (or the satellite) get to have refunds just because they dont like the film?

I was visiting friends over the weekend that ordered a PPV movie from the satellite service. 45 minutes into the film, the holder of the remote proclaimed, "This is LAME!" and changed the channel.

I was not consulted about the choice.
People seem to think that you are there only to serve THEM and you should kiss their feet if they can find anything to bitch about.

What do you think would happen if one of you just said "NO!"??

Rant off.

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Wes Hughes
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 175
From: Raleigh, NC, USA
Registered: Aug 2001

posted 08-29-2001 04:29 PM

I say NO all the time....but truth be known our policy on this is very loose, so it's on a case-by-case basis....but as a general rule NO.

The problem in my area is that the customers get their asses kissed at the corporate run megaplexes...they get anything they want. Not so here at my independently run theatre. We have up signs, and at the bottom they politely ask customers who do not agree with our policies to please go somewhere else!

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Joshua Voorhies
Film Handler

Posts: 45
From: Overland Park, KS
Registered: Apr 2001

posted 08-30-2001 04:46 AM

my bad.

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Christopher M. Belch
Film Handler

Posts: 24
From: Canton, Michigan, USA
Registered: Apr 2001

posted 09-01-2001 11:04 AM

We take cases like this on a case-by-case basis, but generally we will give people passes. Why? One word—“institution!” We are an institutional theater who will give in to customer demands. We insist that every single person going to the theater, museum, or village is happy when they walk out, and free passes is the way to do it. I tend to disagree with this practice, and I wish they would say no, but that’s not my call. I wish for once we would stand up to the customer and teach them to use some common sense, but we don’t. Don’t get me wrong; I think that if you have a legitimate problem, you should get passes or something. But, I think there are way to many people who complain simply to get something for free!!!

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Sean McKinnon
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1712
From: Peabody Massachusetts
Registered: Sep 2000

posted 09-02-2001 03:16 AM

"The problem in my area is that the customers get their asses kissed at the corporate run megaplexes...they get anything they want. "

Not so at my corporate run mega-plex, we refuse people all the time unless it is a very serious, valid complaint.

------------------
--Sean McKinnon
Manager
Loews Cineplex Entertainment
Liberty Tree Mall 20
Danvers, Mass
www.enjoytheshow.com

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