Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: "You Got Served" Causing Uproar--Why?

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Posted by Ryan Powers (Member # 1059) on 02-05-2004, 05:56 PM:

Demand for "You Got Served" is causing problems at one local theater here in Charlotte, NC. It seems over the weekend when all shows were sold out a large group just stormed the auditoriums trying to get in. I can't figure this one out. This is no Star Wars, or Lord of the Rings. From the looks of this film, you couldn't pay me to see this. Anyway here is what was printed in the Charlotte news paper about the incident.

Theater regroups to show `Served'
Concord Mills plans better control after Saturday's overflow
TONYA JAMESON
Pop Culture Writer
http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/entertainment/columnists/tonya_jameson/7869347.htm?ERIGHTS=-2131116783223857197charlotte::ryepow@carolina.rr.com&KRD_RM=4smsoorkktnlstnkkkkkkkkkks|Ryan|Y

The sleeper hit "You Got Served" may have enjoyed a blockbuster opening last weekend, but it was a logistical nightmare for many parents and theater managers at AMC Concord Mills 24 and nationwide.

Theater officials plan to show the film in more auditoriums and review security plans this weekend to prevent the disturbances that shut down two auditoriums at AMC Concord on Saturday. Theaters nationwide were overwhelmed by demand for the movie.

"We're well coordinated to prevent any kind of recurrence of the problem that we had last weekend," said Rick King, spokesman for AMC Theaters.

More than 70 area law enforcement officers responded to disturbances at AMC Concord on Saturday after all the evening shows of "You Got Served" sold out by 7:30 p.m. Two people were charged with disorderly conduct, said Concord Police Capt. Walter Stofford. Police stunned one teen with a Taser.

Several parents complained Tuesday that more should have been done to prevent people without tickets from getting inside and that some police rough-handled the teens.

Nationwide, police in New York, Cleveland, Connecticut and California quelled disturbances at theaters showing the dance film. In certain incidents police used Tasers and bean bag guns to control patrons.

"You Got Served" grossed about $16 million last weekend, which was about twice what industry experts predicted.

"That was actually a surprise story of the weekend," King said.

"You Got Served" is the first teen movie since "Honey" came out in early December. It stars members of the boy group B2K.

"There was a ton of girls out there, that's why all the guys were out there," said Warren Chancellor of Charlotte, 15, who went with friends for a birthday party.

According to several patrons, small fights erupted and many teens without tickets snuck into the two auditoriums showing "You Got Served."

Linda Little of Concord took her two teenage daughters to see the film Saturday evening. She bought tickets for the 6:45 p.m. show, but once inside she couldn't find seats.

The Littles joined dozens of others waiting for a later show. By 9 p.m., the crowd had swelled to at least 500 people. Some had tickets, others waited to buy tickets to other movies and many teens just hung out. Concord police tried to disperse the loiterers.

"The crowd was probably one of the bigger crowds we've seen in quite some time," said Stofford.

Little got a ticket for the 10:15 p.m. show. When doors opened, there was a scramble to get in, she said.

"People started running and jumping over the seats," Little said. "It was so many kids sitting on the stairs you couldn't come up and down."

Some teens sat two or three to a seat. About 10 minutes into the movie, police evacuated the two auditoriums where "You Got Served" played.

Outside, a sea of blue lights and a helicopter greeted theatergoers. State troopers and officers from Concord and Charlotte-Mecklenburg patrolled the parking lot until it cleared.

Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 02-05-2004, 08:36 PM:

So sad..

I shouldn't touch this, but given the mentality of the crowd that turned out a my theatre Saturday night, I can see why there was such an uproar. Kids simply do not knwo how to act. Act like an idiot or a miscreant, get treated like one. [Mad]

This never really happens with other movies... I just do not get it. [Confused]

Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 02-05-2004, 08:47 PM:

Yea I hear you. What was the last movie where something like this happen... 8 Mile???

I found it funny that this lady thought that something more should have been done to keep nonticket people out of the theater BUT also that the police were too rough on some of the kids. You can only have it one way or another.

Posted by Pravin Ratnam (Member # 1417) on 02-05-2004, 11:19 PM:

I normally think of myself as being more aware than studios of which niche movies can outgross estimates. However, I was flabbergasted by the first week grosses for this movie. I had no clue there was so much demand for this movie. Having said that, multiplexes should be in a position to add shows and move movies if needed to avoid such problems. I am not excusing the horrible conduct by these morons who stormed the theaters, but after my experience with auditorium scheduling in recent weeks at AMCs, those guys are pretty bad at guessing which movie is going to sell out fast and are pretty slow to adjust. If all tickets were sold by 7:30, they should have had enough advance warning to put the movie in the biggest auditoriums. Maybe add even extra shows at the end of the night. Pay your employees extra. The extra revenue gained by the sold out shows could have been used to hire an extra security guy. Don't these security guys have other security buddies that could have been brought in at short notice to be near the entrance of the two auditoriums ? I hope they were smart enough not to have the two auditriums far apart. (OK , granted that's easy for me to say as I don't own a theater).

In any case, I hope the security guys were able to punish those morons who caused the disturbances. I liked the use of taser mentioned in the article.

[ 02-06-2004, 01:42 AM: Message edited by: Pravin Ratnam ]

Posted by Emma Tomiak (Member # 1862) on 02-06-2004, 12:02 AM:

I know what those guys at that AMC went through. We had a very similar situation at my theatre; fights, crowds, tons of police, but luckily no tasers or anything of that sort. Needless to say, we stepped up security for the next night's shows.

Posted by Dennis Benjamin (Member # 1137) on 02-06-2004, 12:38 AM:

The Regal Texas Station made last weekend's local paper when they kicked out about 400 patrons or so (with the help of SWAT) WITHOUT REFUNDS. They, of course, were all seeing "You got Served".

Lucky for me they all showed up at my theatre afterwards......

Posted by Dave Williams (Member # 299) on 02-06-2004, 12:38 AM:

I hate to say this, not bieng a racist or anything like that, but movies that portray urban anything tend to invite mass idiocy and violence. Movies like this play to the lowest common denomenator, and they all come a runnin for the door.

Yet movie studios KEEP MAKING THIS LAME CRAP that dumbs them down even more.

THEATERS need to be on the ball and be able to spot this crap, and NEVER book it, regardless of how much money it might make.

The bottom line, should not be money, but long term viability. Do you want your theater to have ANY notariety for gang mentality or violence because of its movie choices? How does that effect future business? Do you really want to have these people who will only cause increases in cost to your operating expenses to keep coming back?

If you want to attract a crowd that is NICE to not only your building and its contents, but the other people in the building as well, you have to carry movies that will not attract the type of people that one, DO NOT BUY CONCESSIONS at the same rate as others, and only trash your place in the mean time, and cause chaos and confusion leading to others who do support your business at the snack bar to come to the decision that it would be better elsewhere.

It is sad that the bottom line is so short that it cannot be seen one week from now. Theater owners have to do a better job at sticking it back to hollywood and demanding better product that does not entice people to riot.

Ciao

Dave

Posted by Aaron Garman (Member # 1653) on 02-06-2004, 02:11 AM:

Amen Dave! We didn't have too many problems with the film this weekend, except for the hundred or so kids just standing in our lobby, preventing patrons from getting to the concession stand! Why can't theaters understand that we really control this industry and stop showing this garbage? We're whores to Hollywood and it needs to stop. Maybe we should make a site called RespectExhibitors.org. Instead of David Goldstein, we could have one of us up there talking. Any volunteers to be on film? [Cool]

AJG

Posted by Roger Katz (Member # 1625) on 02-06-2004, 07:27 AM:

Two theatres in Connecticut, the Crown Landmark Square in Stamford and the Hoyts Brass Mill Center in Waterbury, had problems with crowds at these movies. Violence erupted and arrests were made in both locations.

Posted by Mike Spaeth (Member # 524) on 02-06-2004, 09:58 AM:

I will take a slight disagreement with the posts here. I run two "urban" theatres - this movie accounted for 80% of our gross at each location over the weekend. If not for these pictures, we would not be in business. That being said, when we have a movie like this coming up, the studios often pay for additional security over the weekend. It's a pain in the ass, yes, but it keeps us in business.

Posted by Paul Konen (Member # 41) on 02-06-2004, 10:17 AM:

We had this title in our large house on Friday night and had to stop in mid show because of a diruption inside the theatre.

The next night it was moved to the smallest house to help prevent this from happening again.

Gone after 1 week.

Posted by Dave Williams (Member # 299) on 02-06-2004, 10:44 AM:

quote:
I will take a slight disagreement with the posts here. I run two "urban" theatres - this movie accounted for 80% of our gross at each location over the weekend. If not for these pictures, we would not be in business. That being said, when we have a movie like this coming up, the studios often pay for additional security over the weekend. It's a pain in the ass, yes, but it keeps us in business.

Mike, you hit the nail right on the head without even realizing it. You see, by your own statement, you run an "urban" theater. If not for these films you would be out of business. However, I will take you down a different path that should point more light on to the problem for you.

The real problem for a theater such as yours is not that this is the film that keeps you in business, but rather that because films like this keep getting made, your patrons only WANT to see films such as these, only dumbing them down ever further. If these films did not come to play, then it would not be an issue. eventually, even "urban" persons would go to see films that were not "blaxploitation" flicks such as these.

Why no one sees this is beyond me. I thought and had hoped that films like this were gone a decade or more ago, instead, here they are, dumbing down the intended patrons only to get them ready for the next big dumb down flick.

Mike, even if the studio footed some extra security money for a theater that only plays to patrons that want this type of movie, they aren't going to pay for any at any other type of theater in a mainstream area. This not only puts exhibitors at a risk, but has probably by this film alone cost taxpayers around the country millions of dollars in police responses. Is this fair for hollywood to make the taxpayers to foot thier bill at the box office and at the paycheck, even if they will never go see it?

It is sad to think that any theater needs a film like this to survive. It is a statement that our society is in serious need of repair. Our Urban areas have become breeding grounds for fear, hatred, and violence. They have been ignored by mainstream america, and they only get pushed into a corner even further. The answer is not to endorse films like this, or gangsta rap, or the like. The answer is to get these people educated, get them voting, get them responsible.

If 90 percent of the exhibitors did not book these kinds of films, they would never get made. They have the power, but are fearful that the studios will blackball them into taking the films for fear that they wont get other ones.

The exhibitors have the power. They need to stay banded together and fight this crap.

So, Mike, I am sorry if killing movies like this would kill your theater. It is always a sad loss when any movie theater loses. but it is movies like this that put a theater like yours into a position where it must have it to survive. It is a circle of hell that is hard to break from.

Ciao

Dave

Posted by Chris Hipp (Member # 1788) on 02-06-2004, 11:09 AM:

Well as you all should know I do not mind sounding racist so here goes:

Do you remember that line in Men in Black where K says "A person is smart, people are stupid" or something along those lines.

That's the same situation with these "people." Perhaps some of them are intelligent and civilized but when you get a group together they literally become sub human. It's always the same thing with these movies, you get a group together and they cannot control themselves.

If I had a theatre of my own I would be much more selective of the types of films I play and try to bring in a more sophisticated crowd. It isn't the movies themselves, John Singleton (Baby Boy, Boyz in the hood) is one of my favorite directors, well maybe I should say was since he made 2 fast 2 furious, but I would rather not promote the kind of behavior that "urban" movies bring out in hopes that perhaps one day this thing called "civilization" will be able to work.

Posted by Jeremy Fuentes (Member # 2135) on 02-06-2004, 11:50 AM:

Perhaps more theaters would acquire "non-urban" movies if the distributors would release wider. Maybe if the distributors that make these movies would make them seem interesting to the "urban" crowd, then maybe more theaters would want to pick up there movies. It works both ways. Theaters dont pick up nonurban films, because they do not draw big crowds. The majority of the customers do not see these movies, because it does not relate to any aspect of there lives, and nobody wants to spend money on something that they dont care to see. I am happy for those theaters that survive off movies like this, because like it or not, these movies are not going anywhere.

Posted by Brad Allen (Member # 470) on 02-06-2004, 01:01 PM:

(I will take a slight disagreement with the posts here. I run two "urban" theatres - this movie accounted for 80% of our gross at each location over the weekend. If not for these pictures, we would not be in business. That being said, when we have a movie like this coming up, the studios often pay for additional security over the weekend. It's a pain in the ass, yes, but it keeps us in business)

And to add to what Dave W said, movies like "Served" has caused the "good" paying customers to be ran off from your theatre. They don't want to tolerate that sort of nonsense, and they remember they had a problem at your theatre last visit, so they don't return when your showing more mainstream films. A local theatre here just closed, because the owner "thought" he had to cater to the kids to survive. The place was usually a zoo, and over the years, he had alienated all the good paying adults. Now he's paying the price.

Posted by Martin Brooks (Member # 1269) on 02-06-2004, 01:41 PM:

"Urban" is not the issue. This movie is playing at 21 different theaters in NYC, and I presume other urban centers and I haven't heard of any problems whatsoever.

Personally, I think this is more of an issue in suburban areas where kids are bored and "act out." I think in a place like NYC, acting out in a movie theater would be considered to be pretty lame.

Regardless of the reasons, there's no excuse. Call the cops and throw 'em out.

Posted by Robert E. Allen (Member # 1351) on 02-06-2004, 02:07 PM:

Amen! Dave Williams.

I was going to ask about this film because up here in the Northwest we haven't heard of it yet. But now, I don't want to know. Thank heavens for small towns. It'll never show up here.

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 02-06-2004, 07:20 PM:

I thought "break dancing" was over in the '80s!? What's up with this movie anyway?

Posted by Bruce McGee (Member # 131) on 02-06-2004, 09:30 PM:

There was an incidence at a Carmike in Asheville, NC this past weekend. One of the 'kids' took a swing at a cop. How stupid is that?

Posted by Chris Hipp (Member # 1788) on 02-06-2004, 09:36 PM:

quote:
Regardless of the reasons, there's no excuse. Call the cops and throw 'em out.

That's exactly what we have been doing lately. Anyone who is talking/cracking up in the movie, tries to skip the holdout line, etc. is being refunded and told to leave the property.

Also we have been setting up barriers from the doors to the theater to the exit doors when the show breaks so ever has to leave the building.

Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 02-06-2004, 11:04 PM:

Bruce,

I'll have to give ol Sherry a call and find out what happened...

[Roll Eyes]

Posted by Bruce McGee (Member # 131) on 02-07-2004, 06:56 AM:

Jason:

There was a tiny blurb in the local paper on Monday about this.

I have a new employee at work that took his kids to this show. He said that there was a small group of loud kids in the back of the theatre that started the disruption. He told me that he tried to get a refund, but the theatre only wanted to give a pass. He had purchased a total of 5 tickets. The way he tells it, he just wanted to be able to go somewhere else last Saturday night with his kids, and the nearly $50 he spent would have done tthat. The theatre said no, and he couldn't get the refund. He also tells me that the police acted as if he had been one of the rowdies.

Also, when someone complained about the disruptions, an employee walked into the theatre and yelled "SHUT UP!" and walked out. I dont think that this helped anything.

I look forward to reading what you find out, Jason.

Posted by R. Andrew Diercks (Member # 1725) on 02-07-2004, 03:33 PM:

This makes me thankful to live in the midwest. Urban movies don't do well, and people tend to have generally more respect for others. Any time you have a major disruption in a theatre, you risk keeping at least 10% of the non-disruptive customers from ever returning to your establishment. Kids are NOT the viability of business, especially a bunch of little punk gangbangers or posers.

Posted by Mark J. Marshall (Member # 1409) on 02-07-2004, 07:59 PM:

I was wondering how many people would come to see this movie and mistakenly get tickets for "The Big Bounce" since that's the name of the dance competition in You Got Served.

Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 02-08-2004, 12:17 AM:

So how did everyone's weekend go with Barbershop? So far we have had one pushing match that almost turned into a fight. A couple of ejections and two cars broken into (on consecutive nights). This despite having people out patroling the parkinglot. Anyone else have as much "fun"? [Mad]

Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 02-08-2004, 12:37 AM:

Friday night was very calm. I was off tonight. I'll get my report tomorrow on tonight's activities...

Hopefully, all was well. HOPEFULLY.

Posted by Jim Ziegler (Member # 86) on 02-08-2004, 12:58 AM:

One thing I have found with shows like this is that these crowds are similar to volitile chemicals.. The higher the concentration, the more volitile they are.. Don't pack out the houses that they are playing in, and you signifigantly reduce the problems you will have. At one theatre I was at, we sold out most shows at 95% of seats sold. "Urban" films were "sold out" at 75% of seats sold.. Typically this signifigantly reduced the number of problems, and therefore, the number of refunds.