Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Infants in the theater?

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Posted by Elise Brandt (Member # 5552) on 01-30-2010, 09:32 AM:

I know it's common in at least some parts of the US to bring even small babies to the movies, and not only the kids' movies! Does everyone allow this? Am I correct in assuming the age limits are flexible and basically the parent's responsibility?

Because here, age limits are legally binding and only allow two years younger in if s/he is accompanied by an adult. I have never in my career seen or heard there being an infant in the theater other than special babies' shows (where the lights are on dim and sound very down) but I was just confronted by someone who claims to have been to several theaters with his one month old [Confused]

and wanted to see Holmes with the baby. I had to turn him away but I'm totally confused now.

Any thoughts? Do you allow babies in and how does the rest of the audience deal with them?

Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 01-30-2010, 09:40 AM:

Legally Binding? Really? Cool;> (at least the below 2 part) On the other hand, how many two year olds go to movies by themselves?

Some theatres have policies not allowing infants in, but my experience is they are in the minority. Don't want to pass on any paying customers, no matter how much they annoy the others. When I saw Sherlock Holmes a few weeks ago there were two crying kids.

As an arthouse, my audience tends to be beyond the childbearing age. We get the occassional child, and if it starts making noise we ask that it be taken out until it quiets down. I would really like to install a crying room, which were once fairly common in theatres.

Posted by Elise Brandt (Member # 5552) on 01-30-2010, 10:06 AM:

Yeah, in Finland we have limits for 3 (which really means everyone allowed), 7, 11, 13, 15 and 18. 18 is definite, no exceptions allowed (18 is also the legal drinking, voting, driving and smoking limit here), but all of the others allow that 2 year slip. For example in Holmes where the limit is 13, and 11-year-old will get in if s/he has an adult (18 or over) with her. That's the deal. And it is legally binding which makes things so much easier to exlain. To have a scapegoat [Big Grin]

in the "I'm just following orders" sense.

Seriously? Two crying kids in the theater? Doesn't that... well, annoy the heck out of people..? I want the their money as much as anyone but I'm afraid if there's even one crying kid a week that twenty people stop coming because of that. On the other hand, I hear it's not uncommon in the States for people to talk or even answer the phone in the theater, here talking on the phone during a show would lead to staff throwing the talker out immediately.

Posted by Jonathan Althaus (Member # 5042) on 01-30-2010, 01:11 PM:

Last weekend we had a couple with a young child (still in a carseat) want to see Book of Eli but they didn't want to pay for a childs ticket. They asked how to get around buying a ticket and the box employee said, if the child sees the movie, they need a ticket.

I later found out the kid was left outside in the carseat, right up against our outside wall. And it was 40 and rain last weekend. Could not believe it, and nobody on staff knew about it, which means no other customers noticed, or just didn't bother to tell us.

Posted by Justin Hamaker (Member # 2165) on 01-30-2010, 01:56 PM:

In the US, it would be a legal land mine to attempt to prevent someone from bringing an infant. Any theatre that attempted this would be setting themselves up for a civil suit.

I know there are some theatres that don't allow children under a certain age to R rated movies after 9:00pm or something like this, but I don't know if such rules have ever been legally tested. I would be all for a law which allowed us the latitude to prevent people from bringing infants to anything but kids shows.

Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 01-30-2010, 02:14 PM:

So do kids get official ID's in Finland?

Here in the US we tend to confuse rudeness with personal liberty.

The idiots who left their kid in the car are too selfish and stupid to have stuffed pets, much less children.

Posted by Steve Guttag (Member # 268) on 01-30-2010, 03:22 PM:

Theatres, being a private establishment that caters to the public...would likely win any law suit about infants. The theatre doesn't have to serve anyone that they don't unless it is a title-9 sort of thing. It could also be clearly shown that infants tend to disturb and otherwise ruin the intent of the business.

Steve

Posted by Justin Hamaker (Member # 2165) on 01-30-2010, 05:05 PM:

Steve, I agree that a theatre would likely win such a law suit. The question is who is willing to spend the money in what is likely to be an expensive legal battle which may even involve the ACLU.

Posted by Mitchell Dvoskin (Member # 751) on 01-30-2010, 05:30 PM:

Infants in the Theatre? Is that the sequel to Snakes In A Plane? [Big Grin]

Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 01-30-2010, 05:53 PM:

quote: Jonathan Althaus
I later found out the kid was left outside in the carseat, right up against our outside wall. And it was 40 and rain last weekend. Could not believe it, and nobody on staff knew about it, which means no other customers noticed, or just didn't bother to tell us.

Hope that movie was worth the 10 years in jail they could be enjoying soon when the authorities catch up to them.

Posted by Aaron Mehocic (Member # 15) on 01-30-2010, 06:57 PM:

When I used to work the floor a young couple brought what was probably a 2 or 3 year old girl to see the 9:00 Basic Instinct. Of course the box attendant seriously tried to persuade them not to take the kid in. The father assured the employee she would most likely fall asleep. Whether or not she did I do not know. I don't think in all the years I worked the floor anybody ever complained about a crying kid. We're a small, family oriented establishment. Now, teenagers cussing at they're friends while in the auditorium. I've seen fist fights and cops called for that one. Gooooood days!

Posted by Richard Hamilton (Member # 321) on 01-30-2010, 08:07 PM:

My policy was to always let them in, charging only the adults. 9 times out of 10, the kid would be asleep before previews. The parents were also warned that if the kid got fussy and disturbed anyone, they would have to leave the movie and calm the kid down. This only happened a couple times, and when it did, I would give the one parent tending to the infant in the lobby a pass to come back and see it again. Usually the husband stayed and watched the rest of the film [Razz]

Posted by Caleb Johnstone-Cowan (Member # 3710) on 01-30-2010, 08:10 PM:

Aside from our ratings which are compulsory, there is a '7pm rule' where you can't let under 12s in on their own after that time. Generally in the UK the rule is that an infant doesn't pay if they aren't occupying a seat.

Posted by Jeremy Weigel (Member # 4208) on 01-30-2010, 08:26 PM:

As stated above infants usually do fall asleep, but the toddlers are the ones that I don't like to see be taken into an adult oriented movie. They have an attention span of about 20 minutes and then start getting restless and fussy.

I had a couple take their 3 year old to Avatar and even after I told them it was almost 3 hours long they went ahead and purchased the tickets (including the 3 year old) and concessions. As I predicted they got up and left about 45 minutes into it after the mom had to sit out in the lobby keeping the child occupied after watching about 15 minutes of the movie herself. Guess the husband finally felt guilty after his wife sat out there for 30 minutes.

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 01-30-2010, 08:30 PM:

People bringing babies to Disney movies is epidemic. For some reason they think the kid is going to enjoy it. I don't understand it. Maybe it's a scrapbook thing....Mom wants to put the kid's first movie ticket in the scrapbook.

Most people are good about bringing the crying kid outside and if they don't we go ask them to do it. Only on the rare occasion does the parent get cranky -- usually they are already peeved at the kid, so they're more than happy to cooperate with us.

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 01-30-2010, 11:04 PM:

I cannot stand infants in movie theaters. There's really no legitimate excuse to take a baby to a movie. When I see a couple bring a baby into the theater (often in a car seat/baby carrier) I figure they were either too cheap to hire a baby sitter or were unwilling or unable to get any relatives to watch the kid. So they choose to torture an audience of strangers with angry baby noises instead.

I might be able to tolerate this sort of crap if I'm silly enough to watch a G-rated kids movie during the day. But I really feel I am rightly justified to be very pissed off when the couple brings their infant to an R-rated movie being shown at night. Such parents are utter assholes. If I ran an independently operated theater I wouldn't allow infants into the movie theater during evening/full price shows.

Posted by Gracia L. Babbidge (Member # 582) on 01-31-2010, 01:31 AM:

In general the regular customers of the single-screen cinema where I work realize that the first show on Monday is the show most likely to have little ones in the audience.
Quite a while back, the owner of the cinema had established a trend of first matinee on Mondays, parents with infants in tow were quite welcome. An idea that was well received, and we seldom see parents with babies at other shows throughout the week.

Posted by Kris Verhanneman (Member # 5562) on 01-31-2010, 03:28 AM:

I always have this trouble when I see kids in a late night screening.

Normaly I turn the sound up a bit at the 2 last screenings. And then when you have small kids in the theater what to do?
Not turning up the sound means the other costumers loose the movie experiance. Turning it up means killing the kids ears. [Confused]

Posted by Elise Brandt (Member # 5552) on 01-31-2010, 04:59 AM:

Oh. My. Goodness.

I am seriously happy to be Finnish right about now. We take moviegoing seriously [Big Grin]

and at least most of the time people try to keep in mind there are others in the audience as well. The thing that really appals me though are the parents mentioned in this thread. I've grown up in a country where it's illegal to harm a child in any way (spanking etc. included, call it discipline or not) and putting a small child through a two hour movie in a dark room, with lots of strangers and deafening noise, fast-moving picture and blinking lights would be considered some form of abuse.

We are a little uptight about these things but I say it's better to be overprotective in this matter... they're children, after all. They don't know how to defend themselves and if their parents are incapable of good judgement the kid is the one to pay. Sorry for the rant, I just seriously want to strangle the parents leaving the child outside in a carseat for the sake of seeing a movie. The stupidness of human race never fails to amaze!

Hehe, no kids don't generally get an ID here (although if leaving the country they do need their own passport) but we are instructed to trust what they tell us. Meaning if the kid looks old enough, the parent says she is, and the kid herself says so, that's enough. But usually although the parent claims the kid is let's say 11, the kid in question will turn to the parent confused and say "why are you lying? I'm only ten" [Roll Eyes]

then it's a no-go.

Basically; liers we can do nothing about if they're good, but if we know the kid is too young, we can't let them in. Theaters are checked regularly for this, so they claim...

Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 01-31-2010, 09:45 AM:

quote:
Sorry for the rant, I just seriously want to strangle the parents leaving the child outside in a carseat for the sake of seeing a movie. The stupidness of human race never fails to amaze!

Here in the South, it is not officially summer until the first news report of some murderous imbecile who INTENTIONALLY, left her kid (it always seems to be the mom) in the car, with the windows rolled up, while she (choose one or more: got her hair done, went shopping, saw a movie, etc) and the kid cooked to death as the outside temp approached 100 F and the inside of the car was about 180F.

People who do that really, really need brain surgery.

Posted by Caleb Johnstone-Cowan (Member # 3710) on 01-31-2010, 07:59 PM:

If someone doesn't look the right age for a 15 or 18 they need ID or they don't come in, I'm not fussy as long as it has their birthday on it and they can show me their photo travel pass (everyone under 18 has one in London)as well, no-one uses fake ID in the UK to get in the Cinema because they always think they can blag it. Alcohol has to be a passport or drivers license though.

Mike you're so right about Disney movies and toddlers. I went to a preview of Princess and the Frog last week (it opens wide Friday here) and the place was full of them making noise, they don't know what is going on at all. I don't mind too much because it was advertised as part of the BFI kids season, but the parents should take them out or the ushers who are in there the entire time should do something.

Posted by Richard Hamilton (Member # 321) on 02-01-2010, 03:57 PM:

quote: Bobby Henderson
Such parents are utter assholes.

Obviously you don't or can't have kids

Posted by Justin Hamaker (Member # 2165) on 02-01-2010, 04:22 PM:

Richard, since when does being a parent justify a lack of respect of others. Bringing an infant to an adult movie generally shows you don't care about whether the infant fusses and bothers those around you. Even if you're courteous enough to take the infant out of the auditorium, it still creates a distraction when you first try to sooth the baby and then get up when it won't be quite.

Posted by Elise Brandt (Member # 5552) on 02-02-2010, 12:45 AM:

Richard; I don't know if Mr. Henderson has kids or not but I do and I totally agree with him on this one. Bringing an infant to an adult movie at night is utter assholedness in my book. Then again I don't presume the rest of the mankind lives by my book [Big Grin]

so to each their own.

Seriously. What good reason could there be to bring a small child to an adult movie? This I just don't get. Now a kids' movie I do get, that can be fun for the whole family and very few even assume that a kids' show will be quiet or peaceful, a little fussing about is only expected. But an adult movie?

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 02-02-2010, 02:19 AM:

There's no good reason to bring a small child (under 2) to ANY MOVIE, I don't care if it's a Disney G-rated pixie-dust-coated fairy fest. They will NOT pay attention to anything for 90-minutes plus, and they will forget everything they saw within 30 seconds of going out the theatre door.

Posted by John Joseph Fink (Member # 3619) on 02-02-2010, 07:40 AM:

This is true, Mike - which is why the Sunshine Theater in New York City once had a moms and me morning showing of the NC-17 rated The Dreamers. In my experience in the Northern NJ area, kids are brought to shows at all hours of the day (if you think your safe going to see a kids movie at 10:45PM on a Friday night - think again in certain theaters). Another issue is parents that are too cheap to hire a baby sitter as we have no theaters with supervised kids play areas like Harkins and Muvico offer.

Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 02-02-2010, 08:39 AM:

quote: Mike Blakesley
they will forget everything they saw within 30 seconds of going out the theatre door.

Disney has been counting on it for decades;>

As crying rooms were if not common, at least not uncommon, in theatres, it is pretty obvious infants at theatres has been a concern since the beginning. Since we can't stop reproduction, let's bring back the crying room.

Posted by Tom Wyse (Member # 5621) on 02-12-2010, 08:41 PM:

There is a cinema chain in the Chicago area that has a no children under 6 after 6 PM for R-rated movies. I don't feel they are discriminating in any way because they are NOT barred from the early showings. This policy actually encourages other adults to attend adult oriented films without the distractions of either crying babies or toddlers running the aisles.

Posted by Manny Montes (Member # 5639) on 02-13-2010, 11:30 AM:

I love the Alamo Drafthouse, it is honestly how most theaters should be run (or at least some of them)

quote:
"The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema is an 18 and up establishment. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by their parent or legal guardian. No children under 6 years of age are allowed except for Baby Day or “All Ages, with parent” designated shows. "

They don't even allow people who are under 18 to come with a 21+ sibling (which our policy is that as long as the person is 21+ they can buy multiple R rated tickets, even if they are just a sibling, but they do have to stay and watch the entire movie, as soon as the 21+ leaves, the kids get kicked out)

See the problem is not only infants, it is teens, while well behaved teens are more than welcome (not a problem anymore since i'm at an arthouse now), I've had all of my 4 mens bathroom mirrors destroyed by being etched with a key, and 2 whole rows of seats (15+ each) slashed with a knife due to one group of teenagers. Plus they usually loiter a lot and get into other various trouble. One time I found a group of them on the roof (they broke the combo lock on the ladder hatch).

Posted by Bruce Hansen (Member # 281) on 02-13-2010, 01:41 PM:

As W.C. Fields once said "I love little children, medium rare". Too many people today have no sense of personal responsibility. They don't think of anyone but themselves.