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A moviegoer got a face full of eye-burning Mace Monday night after asking a fellow patron to turn off her cellphone in California.

According to Variety, the incident happened during a screening of Mike Leigh's historical drama Mr. Turner at Hollywood’s historic TCL Chinese Theatre.

Witnesses said the man, who was seated behind the woman, repeatedly asked her to put her phone away after the film began. When his complaints were ignored, he tapped her on the shoulder and asked again.

That’s when the woman "flipped out," witnesses said.

"She stands up and starts cursing, saying, 'You hit me, you hit me, I'm going to call the police," a moviegoer told Mashable.

Despite the pleas of audience members asking the woman to settle down, she reached in her purse, uncapped a bottle of Mace and sprayed it directly into the man’s face.

He immediately left the theatre, but the woman returned to her seat and continued watching the movie.

Security came in about 15 minutes later to escort the woman out.

It's not clear if the man was hurt, but the Los Angeles Police Department told ABC News that no calls for service were received from the theatre.

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 11-11-2014, 02:33 PM:
 
I think the woman should have been busted for aggravated assault.

Of course there is a possibility some critical details didn't make it into the news story, but it sounds like the man was not posing any legitimate threat to the cellphone using lady. That seems especially true since he and his girlfriend merely left the theater rather than retaliating with a reciprocal level of violence.

All I know is if I was in that poor guy's situation I wouldn't have reacted violently either. However, my girlfriend (who happens to be a fitness instructor) probably would have intervened. Mace lady would have found her phone, can of mace and my girlfriend's boot jammed deep in her ass.

It's just too bad there are turds out there like this mace lady bringing more bad headlines to the movie-going experience. It's all the more reason to have a very strict no cellphone use policy in theaters. Or build theater auditoriums in a manner where cellphone reception inside would be impossible.
 

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Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 11-11-2014, 02:47 PM:
 
I was working the Egyptian last night and the festival's technical director was at the Chinese when this happened. She told me that the victim (assuming that this was an unprovoked attack) simply left without making himself known to theater staff after the incident, hence nothing having been reported to the police. Unless he makes a complaint, I'm guessing that no action will be taken against the "shooter".

It happened when the house lights were down in the middle of a movie, which was not paused at any point. So it's pretty much impossible to know whether her claim of self-defense is in any way credible.

We're all crossing our fingers hoping that nothing like this happens tonight, with the premieres of Selma and American Sniper both taking place, one after the other. This place is going to be a complete madhouse: when I arrived for the tech runs at 6.45am this morning, a line was already forming for Selma, over 11 hours before showtime!

A contractor working here this morning commented that the mace spray incident is why he prefers to watch DVDs at home rather than go to the theater himself. I so hope that nothing else like this happens during the rest of the festival, because with every highly publicized incident like this, more and more people will probably start to feel the same way.
 

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Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 11-11-2014, 03:42 PM:
 
And it was a Mike Leigh movie for chrissakes. I know lot of people go to festival screenings just to be there, but it would seem Mike Leigh fans would know better than use a cellphone during the movie.
 

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Posted by Steve Matz (Member # 1890) on 11-11-2014, 04:14 PM:
 
In our wonderful Town;(same situation)That woman would be charged with misdemeanor assault. However if it had been the Man spraying the woman with Mace,he would be charged with felony assault with a weapon.If she goes before our 2 female District Judges and pleads no contest,she will receive a deferred Sentence and possibly a small fine. If it was the Male appearing before these same 2 judges,he might get anything from 6 months to 5yrs of incarceration depending on what side of the bed she woke up that Morning.

Females in General in our Jurisdiction get Wrist Slaps compared to extreme sentences for Males commiting the same offense. We get a good amount of Females that are charged with embezzlement;usually from their employer. I have never seen one sentenced to Jail time, even when the Money figure was in 6 figures. They are given probabtion or deferred Sentences and some don't even have to pay back the amount they embezzeled.A male doing the same Crime could receive as much as 15 yrs and he will pay every dime back with interest. Wonderful System we have here...Equal Justice for all
 

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Posted by Daniel Schulz (Member # 1881) on 11-11-2014, 05:15 PM:
 
I'm glad my cell phone incident went more smoothly. I was at the Egyptian Theatre last night for the AFI Fest screening of Cinema Paradiso (with director Giuseppe Tornatore in attendance no less!), and about 10 minutes into the film a young woman just in front of me and one seat to the right pulled out her cell phone. I thought perhaps she was worried she hadn't switched it off, but indeed she fired up Instagram and proceeded to take a couple of quick photos. I would have shrugged it off, but then she switched to Instagram video mode and started to record the image! I'm sure this was not a piracy thing, just a social media posting to record her attendance, but good grief. I gave her a tap on the shoulder and asked her to please turn off her phone. She did comply, but I got a very dirty look from both her and her boyfriend/husband. Maddening.
 

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Posted by Marcel Birgelen (Member # 6801) on 11-11-2014, 05:45 PM:
 
I've seen an interesting trend lately. We all know it sometimes seems hard for younger folks to keep away from Facebook, Twitter and other social happenings alike during the full length of a movie. Although this is already sufficiently annoying, they at least seem to get the notion that's not acceptable to actually take or even make phone calls during a movie.

So, now switch to the shows that usually attract a more "senior" public. Although the twittering and facebooking is nowhere near present, those folks often don't seem to get the idea of turning off the sound of your cellphone during a presentation. Furthermore, I've even regularly seen (and heard) those people actually take phone calls during the show, seemingly totally oblivious to the actual situation.
 

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Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 11-11-2014, 06:10 PM:
 
Dan - sorry about that. When it's an AmCin show, our staff and volunteers are usually pretty vigilant about pouncing on cellphone jerks. However, AFI are renting the theater for this gig and thus it's their call as to how proactive they're going to be about picking them off. Added to which, if the "perp" is in the middle of a row, nowhere near the aisle, it's very difficult to get to him/her without disturbing half a dozen other customers. Last night was a completely full house. Were you in the balcony or the main floor? I was keeping an eye on the balcony from the booth and didn't notice any cellphone glows.

I'm going to be taking a close interest in American Sniper tonight, in case the movie offers any helpful suggestions: at the Aero, in particular, we have a clear line of sight from the booth ports to take out the little gits, wherever they're sitting!
 

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Posted by Marcel Birgelen (Member # 6801) on 11-11-2014, 06:26 PM:
 
If you're showing a DCP and you're in need of removing a particularly nasty case from somewhere in the middle of your auditorium, the best thing you can do is pause the show, raise the house lights, do your thing, excuse for the inconvenience and rewind about 30 seconds. The alternative of leaving stuff unchecked will eventually be a bigger disturbance than the short interruption.

If you're showing film, the rewinding part will be a lot more challenging a.k.a. almost impossible and people will blame you for the part they missed...
 

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Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 11-11-2014, 06:28 PM:
 

quote: Marcel Birgelen

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So, now switch to the shows that usually attract a more "senior" public.

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I've said it elsewhere, the old broads are just as bad as the teenagers. And they REALLY take offense if you tell them not to use the phone. Kids just treat you like a cranky old guy, old broads treat you like the town child molestor.
 

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Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 11-11-2014, 10:05 PM:
 
Yup, happens everywhere. Older people DO NOT like to be corrected, especially by somebody younger!
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 11-12-2014, 08:44 AM:
 
That tears it! When I build my movie theater all the auditoriums are going to have built-in Faraday Cages.

Problems like this won't happen if cell phones just don't work inside the theater.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 11-12-2014, 09:15 AM:
 
I agree with the Faraday Cage proposal. Heck, a company selling soundproofing material to go in theater walls could embed the mesh in the "carpet" stuff.

If needed, signs could be posted along the lines of "mobile phone use inside the auditorium is prohibited. Wireless reception is blocked inside the auditorium. If you need to use your portable device you will have to leave the auditorium in order to do so."

Anyone "on call" or whatever probably shouldn't be inside a movie theater or any other social event where mobile phone use is flat out stupidly rude.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 11-12-2014, 10:30 AM:
 
If I'm not mistaken, they already make soundproofing panels that look like sheets of Homasote with metal screens embedded inside. If you use steel screws to mount them on metal Quick-Studs, they automatically make a Faraday Cage.

However, I'd go the extra mile and put metal builder's cloth right into the block walls, the foundation and the ceiling when the rooms are built. I want a radio-free dead zone.

I wouldn't put up signs, though. I'd just do this very quietly and not say anything. If anybody complained, I'd just say, "I don't know..." and if anybody pointed out the fact that the walls are lined with metal grid, I'd lie my ass off and simply say that it was done to prevent interference... which it is, technically doing. I just didn't specify what KIND of interference I'm preventing.
 

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Posted by Terry Monohan (Member # 8285) on 11-12-2014, 11:20 AM:
 
There may be a time in the future were each cinema will have to have a police type person with a gun in each auditorium to keep the calm. Dress them up to the theme of the movie like a cowboy for a western movie ect. So many people think they are at home and turn on their cell phones during a dark theatre these days. Or each theatre will need to check ladies purses or any bags brought into the theatre to check for hazard type things. This will add a big cost to your admission ticket, people will feel safe but in a jail type atmosphere. When I go to a movie If cell phones are on near me I just move to another seat and not deal with some of the crazed people out there. Some of the movie chains will go cheap and just hire one police person or dime store police, they will be very busy.
 

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Posted by Matt Fields (Member # 3211) on 11-12-2014, 12:23 PM:
 
I've thought about a "phone valet" service where we would charge your phone for you during the movie then you pick it up afterward.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 11-12-2014, 12:27 PM:
 

quote: Terry Monohan

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There may be a time in the future were each cinema will have to have a police type person with a gun in each auditorium to keep the calm.

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If that would be true then I can also imagine a time when the theater could get sued by the patron who was Maced for failure to keep the peace, thereby creating a dangerous situation where abusive individuals have free reign to assault others without fear of consequences.
 

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Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 11-12-2014, 04:34 PM:
 
That wouldn't absolve the sprayer from criminal responsibility, or even civil responsibility for that matter. If the victim of an incident like this was going to enlist a no win/no fee lawyer and go after compensation, my guess is that they would sue both the perpetrator and the venue.

It's certainly a worry though, and it seems to me to be a recent thing. I was essentially out of the theater business (at least, I didn't work in it full time, though I was involved in some installing, one-off shows and that sort of stuff) between 2001 and earlier this year, and cannot remember any of this crap happening in the late '80s or '90s. Cellphones were just starting to become an issue in around 2000, so much so that in the middle of that year we started to include "Please turn your phone off" snipes in ad and trailer reels. But when I was in the biz between 1998 and 2001, I cannot remember a single, serious act of violence in an auditorium happening in any of my workplaces or being reported in the media. Now there seems to be one every few weeks, with cellphones being the immediate cause more often than not.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 11-12-2014, 04:39 PM:
 
If a theater can be sued for not having a security guard... and some theaters already have been... they could also be sued for not having one inside the theater to prevent altercations over cell phones. That would be irrespective of the perpetrator being prosecuted criminally or civilly.
 

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Posted by Rick Raskin (Member # 1561) on 11-12-2014, 04:45 PM:
 
Ah Ha, another opportunity for TSA.
 

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Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 11-14-2014, 07:44 AM:
 
Eyewitness account of the incident:
Click Here
 

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Posted by Lyle Romer (Member # 1266) on 11-14-2014, 08:15 AM:
 
I really wish somebody would come up with an affordable faraday cage retrofit and that all new builds would be built with them.

For staff communication, I'm sure some kind of secure wifi could be set up with access points in each auditorium. There must be a smart phone app that can create a walkie talkie over wifi. Pick up some old phones and you're good to go.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 11-14-2014, 11:23 AM:
 
It is as simple as chicken wire.

Just line the walls with chicken wire, make sure that all the sheets are electrically joined together and grounded to earth. Be sure that the ceiling is covered, too.

It probably won't add very much to the cost of a new construction or a full scale remodel but it could be cumbersome to install in an existing theater without disrupting operation.

I remember that there is a company that sells architectural soundproofing panels that have either foil or wire mesh embedded in them for just such a purpose. You just panel the walls with them and you're done. I'd have to break out some Google-Fu to remember the details.

For employee communication from inside the theater, why not do it like the old days? Just put a phone or intercom on the wall.

I am beginning to think that the idea of being in "constant communication" is not what it is cracked up to be and it is causing more problems than it claims to solve. Mainly, I think it increases chatter (decreases signal-to-noise ratio) in communication, thereby raising anxiety levels. I believe it is this increase in anxiety in the general population which is creating the culture of violent behavior like we are seeing in the case of the theater where the Mace was sprayed.

I am considering the counter-idea that a full communications blackout, applied judiciously in certain areas such as theaters, would be of great benefit to society in general.

Parallel thought:
What if a company Faraday Caged one auditorium in the complex and advertised it as a "No Cell Phone Theater?" They could even charge an extra dollar for the privilege.

I wonder if the idea would catch on.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 11-14-2014, 12:47 PM:
 
Too many people have no sense of manners as well as no sense of when it is or isn't appropriate to do things like use a mobile phone or even dig at one's own ass crack. Last time I fueled up my truck I saw someone doing just that and making no attempt to hide it. So many people just respond to impulses without thinking.

On the bright side, the nation's rate of violent crime is continuing to decline. 4% drop over last year. The media is very hesitant to report this, preferring everyone to cower in fear thinking there are murderers and child molesters everywhere.

In addition to movie theaters, I think Faraday cages ought to be applied to parts of churches and better quality restaurants. I don't like hearing phone noise in a funeral or if I'm spending a good chunk of money on a dinner date at a fancy restaurant.
 

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Posted by Dennis Benjamin (Member # 1137) on 11-14-2014, 01:00 PM:
 
There is a movie theatre in Ashburn, Virginia that was built with something that blocks cell phone signals in the building (legally).

Here's the other problem: Games.. They like to play games on their little electronic devices. Typically it's a mom that takes her kids to a movie she isn't interested in seeing, while they watch the movie, she lights up her tablet and plays her game. When these individuals are asked to turn these devices off, they tend to flip out. These games do not usually need a cell signal or wireless internet. I've had a few seniors play their "candy crush" games in the auditoriums also.

Very annoying..
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 11-14-2014, 03:17 PM:
 
I think that having a cell phone creates a need to have it all the time,

Every time it snows, my mother calls me ten times a day to make sure I'm okay.
I'm almost 50 yrs. old, FFS!
If there were no cell phones, would she be one tenth as worried?
There are good reasons to have a cell phone but, more often than not, they only create anxiety.

When people think that they NEED to have a cell phone, they'll become even MORE anxious when you try to tell them that they can't have it.

Cell phones are basically making our whole society turn OCD.

Same thing goes for television.
When I tell people that I don't have a television and that I don't want one, I get crazy looks.

A couple of weeks ago, my uncle who is 80 yrs. old started having shit fits because he was trying to sell something by eBay and the buyer didn't e-mail him back in less than five minutes.

eBay policy give you three days. Doesn't it?
 

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Posted by Marcel Birgelen (Member # 6801) on 11-14-2014, 04:54 PM:
 
Faraday cages of those sizes are rarely very effective, you'll be spending a lot of money not only on the actual implementation, but also on finding and fixing all kinds of leaks.

Also, wrapping a whole theater in "tin foil" is one costly business. The merits are just limited and in the unlikely situation you actually did succeed in killing cellphone reception entirely, you might end up killing other signals which could be otherwise useful or even required by law (what about police and other emergency services?).

Instead of throwing all kinds of expensive technical solutions at it, strict and clear policies and actual strict enforcement will most likely be much more effective.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 11-14-2014, 11:48 PM:
 
Cell phone reception in the building where I work is crappy despite the nearest cell site being less than a quarter mile away.

The building is constructed on dozens of metal vertical columns and the windows are all divided lights in metal grids. When you walk into the building your reception is cut in half. If the roof was all metal (it is made of glue-laminated wood beams) reception would probably be cut in half again.

Cell phone reception in the projection booth at the Tom Ridge Center is almost completely dead. You would be lucky to get one bar on the signal meter. Once you step outside the booth, your signal goes up to almost half. If you walk out the back door and step ten feet away from the building, your signal meter will go up to normal levels.

I agree that it probably not possible to create a 100% dead zone without spending a lot of money. I still think it would be possible to cut reception down to a point where people would just give up trying to call out after a minute or two.
 

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Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 11-15-2014, 12:40 AM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

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On the bright side, the nation's rate of violent crime is continuing to decline. 4% drop over last year. The media is very hesitant to report this, preferring everyone to cower in fear thinking there are murderers and child molesters everywhere.

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quote:

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I'm almost 50 yrs. old, FFS!

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No matter how old you are, you will always be her baby
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 11-15-2014, 11:27 AM:
 
I know... She's just being a mom.

A mom who is armed with a cell phone and she knows how to use it.
 

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