Movie theater assigned seats - what if someone is sitting in your seat?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I absolutely hate prebought, theatre assigned seats, I hate buying them, and I hate sitting in them - all those little groups while there are long rows of empty seats. It is human nature to want to sit where you are most comfortable, away of busy teens with their phones, or whole families with children. They are happier and I am happier. It is annoying enough that I have only gone to one movie the whole year. Who needs it? I don't. Yesterday evening, my daughter bought seats for Little Women. Our entire row was entirely sold out, while there were several rows right below us sitting empty. Management of seating doesn't make the consumer happy, only the management. So I am fine with movie theatres going out of business.

You do realize if you purchase your tickets in advance, online, you can select your seats? So you can pick the empty row you desire. Win!

The point is that there are always rows of empty seats. Don’t be difficult and go off on a tangent.

DP. How does the presence of rows of empty seats harm your own, personal movie-watching experience? Asking seriously as I don't see how it affects things at all unless you just don't want anyone sitting next to you but expect an empty seat on each side to buffer you or your group wherever you sit. Or you prefer that moviegoers be spread all around the theater for some reason. Once the lights are down and everyone is looking up at the screen, why does it matter if there are people clustered in one row or area, unless someone close by is using a phone or talking? If that goes on, you say something. I suspect that those who are so upset by empty rows are actually leery of asserting themselves politely to tell phone users or talkers to stop. Oh, and once the film starts--you can move to those empty rows, you know.

Interestingly I went to a movie in another state recently and their "turn off your phones" ad before the movie very clearly said that anyone who was using a phone during the show would be ejected from the theater with no refund. Their own word, "ejected." My friend said the theater is known for being serious about that policy and patrons love it. Wish they'd all do that.

[Anonymous]

If you're sitting in my assigned seat I'm going to ask you to move politely. There's nothing wrong with that smh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I absolutely hate prebought, theatre assigned seats, I hate buying them, and I hate sitting in them - all those little groups while there are long rows of empty seats. It is human nature to want to sit where you are most comfortable, away of busy teens with their phones, or whole families with children. They are happier and I am happier. It is annoying enough that I have only gone to one movie the whole year. Who needs it? I don't. Yesterday evening, my daughter bought seats for Little Women. Our entire row was entirely sold out, while there were several rows right below us sitting empty. Management of seating doesn't make the consumer happy, only the management. So I am fine with movie theatres going out of business.

You do realize if you purchase your tickets in advance, online, you can select your seats? So you can pick the empty row you desire. Win!

The point is that there are always rows of empty seats. Don’t be difficult and go off on a tangent.

DP. How does the presence of rows of empty seats harm your own, personal movie-watching experience? Asking seriously as I don't see how it affects things at all unless you just don't want anyone sitting next to you but expect an empty seat on each side to buffer you or your group wherever you sit. Or you prefer that moviegoers be spread all around the theater for some reason. Once the lights are down and everyone is looking up at the screen, why does it matter if there are people clustered in one row or area, unless someone close by is using a phone or talking? If that goes on, you say something. I suspect that those who are so upset by empty rows are actually leery of asserting themselves politely to tell phone users or talkers to stop. Oh, and once the film starts--you can move to those empty rows, you know.

Interestingly I went to a movie in another state recently and their "turn off your phones" ad before the movie very clearly said that anyone who was using a phone during the show would be ejected from the theater with no refund. Their own word, "ejected." My friend said the theater is known for being serious about that policy and patrons love it. Wish they'd all do that.

Alamo Drafthouse?

[Anonymous]

Absolutely love pre-bought assigned seating! This allows, for example, tomorrow we can meet a group of drinks for friends for drinks, get to theater at 7:29 for our movie and then all get to our dinner reservation by 9:30. If we were trying to find seating together for the 10 of us there'd be so much stress and drinks probably wouldn't happen. Of course we're doing ipic w/drinks delivered to our chairs, but still! And there was one New Years Eve where a group was sitting in half our seats and as we asked them to move they realized they were in wrong theater/wrong movie so we did them a favor!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I absolutely hate prebought, theatre assigned seats, I hate buying them, and I hate sitting in them - all those little groups while there are long rows of empty seats. It is human nature to want to sit where you are most comfortable, away of busy teens with their phones, or whole families with children. They are happier and I am happier. It is annoying enough that I have only gone to one movie the whole year. Who needs it? I don't. Yesterday evening, my daughter bought seats for Little Women. Our entire row was entirely sold out, while there were several rows right below us sitting empty. Management of seating doesn't make the consumer happy, only the management. So I am fine with movie theatres going out of business.

You do realize if you purchase your tickets in advance, online, you can select your seats? So you can pick the empty row you desire. Win!

The point is that there are always rows of empty seats. Don’t be difficult and go off on a tangent.

DP. How does the presence of rows of empty seats harm your own, personal movie-watching experience? Asking seriously as I don't see how it affects things at all unless you just don't want anyone sitting next to you but expect an empty seat on each side to buffer you or your group wherever you sit. Or you prefer that moviegoers be spread all around the theater for some reason. Once the lights are down and everyone is looking up at the screen, why does it matter if there are people clustered in one row or area, unless someone close by is using a phone or talking? If that goes on, you say something. I suspect that those who are so upset by empty rows are actually leery of asserting themselves politely to tell phone users or talkers to stop. Oh, and once the film starts--you can move to those empty rows, you know.

Interestingly I went to a movie in another state recently and their "turn off your phones" ad before the movie very clearly said that anyone who was using a phone during the show would be ejected from the theater with no refund. Their own word, "ejected." My friend said the theater is known for being serious about that policy and patrons love it. Wish they'd all do that.

Why are you going off on tangents and side stepping the actual issue?

[Anonymous]

Honestly, as we move into 2020, how i react would depend on the race of the person who is in the wrong seat and whether my action could be seen as privilege-asserting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, as we move into 2020, how i react would depend on the race of the person who is in the wrong seat and whether my action could be seen as privilege-asserting.

My DH is a 6’4”AA man. I can assure you that when white HS and college boys are in the seats I paid for, they respond much faster if DH asks them than if DD and I do. It’s a great check on their privilege.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the theatre isn't packed, we just sit wherever. It's an $8 ticket. Nobody cares. Only the movie theatres seem to like this assigned seating.

If the place is packed then say "Oh, I think this is my seat, but maybe I'm confused - what does your ticket say?"

Were movie tickets really only $8 way back in 2018?

There are still places in this area with $8 tix for certain showings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We don`t goto movies that much and so far we are not a fan of the assigned seating. In this case there were 3 of us and we had 3 seats next to each other. When we got there someone was sitting in one of the seats (the one on the end). I first just stood there while the kids sat in the 2 empty seats. Then I sat on the other side of the group that was in the wrong seat. I did say "these are our seats" and say the seat number but the woman in the wrong seat just sat there. Would you have gone to get someone that works at the theater? Or yell at the woman? I am wondering what the right thing to do here was. It was dark in the theater, but the movie had not started yet. 5 minutes latter the whole group moved over, so it did all work out.

First, you need to grow a backbone.

And then you say something - nicely - to the person in your assigned seat. Show them your ticket.

If they still don't move, you get an usher to handle it.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I absolutely hate prebought, theatre assigned seats, I hate buying them, and I hate sitting in them - all those little groups while there are long rows of empty seats. It is human nature to want to sit where you are most comfortable, away of busy teens with their phones, or whole families with children. They are happier and I am happier. It is annoying enough that I have only gone to one movie the whole year. Who needs it? I don't. Yesterday evening, my daughter bought seats for Little Women. Our entire row was entirely sold out, while there were several rows right below us sitting empty. Management of seating doesn't make the consumer happy, only the management. So I am fine with movie theatres going out of business.

You do realize if you purchase your tickets in advance, online, you can select your seats? So you can pick the empty row you desire. Win!

The point is that there are always rows of empty seats. Don’t be difficult and go off on a tangent.

DP. How does the presence of rows of empty seats harm your own, personal movie-watching experience? Asking seriously as I don't see how it affects things at all unless you just don't want anyone sitting next to you but expect an empty seat on each side to buffer you or your group wherever you sit. Or you prefer that moviegoers be spread all around the theater for some reason. Once the lights are down and everyone is looking up at the screen, why does it matter if there are people clustered in one row or area, unless someone close by is using a phone or talking? If that goes on, you say something. I suspect that those who are so upset by empty rows are actually leery of asserting themselves politely to tell phone users or talkers to stop. Oh, and once the film starts--you can move to those empty rows, you know.

Interestingly I went to a movie in another state recently and their "turn off your phones" ad before the movie very clearly said that anyone who was using a phone during the show would be ejected from the theater with no refund. Their own word, "ejected." My friend said the theater is known for being serious about that policy and patrons love it. Wish they'd all do that.

Why are you going off on tangents and side stepping the actual issue?

NP here. You know that someone simply saying something is not going off on a “tangent”, right? You’ve used that word a couple of times now, and I’m not sure you know what it means.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I absolutely hate prebought, theatre assigned seats, I hate buying them, and I hate sitting in them - all those little groups while there are long rows of empty seats. It is human nature to want to sit where you are most comfortable, away of busy teens with their phones, or whole families with children. They are happier and I am happier. It is annoying enough that I have only gone to one movie the whole year. Who needs it? I don't. Yesterday evening, my daughter bought seats for Little Women. Our entire row was entirely sold out, while there were several rows right below us sitting empty. Management of seating doesn't make the consumer happy, only the management. So I am fine with movie theatres going out of business.

You do realize if you purchase your tickets in advance, online, you can select your seats? So you can pick the empty row you desire. Win!

The point is that there are always rows of empty seats. Don’t be difficult and go off on a tangent.

DP. How does the presence of rows of empty seats harm your own, personal movie-watching experience? Asking seriously as I don't see how it affects things at all unless you just don't want anyone sitting next to you but expect an empty seat on each side to buffer you or your group wherever you sit. Or you prefer that moviegoers be spread all around the theater for some reason. Once the lights are down and everyone is looking up at the screen, why does it matter if there are people clustered in one row or area, unless someone close by is using a phone or talking? If that goes on, you say something. I suspect that those who are so upset by empty rows are actually leery of asserting themselves politely to tell phone users or talkers to stop. Oh, and once the film starts--you can move to those empty rows, you know.

Interestingly I went to a movie in another state recently and their "turn off your phones" ad before the movie very clearly said that anyone who was using a phone during the show would be ejected from the theater with no refund. Their own word, "ejected." My friend said the theater is known for being serious about that policy and patrons love it. Wish they'd all do that.

Why are you going off on tangents and side stepping the actual issue?

So you only read the second paragraph above (about phone use as it relates to where you sit) and you ignored the first one about reserved seating? The part directly addressing a PP (you?) and his issue with how reserved seating works re: "empty rows"? Because...reserved seating IS the actual issue of the thread and I addressed it. Do you sleep through movies like you're sleeping through this thread, only to wake occasionally to carp about the last thing you heard, out of context?....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I absolutely hate prebought, theatre assigned seats, I hate buying them, and I hate sitting in them - all those little groups while there are long rows of empty seats. It is human nature to want to sit where you are most comfortable, away of busy teens with their phones, or whole families with children. They are happier and I am happier. It is annoying enough that I have only gone to one movie the whole year. Who needs it? I don't. Yesterday evening, my daughter bought seats for Little Women. Our entire row was entirely sold out, while there were several rows right below us sitting empty. Management of seating doesn't make the consumer happy, only the management. So I am fine with movie theatres going out of business.

You do realize if you purchase your tickets in advance, online, you can select your seats? So you can pick the empty row you desire. Win!

The point is that there are always rows of empty seats. Don’t be difficult and go off on a tangent.

DP. How does the presence of rows of empty seats harm your own, personal movie-watching experience? Asking seriously as I don't see how it affects things at all unless you just don't want anyone sitting next to you but expect an empty seat on each side to buffer you or your group wherever you sit. Or you prefer that moviegoers be spread all around the theater for some reason. Once the lights are down and everyone is looking up at the screen, why does it matter if there are people clustered in one row or area, unless someone close by is using a phone or talking? If that goes on, you say something. I suspect that those who are so upset by empty rows are actually leery of asserting themselves politely to tell phone users or talkers to stop. Oh, and once the film starts--you can move to those empty rows, you know.

Interestingly I went to a movie in another state recently and their "turn off your phones" ad before the movie very clearly said that anyone who was using a phone during the show would be ejected from the theater with no refund. Their own word, "ejected." My friend said the theater is known for being serious about that policy and patrons love it. Wish they'd all do that.

Alamo Drafthouse?

Yes. First time I'd been to one.

[Anonymous]

I wish that there was an Alamo DraftHouse Cinema here in the Boston, MA area.

[Anonymous]

An important distinction is whether or not this dispute happens before the movie starts, or after. If the movie hasn't started yet, they should honor your request that they move. If the movie has aleeady begun, you're late and are interrupting. Go find some other unoccupied seat. That is fitting consequences for being that late.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the theatre isn't packed, we just sit wherever. It's an $8 ticket. Nobody cares. Only the movie theatres seem to like this assigned seating.

If the place is packed then say "Oh, I think this is my seat, but maybe I'm confused - what does your ticket say?"

Why position it like you made a mistake? Weird.

"Hi, my ticket says this is my seat. Please move."

Yeah. F that. I am really trying not to apologize for being right. It chips away at you every time you do it.

Except sometimes you ARE wrong.
Not a movie theater, but a packed train in Europe with assigned seats last year, a grown man yelled at my 15 year old, saying it was his seat.

Kid said (correctly) no, this is my reserved seat. Tried to show his ticket. Man keep yelling. My husband was the closest to them and intervened, but it took getting an employee to make him understand he was wrong and my kid was in his own reserved seat.

So maybe it doesn’t hurt to speak nicely and allow for the fact that you might be wrong.