Once upon a time, legend has it, the movie theater was a sacrosanct place of sorts. Not anymore. In St. Charles, Ill., a Twitter-inspired service with the ridiculous name MuVChat has been allowing the audiences at movies like Zoolander to text-message their thoughts directly to the big screen, where they’re displayed for all to see. According to the Chicago Tribune, "Most viewers make about 40 [!] comments per movie." This sounds super-annoying, but it’s actually not the most controversial instance of multiplex texting that I’ve read about today. That would be last night’s "#Twitflix" experiment, in which a group led by Human Giant‘s Aziz Ansari, Paul Scheer (both pictured), and others used Twitter to live-blog a screening of Crank 2: High Voltage. Their totally hilarious tweets drew the rage of Ain’t It Cool News maven Harry Knowles, who spewed some Twitter bile of his own about how inappropriate this behavior was. "Movie Theaters are places to leave the outside world behind," fumed Knowles. "If there was even one person not a part of that…group whose experience was less because of annoying lit screens, it damns everyone that did it."
Okay, Knowles is right that it can be distracting when the dude sitting next to you is straight textin’ his pals while you’re trying to watch a cinematic masterpiece like Crank 2. But you know what? If I went to see Crank 2 — or even The Godfather, Part II — and realized that Ansari and Scheer were posting uproarious things to Twitter a couple rows ahead of me, that would not bother me. At all. It would be awesome! I’d far prefer that experience over going to one of those MuVChat screenings and having to sit through the instant commentary of people who are not professional comedians (though it’s true that the MuVChat experience is one you sign up for at the door, whereas Knowles was defending innocents who never asked for a side of Twitter with their cinema). Maybe that’s just me, though. What do you think? Do things like MuVChat and Twitflix make it acceptable to text in a movie theater, or is that never okay? Has the Twitter infatuation just gotten completely out of control?
I don’t think I like this at all – can you pick a non-MuVChat screening for a movie at a particular theater? It’s just one more thing in the audience to distract me from what I paid good money for, which is to watch the freakin’ movie.
I love Aziz and Paul, so I would definitely be into reading their take on the film. However…would I want to read the comments of unfunny people trying their hardest to make the crowd laugh, which would inevitably only make them MORE unfunny? Uh, no thank you.
I’m feeling a pang of double standard in myself over this – I’d probably really enjoy reading those tweets, but if I was actually THERE, it would bug the crap out of me.
The MuVChat thing sounds fun. If you have to sign up for at the door, you know what you’re getting into. Twitflix? Heck no. If I pay good money to see a new film, I don’t want someone in the theater distracting me with their brightly lit phone screen. I don’t care if it was President Obama himself, I’d still tap him on the shoulder and tell him to put the phone away.
I know how ticked off I get when one little blue screen in a theater distracts me from the movie. If I was in a room with 100 people doing that I would probably go postal.
EXTREMELY annoying, please please please let this trend die! Especially since movies are getting more and more expensive. $12.50 in NYC! People, have some mercy and respect! Lights and/or clicking sounds are completely distracting.
Honestly, I LOVE texting at the movies because it has replaced talking at the movies! I’ll take people furiously typing away silently on mini-keypads any day over people talking on their cell phones during the movie (yes, it happens!) or holding a full conversation with their friends. In fact, I think theaters should post signs saying that texting is the ONLY acceptable way to communicate during a movie. Text “Who’s that guy?” or “Pass the popcorn” or “Is it just me, or has Julia Roberts had major work done?” Don’t speak it!
Isn’t this a new version of TRL or MuchOnDemand? And we all know how engrossing those IMs are! I can’t imagine that the idiotic teens sitting a couple seats over have anything profound to say about the latest popcorn movie. That being said, I would enjoy reading the tweets of someone who was actually funny. Sort of a new generation’s Mystery Science Theater.
If I was going to text @ a movie, and I’ve read some pretty hilarious live blogs that stem from this, I’d sit in the far back of the theater, away from everyone else, turn the sound off and tweet away. Obviously it’d be annoying if the person next to me was texting, but if you show some basic courtesy I wouldn’t mind.
If someone was texting right next to me, it would probably bug me, especially if it was ALL THE TIME, but otherwise I have no problem with it. I’ve definitely checked my phone during movies and may even have texted once or twice myself, although I do like to focus on whatever movie I’m watching.
I used to go to the movies all the time but I seldom do now because I can’t stand the people texting and checking their cell every 5 minutes. It’s especially bad in coliseum style seating where you have a top down view of everyone in the theatre. Some even make or receive calls all the way through the film.
I totally disagree with this article:
Maybe I’m just grumpy, but just because Ansari, Scheer (and friends) happen to be funny, it doesn’t make it ok for them to distract people who may be trying to watch a movie in a theatre (even if it’s a craptasterpice like “Crank 2″). Like Josh, I get totally annoyed when people check their message or text other people while watching a movie because the little light from someone’s phone can be absolutely distracting. I mean, honestly: are our attention spans SO short, that we can no longer sit still and devote our attention to ONE thing (the thing we paid to see, by the way!) for 100 minutes. Ugh.
On the other hand, I have no problem with the MuVChat thing, because anyone who goes to a screening like that, knows what they’re getting into. Anyone who gets annoyed would be just as dumb as someone who tuned in to Mystery Science Theatre 3000 to watch “Pumaman” and got annoyed because the robots wouldn’t shut up.
So basically you’ve plunked down $9.00 to sit in dark room and be self-absorbed? “ooh, that piece was really buttery” Why not just watch the movie?
I contemplated getting a Twitter account, mostly because I didn’t want it to look like I abhor technology, for my job search, but this has become such a “look at me, look at me” vehicle for the attention-starved that I’ll pass. For every person who does it once in a while, there are Ashton Kutcher’s out there.
I don’t understand the need to text while watching a movie, eating dinner, driving, walking your dog, whatever. Can’t people just focus on one thing at a time anymore?
Just watch the freakin’ movie!!! You can tweet or text or whatever when it’s over. You’re not he President – there’s nothing that can’t wait 2 hours!!