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Yesterday I went to my local Edwards/Regal Cinema to see Pirates of Caribbean. After sitting through the incredibly boring and tacky adverts for TV shows and Lidrock bubblegum music, the 6 trk trlrs started. Brother Bear, Freaky Friday, and Haunted Mansion. All I know well because I worked on their sound. There was no left channel for any of them. I got up and hunted down the theater manager, a kid of maybe 20 in a suit and told him. I first received an attitude like I must be wrong, how could I know. I told him I work as a sound engineer and he told me it must just be a couple bad trlrs. I said no thats not likly I worked on those trlrs. The movie started and 10 minutes in my wife and I left. We got our refund, but nobody else left the theater. The manager apparently never left his office to even come hear for himself. I watched for him to enter the theater and he didn't. Perhaps he already knew I was right ? I do happen to know exactly the people at Disney to speak with and perhaps the manager will care a bit more this afternoon.Do any of you complain or leave when you notice technical flaws ? Do you get any response ?
Steve
Follow Ups:
IT was a couple days before Thanksgiving in what, 1988? ('89?)The film sounded terrific - very unusual in those pre-widespread-THX days.
Side speakers were properly balanced, fronts very intelligible -
it was a pleasure to see/hear a hot band playing at the top of their form.Went back the following week - AFU. Side speakers with overloading
amps - rice krispies on all peaks. Went out to explain the problem.Nothin' happened - of course. NOBODY seems to know how reproduced sound should SOUND!
(well, film sound is much better now).
Well, going to movies got a lot more painful. Once you realize that the picture isn't framed correctly (a simple adjustment to center the image on the screen) or the shutter didn't open (resulting in several trailers with sound and now picture, particularly irritating when the first star wars trailor came out...) you really want to buy a projector and stay at home (which I did). The job really isn't rocket science and with minimal training I think many problems could be fixed with no problem. Seems like with all the automation, people never take the time to simply look through the little window to make sure the film stated right and is in focus and framed. Other problems I found stem from the person who assembles the films (they come in several reals and must be taped together). People seem to get that wrong sometimes as well...Seems the mega plexes are the worst, particularly the ones with unionized projectionists (go figure). Oh well, until I can afford to buy my own theater (which will most likely not happen) guess I am stuck.
As for complaining. I have several times and people mostly say stupid things about me not knowing what I am talking about. Even when I tell them I will go up to their projection room and fix it myself if they can't find the projectionist. Many times I am not even offered passes (except for a small theater in Holland Michigan who was more then accomodating during a film break).
-Klaaren
Last summer my wife and I went to see a Saturday afternoon screening of Road to Perdition at the Hoyts 6-plex in Falmouth, Massachusetts. It was the worst projection I've ever experienced in 40+ years of going to theaters. The movie was murky and out of focus, yet white objects like a man's shirt or a snowy yard were oddly bright and surrounded by a sort of glare or halo. I complained twice and each time was assured that the projectionist would fix the problem. When nothing changed I demanded to see the manager. She made the astounding admission that the projector was actually broken, they didn't have the needed spare part (a reflector I think she said), and the picture couldn't be improved. I was flabbergasted that any theater would show a movie in such a condition and not even warn patrons before selling them a ticket. The manager offered a refund but my wife didn't want to leave the movie, by that point she was engrossed in the plot and the awful image didn't bother her. For me however the movie was ruined, I couldn't see anything but the crappy projection. I'll have to watch Road to Perdition on DVD. I sent Hoyts Theaters an angry letter expressing my outrage at the utter contempt for their customers that this incident showed, but they didn't care enough to reply.
You must be masochistic.....
I go into orbit over:1) House lights not going down when feature starts--I find the closest employee and get irritated.
2) Curtains not completely drawn, covering the screen -- see above.
3) Noisy patrons who won't shut up (BIG problem) -- find manager and ask for pass to the feature at another time. Once I got double passes. (Management is so young, they are usually too timid to go in and roust people out.)
My HEROES: I have twice encountered a group of about five college guys who were rather rowdy before the movie started. After it started they became Super Heroes. Cell phone went off: "Turn that damned thing off!" Couple talking during movie: "Shut the F%#K up!" Whatever the occassion, they were up for it!! And, they were highly effective.
One of the theaters at the local AMC multiplex has a bad speaker that breaks up severely, especially on loud dialog. I don't know how anyone can stand it. I can't. I have reported it to management at least 3 times. They're always very polite and offer refunds or passes (which I take). I haven't been in that particular theater in a couple of months so I don't know if it has been fixed yet, but the problem was there for at least 3 months.
w
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