how to put butts in multiplex seatsThe box office has been going so gangbusters lately that it hardly seems necessary, but some multiplexes have been thinking long and hard about how to get more butts into their seats. As The Hollywood Reporter reported recently, the Carmike Cinemas chain is tryinng to draw more attendees on what is traditionally slow night: The Columbus, Ga.-based company is launching "Stimulus Tuesdays" at its 250 locations with about 2,300 screens next week. Under the deal, it will offer all 16-ounce drinks and 46-ounce popcorn for $1 each. That’s nice, I guess, if you like chugging caramel-flavored sugar water and cardboard puffballs soaked in Golden Topping(TM), but those aren’t the kinds of things that might get me into the multiplex midweek. But I do have a few suggestions for things that might: 1) Allow patrons to permanently confiscate Blackberries, iPods, and any other devices with tiny little screens that glow like nuclear piles in the dark of a movie theater. (This could become a lucrative sideline for the regular moviegoer, selling impounded digital doodads on eBay.) 2) Offer a bar service along with the flick. Movies are always better with alcohol, especially most of the crap that’s on offer at the ’plex these days. Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail with a Sixpack? Two thumbs up! Jonas Brothers: The 3-D Concert Experience Over Rocks? Frontrunner for the best movie of 2009! Paul Blart: Mall Cabernet? Oscar-worthy! 3) Encourage patrons to lob rotten tomatoes -- on sale in the lobby, of course -- at the screen during any film for which alcohol (see above) does not numb the pain enough. Consider a promotion night with Rotten Tomatoes, the review-aggregator site, during which guest critics will publicly berate bad movies and lead the tossing of soft, pulpy fruits and vegetables. 4) Child-free nights! Picture if you will, the latest blockbuster action movie -- say, The Fast and Furious Transporter Dies Hard -- during which the poignant moment in which the tanker truck explodes while crashing at high speed into the space shuttle launchpad is not drowned out by the screams of a squalling infant. You have to imagine it, cuz it never happens in real life... until now, perhaps. support
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Wed Mar 11 09, 2:16PM categories: movie buzz permalink 9 pre-Disqus comments Disqus comments tip jarshare
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Carmike Cinemas eBay Hollywood Reporter iPod Jonas Brothers The 3D Concert Experience multiplexicity Paul Blart Mall Cop Rotten Tomatoes Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail related· question of the day: Will 3D kill movie stars? · watch it: “Dancing With An iPod In Public - Christmas Edition” · who is Ebert protege Ignatiy Vishnevetsky?; Hollywood hates Netflix; the FCC delivers smackdowns to broadcasting’s old guard; more: leftover links · ‘Doctor Who’ thing of the day: “The Mazes of Time” game now out for iPad and iPhone · question of the day: Do you feel like you need to reinvent yourself as a consumer of entertainment? · North American box office: everyone’s watching the ‘Watchmen’ · North American box office: ‘Madea’ smacks ‘Jonas Brothers’ · ‘Doctor Who’ thing of the day: Peter Jackson is a big ‘ol ‘Doctor Who’ geek · blame Twitter for Wil Wheaton’s nonblogging; ‘Shit My Dad Says’ shitcanned; Catherine Tate may take over ‘The Office’; more: leftover links · ‘Doctor Who’ thing of the day: Christopher Eccleston’s charity Dalek sketch bloggyprevious post: watch it: “David Tennant launching Red Nose Day” next post: MaryAnn wearing a red nose near the Time Warner Center |
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posted by Alli (Wed Mar 11 09, 3:16PM)
Please tell me 46-ounces of popcorn is made for a family of 6. Yikes.
Maybe they should try making tickets a dollar each, but I guess the movie makers might have something to say about that.
posted by bats :[ (Wed Mar 11 09, 4:18PM)
Tucson has an indie "dollar dive" that consists of two multiplexes (six theaters each). While most shows are $3.25, there are $1.95 Happy Hour shows (4-6 PM), $1.25 morning shows (first one of the day), nite owl specials ($1.00 for shows on or after 9 PM) and $1.00 all-day Tuesdays). Don't forget the 10 movies for $20 punch cards, either. The places also include some concession specials Monday through Thursdays.
Although these are second-run films, it's amazing how quickly many films cycle through the place, in addition to the "art films" that our local arthouse can't keep for very long (it only has two screens).
Compared to the first-run theaters in town, our dollar dives are usually NOT crowded and are attended by well-behaved, quiet patrons who go there to watch a movie, not text friends, wonder aloud what the movie is about, etc.
I guess places like this are very rare in some cities, and I wish it weren't the case. Many movies deserve to be seen on a big screen, but there's no way in hell I'm paying $9.75 when I can see something, often within a month, for $3.25 or less.
posted by eric-jon rössel waugh (Wed Mar 11 09, 4:39PM)
There's a theater near me -- the Parkway Speakeasy -- that offers a couple of your suggestions. Every Tuesday, I think it is, is actually a "bring your brat" day, so as to save everyone's nerve the rest of the week. Furthermore, their major concessions are pizza and beer. If you buy a pint glass or mug, you get limitless beer or coffee/tea, forever.
The seating also mostly consists of big, overstuffed chairs and couches, with the occasional table.
posted by Rykker (Wed Mar 11 09, 5:28PM)
Stop with all the fucking remakes, and come up with an original, well-written, well-executed thought.
But it seems that Hollywood ain't about that, anymore.
posted by Chris (Wed Mar 11 09, 8:31PM)
Movie Taverns already serve alcohol and food in the theater. Granted, that's kind of a niche place
posted by RogerBW (Thu Mar 12 09, 10:39AM)
I believe one of the big American chains was considering applying for licences to serve beer - but that was a year or more ago when they thought they still needed to get more people into the places.
(And the USA has such a strangely mixed attitude towards alcohol that I really can't see this working anyway.)
On the other hand, given the lousy quality of the food and non-alcoholic drink on offer in most places you just know it would be Lowest Common Denominator Beer, and wine from E&J Gallo.
What it would take to get me back into a cinema (apart from MaryAnn's suggestions 1 and 4) would be a sound system set to something less than ear-bleed, and preferably a competent hand on the equaliser setup.
posted by PaulW (Thu Mar 12 09, 11:53AM)
How to put butts in multiplex seats:
1) free beer
2) superglue on the seats
3) profit!
posted by joey (Thu Mar 12 09, 12:03PM)
Most Muvico theaters have bars already. But I think they're regional, I've never seen one outside of Florida. And they're full service, as in liquor.
posted by Deanne (Thu Mar 12 09, 3:18PM)
No, no, no, no on the alcohol! MaryAnn I know you're just using sarcasm to make a point about the quality of certain movies, but I've been to theaters that serve alcohol and it only makes people noisier. It was total misery. I'll never see another movie in a theater with a bar if I can help it. It's not the alcohol I care about, it's the people who can't shut the hell up after they've had a drink or two.
Now the Child Free night, THAT is something I can support.