To think you don't let your children ruin film showings

[miaowmiaowhiss]

Arghhh still so annoyed. Just been to see Jurassic World, in a little 50/60 seater screen. Lots of people clearly had thought dinosaur=children's film, so there were lots children, even as young as 4/5. Now this isn't particularly a problem - if your DC are mature enough to deal with fairly scary scenes and a lot of blood, fine - but there was a family on the other side of the cinema with a DS and DD, aged about 5 and 6.

They. Did. Not. Stop. Talking.

The entire way through the film, the DC were chatting to each other at full volume - eg 'Why is there blood there? Look at all the BLOOD', 'What is it doing?', 'Why is it there?' and laughing/joking doing serious or climatic bits.

They were incredibly loud - the entire cinema kept shushing them and there was definitely resentful British sighs. I was on the other side of the cinema and I could hear every word and it was really, really distracting. Absolutely no sign that the parents were slightly bothered by it, and they certainly didn't try and keep them quiet.

So: AIBU to think that you don't take young children to the cinema when they can't be trusted to remain reasonably quiet and not distract people around them, and that you especially don't take them to films they clearly can't understand? Argh!

We complained during the film for this reason and someone from the cinema came and observed and had a word but it did not stop. After the film we complained and they refunded our tickets. It ruined the whole trip for us.

YANBU my little boy little boy is autistic but if he was making a noise i would remove him form the screening. As if he cant sit quitely its not fair to ruin the enjoyment of everyone else

YANBU. I hate this. Dh talks quietly in films (about the plot/actors etc) and I always tell him to shut up as I hate it. I would have definitely have got the cinema staff on it.

If ds (almost 4) gets too restless during a film one of us will take him out to run about in the corridor (outside the film) for a few minutes and back in when he's calmed down. To his credit if the film interests him enough he will sit enraptured. The first film we took him to was Monsters University and he clapped and cheered along when they did- so sweet (but we did still try to shush him)!

It's just so massively inconsiderate to everyone around you - were the parents masters of blocking out extraneous noise or something?!

I was thinking about just this today - although slightly differently. For the first time in 5 years we all (dh, dd1 and 2, ds and I) all managed to go to see a film together. Normally ds doesn't manage 5 minutes, so for him to sit through the whole minions film was AWESOME.

There was a baby behind us crying, and some children chatting in front of us, ('mummy who is that?' 'mummy need a wee' 'mummy whos that man?' adinfintum).

I don't know if it was just because I was in such a panic that ds was going to start screaming or wandering off, but I couldn't have cared less. The film is loud, you are watching what is going on, it just didn't seem to matter. If i want to watch a film in complete silence I would wait and watch it at home (although that may actually be noisier!)

I got to the end of your first paragraph and thought that you were in the cinema with me and were complaining about my DC or my parenting choices.
However, talkative as dd is (she doesn't stop from the minute she wakes up and often falls asleep mid sentence) she didn't talk through ALL the film and we did shush her, and she remembered to whisper when she needed the loo. Ds never uttered a word aside from needing the loo near the end. Sigh, it wasn't us.

I do agree that more autism friendly showings would help (fwiw I am pretty sure I saw on dimensions website that Jurassic world was being shown as an autism friendly viewing)

I think you should at least make an effort to keep children quietish during a film but sometimes it can be hard. We went to an autism friendly showing of minions today and there was chatter and comments (and a child sat in the aisle) throughout the film but it didn't make any difference to the overall enjoyment on the film.

If ds (almost 4) gets too restless during a film one of us will take him out to run about in the corridor (outside the film) for a few minutes and back in when he's calmed down. To his credit if the film interests him enough he will sit enraptured.

I really think this is a great thing to do. Not just for other people in the cinema, but mostly for the child. I can still remember the frustration of sitting through Apollo 13 when I was about 9/10 or so. I knew I wasn't allowed to mess about/fidget/be loud but good god, I was so bored! And in the cinema there really is nothing to distract yourself with.

I've removed myself from more than one film as a teen because I could feel that same frustration and need to let off steam building up. It's a good coping technique to learn I reckon. Of course now I'm an adult, and poor, I'm only at the cinema if I really want to see the film anyway. The whims of parents and friends are long passed

Yes Mrs, that's what's got up my nose so much about it. I know it's a 12A, but it's not a children's film, so if you're going to bring your children surely you'd make sure it was something they were interested in or 'got'? I reckon these two particular annoying annoying ANNOYING children were just a bit young to actually understand the plot - hence having a nice chat the whole way through

When I was a kid, if you couldn't behave appropriately, you didn't get taken, which tbh is a bit harsh really.

Both my kids are on the spectrum. One loves the cinema and has never behaved anything other than brilliantly. The other would not be able to cope and would go into sensory overload.

It's the parents that clearly couldn't give a shit and do nothing about it that get on my nerves most, rather than the kids who are learning. At the last Avengers film, at an evening showing, some idiots had brought a baby (about 6/9 months old) and two other kids under 4. They ran riot. The baby cried a lot. The kids were very loud. I don't see how the parents could have enjoyed the film so they might as well have saved their money and bought the dvd.

One of the films I really want to see is the Minion Movie. As the weirdo child-free adult there I shan't be moaning about kids piping up with endless questions, or needing the loo every 2 mins etc.,

Yanbu.

However I find groups of teens the worst tbh. I have no idea why they bother scamming their oaths for a fortune in cinema entrance fees when they clearly just want to discuss who's seeing who!

I also find its just the one small group who can ruin it for everyone.

Recently we visited and the girl behind kept kicking my chair. I left it at first thinking occasional wiggling normal for child of 8ish. Then she began wiggling her legs rhymically. After a minute or 2 I turned and nicely asked if she could keep her legs still as the kicking was disturbing me. Her poor father was horrified! I did say to him not to worry she clearly wasn't deliberately being annoying and kids do that sort of thing!

However I've also seen similar where near on physical fights have broken out because someone's hushed a child or asked them to sit still.

My DS has ASD and I wouldnt take him to a viewing if he was going to disturb others. I find ways around things - eg front row seat on graded section so he can leave as he needs without disturbing everyone else.

Thing is Jurrassic World is a 12A not really suitable for little ones, I would expect a little noise, running around, chat if it was a U or PG but it wasn't and it was at 7-30pm.
If you read the rating guide..
U there is nothing unsuitable for under 4's.
PG shouldn't disturb children 8 or over.
12A is however likely to not be suitable for children under 12.

U OVER 4 years old.

It also wasn't just me getting increasingly pissed off - SO much shushing going on. If you're annoying an entire cinema you're doing something wrong!

I was just thinking the same, regarding my friend's son. He is the best behaved child I know by far, despite his HFA (or perhaps because of it).

The same happened to us at Les Miserables. A family with young children far too Young for the content of the film who were not capable of sitting through it.

I have two children on the spectrum - dd is actually obsessed with correct cinema theatre behaviour & would have found SN usher & complained herself - ds we were very selective in what we took him to until we could guarantee he would sit through it.

Dd & I did go to see Into the Woods which I don't consider to be a young kids film. But as we attended the Kids AM showing we accepted a lower standard of behaviour than we would otherwise have expected.

Yanbu.

Dh and ds has a similarly ruined showing of Jurassic World. A large group of Dads with all of their small children (maybe 2- 7 year olds) with them...all watching different cartoons or playing games on ipads all the way through - no headphones even! And this was an 8pm showing!!

Tbh, I have no idea why Dh didn't complain. It was a 3d showing, so really expensive. Also, the children didn't have 3d glasses on either (and the cinema is usually really strict at checking everyone has/is wearing them,presumably for h&s reasons). Dh thinks they'd not paid and just snuck in... Still can't believe he didn't go and report them!

I warmly thanked 2 woefully fucking inadequate women for allowing the 4 yo with them to completely ruin our enjoyment of Paddington. This was at a performance that started way past a usual bedtime for such a little one, and said little one spent 3/4 of the film running up and down the aisle, star jumping, clapping and talking. There may have been a couple of pathetic and empty "please stop that Star" which were completely ignored. i was livid, they were still clueless.

Minions the other night was fab! Everyone was perfectly behaved. The only person to get up during the show was the bloke in front of me. Result!

Oh yes, my ds has Aspergers, too, and would also be incapable of attending an autism friendly screening. He gets incensed in any and all scenarios where people don't follow the rules and often tells people off in the cinema.

In fact, all the best behaved children I know have Aspergers!

I must be a stroppy arse, as I have told people off, in recent memory, at The Woman in Black, Sex and the City, Lord of the Rings and Les Miserables.

I must be quite scary as my ticking off always works a charm.

I do however, usually waste about 30 minutes tutting and sighing in their general direction before I politely flip my lid.

I thought it was a 12? How did they get in?

True that, Oxfordcomma.