Cinema stopping kids in suits from coming in - Minions

[jackstini]

DS & his friend (both 13) had tickets this pm for Minions, Rise of Gru

Like lots of people per TikTok, they dressed up in suits/ties - just for fun
Got to cinema and were told they couldn't come in because of what they were wearing

DS called me upset and DH went down to see if he could sort it. Found 5 grown men standing over them and a few other kids, shouting at them that they needed to leave and they were not allowed in. Kids felt very intimidated

No dress code visible in the cinema or on the website

DH asked if they had misbehaved and was told no, we just don't like this suit thing as some of the people on TikTok have kicked off
DH pointed out, they hadn't kicked off, just wanted to watch the film, so what was the problem. Stoney silence
He took them outside, took their jackets & ties off & they went back in 5 minutes later and were admitted by a different member of staff

Is it just me or is this ridiculous? And pathetic for them to treat kids like that

I really want to complain but wanted the MN population to vote on if you think they were BU or not

YANBU - cinema staff were out of order & I should complain
YABU - don't complain

I now know why a group of little boys around 10/12 years were walking along the high street dressed in suits. How bizarre.

Oh god, I'm taking my daughter and 5 of her friends to see this tmrw morning for her birthday, hopefully 11.30 is too early for teenagers!!

Well the men were much taller and gathered round them in a circle and leaning over them. DS is 5'

By no one was 'kicking off' I meant that no bad behavior had happened

Also annoyed that 'vast' autocorrected to 'fast' and I didn't spot it!

Exactly!!

Okay OP, how do you suggest staff members chuck out misbehaving kids during a screening without causing a bigger disturbance if the kids dont cooperate?

If they are going to start trashing the cinema they probably aren't going to do as they're told by (probably) a bunch of very young adults.

It sounds like you’re the one who doesn’t know what the Trend is about. The one we went to there was clapping continuously including standing ovations meaning no one could see the screen (cinema was packed with them) and shouting, heckling and laughing at the staff that came in to tell them to stop.

shit parenting.

Hope you've survived 😘

So do you think that behaviour is okay @Hoolihan

It's irrelevant if adults think the minions are great. I can promise you that teenage boys are going to see it not because they're on some nostalgia trip, but because they want to rip the piss out of it.

I'm guessing those of you who think it's charming don't live with teenage boys.

And I agree with the poster who is the online sociologist that TikTok is utterly toxic.

Yes thank you.

it was more my young kids and all the other ones in the cinema that had the film ruined for them that I feel for. I can see where you’re kids get their winning personalities from 😂

you deserve all the trouble you get from them in the future. Enjoy

So it doesn't matter about spoiling a (possibly rare?) treat for everyone else as long as you don't kill them?

I retract my YANBU vote

@Hoolihan it happened at the screening I went to last night. Promise it wasn't just clapping at beginning and end and some chatter throughout. It was cheering, whooping and, at points, literal screaming en masse- throwing bananas, popcorn, taking loads of videos etc- I posted earlier. Towards the end of the film it was every 10-15 seconds. No exaggeration! I'm all for teenagers having fun but the behaviour in there was something else. The manager we spoke to after said it had been a nightmare for his staff all afternoon. Obviously I can only speak for the screening I went to but hopefully those who weren't there can try to imagine how hard it must be for cinema staff to manage stuff like this and how this isn't people being hysterical about teens being teens- this is a very unusual situation and one where I can totally understand, seeing what I saw, cinema staff having to put some measures in place for the rest of the weekend.

Were your children upset by it? Or just you?

Have you even read the thread?

Because if you have and still came to that conclusion you are as deluded as the mum who thought it "cute" their teens wanted to wear suits to the cinema completely innocently

I voted YANBU based on just the first post as it all sounded harmless enough. But reasing further, if there have been incidents of damage and disruption as part of the trend then I can see the cinema staff's point of view. If there is a precedent for trouble it makes sense to try to head it off at the pass rather than attempt to sort things out once problems arise. It's unfair on kids who just want to dress up and have fun I guess, a bit like decent football fans might complain if their local pub had a dress code banning their team shirts, but if you have had your business trashed by groups of people dressed in a particular way in the past then you're bound to want to take steps to prevent a repeat. And in this case, with it being a film that's likely to attract families with young children, nobody is going to want distraught little ones and angry parents demanding their money back added to the problem are they?
If a teenager genuinely just wants the watch the film - and I do agree that there are plenty who will, just like my mid 20s DD was wildly excited when The Incredibles 2 came out because it was a childhood memory - then it's not really a hardship to go in regular clothes is it?

@Hoolihan do you think that is acceptable behaviour. Going to the cinema isn’t cheap, you want to be able to watch the film without it being disrupted by noisy teenagers

Yes they were.

Not that its acceptable to upset anyone in this way regardless of age but I get that you have trouble grasping this.

Yes teenagers are annoying, that's kind of the point of them.

I agree with the cinema, other than perhaps they could have helped by a large notice on each of the entrance doors.

This will end with under 18s not being allowed in unless accompanied by an adult.

Yes, I wonder why they didn't.

The cinema wasn’t being remotely unreasonable in the circumstances.

the cute kids that needed 5 staff to deal with them .....

Posts have been all over my local towns fb saying teenagers in suits ruining minions

due to Tik tok

Throwing stuff shouting rude to staff, who are volunteers and young so felt threatened

so yes the cinema was right