Ticket sales to movies were in a three-year slump before hitting an all-time high in 2006 according to the MPAA. Many consumers complained during the slump that ticket prices were too high, the quality of the movies was low and DVD rentals were a viable alternative to seeing a movie on the big screen. Despite an up year in 2006, I think the problem is much greater than what was reported during the slump and will likely repeat itself if things do not change. The entire movie-going experience is flawed. Hollywood, we have a problem.

This past weekend, my girlfriend and I decided to visit the movies to see American Gangster. Our two tickets cost $9.50 each for a total of $19.00. I can accept that price because it was a nice date for us and it is rare for us to actually go to a movie at the theater. We had just eaten dinner so we shared a small soda (which was more of a bucket than a cup) for $4.50 and a bag of candy for $3. I didn’t have time to fill out a loan for popcorn so we passed on that opportunity. Despite us only purchasing refreshments geared toward one person, our total cost of seeing the movie was $26.50.

Our theater has 20 screens but this particular film was only shown at 7:05pm and 10:05pm. It has a run-time of 2 hours, 37 minutes. Both of us work until 5pm so the 7:05pm showing left us short on time for dinner and the show. The 10:05pm movie would end around 12:45pm or so which we reluctantly accepted. We did not take into account the ridiculous number of previews though. We sat down at the movie at 10:00pm and watched slides advertising local businesses for five minutes and then the lights dimmed halfway. At that point, we were stuck watching 21 minutes of previews! Our 10:05pm movie didn’t actually start until 10:26! This leaves movie-goers with a tough decision. Should we get to the theater early to get a seat that isn’t 10 feet from the screen and suffer through previews or do we accept the horrible seat (or possibly 2 not even next to each other) so that we can get there 15 minutes late and avoid the previews? Unfortunately, the theaters know that most people will opt to sit through their previews.

Neither the high ticket and concession prices nor the inordinately long previews are my reason for disliking the movies. This next reason has me furious though. Throughout the 2 hour and 37 minute movie this weekend, we had to listen to two teenage girls talking about 20 feet away. When nudity came on the screen, they had something to say. When there was a gunshot, they had something to say. Just about any event in the movie triggered their chattering. Unfortunately, my girlfriend will not allow me to get up and say something to the people that talk through movies. After all, that is the job of the ushers that are employed by the theater. The ushers routinely walked into our theater, stood at the end of the hall and then walked out without saying a word to the chatterboxes. This has happened to me in the last three movies I’ve seen and couldn’t get me more frustrated while I’m trying to enjoy the movie and my bucket of soda.

The problem with chatterboxes is an easy one to fix in principal. This movie was rated R yet the two doing the talking were around 14 years old. Technically, they shouldn’t have been in the movie. The movie theater could easily post one of their ushers at the door to turn away those that shouldn’t be there. We have rules on the books to prevent it but asking the theater to enforce these rules is pointless. Why would a theater or the movie industry, that exists to sell tickets, turn people away? This isn’t like underage drinking where bars have incentive to do so. If a bar serves a minor, the fines are steep and the business could actually lose their license to practice. What happens if kids are caught going into a movie where they don’t belong? Nobody knows the answer to this question because the law is not enforced.

Shortly after 1:00am, we left the movie and discussed why we were both annoyed with the experience. The one point that kept coming up is that watching movies at home eliminates every one of the problems we routinely encounter. We pay $5 to rent the DVD which eliminates both exorbitant ticket prices and previews, we have fantastic seats and if anybody talks during the movie, I can rewind what I’ve missed. Hollywood really needs to examine the entire process of going to the movies and look at the big picture. If the MPAA looks at only the cost of ticket sales, they really will miss the entire point. Consumers will tolerate a lot–we often put up with bad service in businesses if the prices are good (see Wal Mart). In the case of the movie theaters, the problems are many and frankly add up to more than I can stand. From now on, I’ll wait three months to see my movies on DVD.

I admit that I have a low tolerance for this type of annoyance. How long will it take for the masses to decide the movie-going experience just isn’t worth the hassle? If these problems continue to add up, many other consumers will have their fill and stop going to the movies altogether. The only downside I can think of with DVD’s is that there is a delay in the release but what makes seeing a movie an urgent need? Perhaps I’ve just had enough.

Do you still go to the movie theaters or do you wait for DVD releases? What frustrates you at the theater? I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments section!