Kids attending adult rated movies – My rant!

Originally Posted by strange_wings

I wasn't telling her when she could go. sheesh.

But it is simple, if people and kids annoy you, go when there'll be less of them.

And my basic point still stands as well. Tolerate others in public. No one knows why some kids or adults behave the way they do, you simply can't see inside their heads and you don't live with them. No one has any idea if the stranger next to them does what they do for a reason.
No one can dictate who can and can't use a public place (short of the owners), and everyone else has as much right to be there no matter how annoying they may be. You, I, and everyone else reading is not any more important or special than anyone else - you simply can't ask everyone to compromise completely for you.

Simple example, I hate the sound of babies crying. The sound is physically painful to me. I don't expect parents to leave their babies at home because they inconvenience me or others. That would be silly and selfish.

Again, no one can decide how someone else decides to raise their child, provided that the child is not being harmed in any way.

But I suppose none of this matters to anyone as people have already made up their minds against being more understanding and trying to see the other side of things.

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very well said.

Originally Posted by Aussie_Dog

Did you go see District 9? I'm getting the impression it's rated R, but here it's rated 14A. If it were rated 18A, then a kid can still get in, provided he's accompanied by an adult. Under 18, bring an adult. Under 14 (for a 14A movie), bring an adult. If you're under 18 and trying to get in an R movie, you're not going to get in at all.

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I think it's rated R in the United States. Quite a number of movies with an R rating in the US translate to a 14A rating here. The rating system is slightly different.

As for parents bringing kids to R rated movies - I agree they shouldn't be allowed in. It's rated R for a reason and if a parent really wants thier child to see it, they can rent it when it comes out.

When it's poorly behaved or inconsiderate kids at movies that are not rated R, while I'll admit they're annoying, generally I find adults at movies can be just as poorly behaved and annoying, so I tend to lean towards the live-and-let-live policy. I can usually tune them out and if I'm having a bad enough day that I can't, I simply don't go to a movie, but that's just me.

I have no trouble seeing both sides of the issue as presented here. Having said that, I pay good money to go to a theatre to see a movie. That includes being able to hear the movie as well. If someone sitting beside me has a child that is misbehaving, loud, and ignorant, I don't think the onus is on me to "suck it up". The onus should be on them to either get the child to behave according to societal norms or leave the theatre so the persons who paid their hard-earned money can enjoy their night out. Often a night out at the movies, especially for a couple with children at home can be very pricey by the time they pay a babysitter, probably spring for pizza for the babysitter and kids, pay the theatre charge and buy popcorn, so I think they have a right to enjoy their night at the theatre.

As far as a child being in an R-rated movie, IMO any parent that would take their child to an R-rated movie doesn't have both oars in the water to begin with so it's unlikely they would listen to reason anyway.

Originally Posted by Ms. Freya

When it's poorly behaved or inconsiderate kids at movies that are not rated R, while I'll admit they're annoying, generally I find adults at movies can be just as poorly behaved and annoying, so I tend to lean towards the live-and-let-live policy. I can usually tune them out and if I'm having a bad enough day that I can't, I simply don't go to a movie, but that's just me.

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I can live and let live but if I cannot enjoy the recreation that I paid for because of their bad behaviour, then I will report them, and if they are not asked to leave, I will leave with a refund. Simple. I have every sympathy for folks who may have a handicapped child but I have no tolerance for ignorance and/or just plain bad manners and rudeness.

I hate it when you get kids kicking the back of your chair and their parents don't do anything about it, it also happens when I'm on the bus. Also teenagers who burp etc during a film are not amusing for the rest of us!

Originally Posted by Yosemite

I can live and let live but if I cannot enjoy the recreation that I paid for because of their bad behaviour, then I will report them, and if they are not asked to leave, I will leave with a refund. Simple. I have every sympathy for folks who may have a handicapped child but I have no tolerance for ignorance and/or just plain bad manners and rudeness.

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I can understand that...And after a certain point, I'll admit, I will (and have) reported ignorant behavior and asked for refunds as well. A good point you've raised is that there's a huge difference between annoying and outright ignorant & disruptive. I agree that once you've paid (and the price keeps getting steeper) for a form of recreation, you have purchased the right to enjoy it, and the right to ask for a refund if the experience is unpleasant because staff at the theatre are not doing their jobs to keep the experience pleasant.

Originally Posted by Yosemite

I have every sympathy for folks who may have a handicapped child but I have no tolerance for ignorance and/or just plain bad manners and rudeness.

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But you simply can never know. Not everyone has a physical sign that they're different. It's not like people go around with it stamped on their foreheads.


A bit O/T - are all of the theaters most of you go to quieter? The ones near me are so loud that I really hate to go to begin with. No crunching kids could drown out their sound systems, it's like being at a rock concert. You feel the sound and your ears ring afterwards.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

But you simply can never know. Not everyone has a physical sign that they're different. It's not like people go around with it stamped on their foreheads.

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I still feel strongly that it is common courtesy to not intrude on other people. As another poster said, how about that person waiting until the movie comes out on disc and rent it, or perhaps that person could go to the theatre when it isn't as busy. There is no excuse IMO for spoiling an activity that someone else has paid good money to enjoy. It just shows disrespect for others as far as I'm concerned. If I had an unruly child (regardless of why they were unruly) I wouldn't take them to a public theatre and I especially wouldn't take them to an R-rated movie.

I understand where you're coming from. I don't have kids either and yet it seems every time I go out to a restaurant for a quiet dinner I wind up getting seated to a family with kids. Most are loud and obnoxious and the parents just let them get away with it. I have many times asked to be moved, I just can't sit near kids when I'm trying to enjoy a meal. Some kids are well behaved but most are not. You should have just moved away from this kid, it's a shame you didn't enjoy the movie. An usher should have come and mentioned something to the mom to keep the kid quiet from eating like a pig.

I do one better, I rarely go to a movie anymore. It comes on DVD soon enough and I can enjoy it at home or watch it ON Demand.

I'm truly and deeply sorry if I offend anyone right now but I agree that if you have particularly loud and misbehaved kids that you shouldn't bring them to public places like the theatre where it's kind of an unspoken rule to have good manners.

I know that kids are going to be kids and sometimes they are going to be loud...but then you need to take your children to child-oriented places and movies instead of into an adult-themed movie.

And the buffet thing with the kids sticking their fingers into the food is one of the very main reasons that I don't do buffet dining anymore.

I really hate loud and annoying kids in the movie theatre, and it always seems to happen irregardless of whether or not I go on an opening night or in the middle of the week. When I go to the movies before noon when all kids should be in school and someone's little brat is kicking the back of my seat...I can't help but think nasty thoughts about what horrible parents they must have.

I do understand that there are extrenuous circumstances where you can't always find a baby sitter while you go grocery shopping or go to a nice resteraunt, but there's really no excuse to bring your child into a film that isn't rated for them. Come on now... Lets be a little more responsible than that. And if your kid is annoying everyone around you, don't be afraid of your kids like all parents are these days and tell them to quiet down or you're going to spank their bottom in front of all these people.


I'm sorry for your horrible movie experience and I hope that they at least refund your ticket or reimburse you in some way. They really need to have ushers that come in and out of the theater every once and a while to make sure everyone is behaving in a courteous manner.


Edit - And even though it is a bit off topic I just have to add that one other thing that bothers me to no end is when you go somewhere (like a theatre or resteraunt) and there's basically no one else there with a hundred free seats around you and the next people to come in choose to sit five seats away from you.

Could anything possibly be any more rude than that? Come on...I want to enjoy my movie or meal and not have some stranger sitting in my lap while I'm doing so.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

I wasn't telling her when she could go. sheesh.

But it is simple, if people and kids annoy you, go when there'll be less of them.

And my basic point still stands as well. Tolerate others in public. No one knows why some kids or adults behave the way they do, you simply can't see inside their heads and you don't live with them. No one has any idea if the stranger next to them does what they do for a reason.
No one can dictate who can and can't use a public place (short of the owners), and everyone else has as much right to be there no matter how annoying they may be. You, I, and everyone else reading is not any more important or special than anyone else - you simply can't ask everyone to compromise completely for you.

Simple example, I hate the sound of babies crying. The sound is physically painful to me. I don't expect parents to leave their babies at home because they inconvenience me or others. That would be silly and selfish.

Again, no one can decide how someone else decides to raise their child, provided that the child is not being harmed in any way.

But I suppose none of this matters to anyone as people have already made up their minds against being more understanding and trying to see the other side of things.

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You're basically saying that: you shouldn't go out in public and expect people to behave in a reasonable manner in the first place, and, if you're offended by rude behaviour then you need to be more tolerant. Like every kid misbehaving is doing so because they have some condition we should all be more sensitive about. If they do, then their parents would surely be used to getting complaints and explaining that, and then they have a right to ask for more tolerance.
Seriously, more often than not, children are rude because they haven't been taught not to be. They will get away with what they can - they're kids! And I personally believe that as a society we are entitled to expect people to raise their children in a certain way. It's a real shame that good manners are considered old fashioned these days.
I'm very glad the OP got her ticket refunded, and I hope you enjoy the experience more next time!

Kids should be more polite and the parents should be more responsible, but there's no way that underage kids are going to stop going to movies. From my experience, theaters are very lenient about that kind of thing. They don't really care about their customers. As long as nobody starts a fight and everyone has a ticket, they probably aren't going to do much. If you complain to the theater, what happens? They give you a free ticket so you can come back and have it happen all over again. They want to get as many consumers and as much money as possible, but they don't actually care.

With that said, I hate all those annoying kids on the busy nights, which is why I make a point to not see a movie on a busy night unless it's a movie I have been waiting to see for a while. If you want to go on a busy night, go right ahead but just know that you will have at least one kid at the show who is annoying and who shouldn't be there.