Seeing movies in theaters is fun. It's expensive, so it has to be a good movie or one you're looking forward to, but it's still fun. Boom boom sound. Big picture in your face.
Every time I go see a movie these days there's something that really bothers me. You know when you walk into the theater and look for a seat, scanning for two seats next to each other for you and your friend, and ohhhhh dang that couple took the middle seats in the best row, that's okay we'll just sit next to them. But we're going to leave one or two empty seats between us, so it's not weird.
Then you sit down and you watch other people come in and stand at the entrance for a minute, looking for enough empty seats in a row for their group to sit together, and you see other people picking their seats leaving one or two or three empty seats between them and their theater neighbors.
Those empty seats, man. They're like theater limbo.
I start to feel really bad when a family of five comes in and can't find a place to sit together because all the empty seats come in ones or twos, and I'm thinking, if we all just scooted together then this family wouldn't have to sit in the neckbreaker seats up front, or in separate rows. And sometimes people do scoot down if they see someone needing to seat a group, but unless it is a very crowded theater they will still leave an empty seat between them if possible.
So every time I go to a movie now, whoever I'm with I bring up this question to them:
What if everyone in movie theaters sat right next to each other instead of spreading out as much as possible?
It didn't start as a sociology thing, but more of a "wouldn't it be funny if" kinda question. But after I thought about it for a couple years I couldn't shake the thought, and it became more important in my mind.
It would clearly be beneficial for everyone if we all sat together in theaters; there would be more room for others coming in, less awkward scooting. If people could control their elbows I think it'd work out just fine. But for the majority of the population it's no simple task to forgo that empty seat barrier between you and a stranger. Even though you don't have to talk to them or look at them, it would just be weird to sit down next to someone you don't know. IT WOULD JUST BE WEIRD.
And it IS weird. I have spent quite a while thinking about this, yet I abide by the unspoken empty seat rule. Becaaaaaause I don't want to sit close to people I don't know it would just be so awkward and what if they smell bad.
But you're in a movie theater. Where people go to watch movies. People, not just you and your friend(s). Where people gather, people will have to be next to each other. Sounds redundant, but it seems like a lot of people don't realize this. You're in a public place, with the rest of the public. You have to deal with the rest of the public and they will have to deal with you. You don't have to be friends, you just have to deal. No one can go to the theater and expect a private viewing experience.
Why is so weird to sit next to strangers in the theater? I dunno. But it's weird.
I went to the midnight premieres for the last few Harry Potter movies. The theaters were, of course, super packed for all of them. I remember at one of them, my friend was on my left and a girl I didn't know was on my right. At some point during the movie something really exciting or emotional happened, and for some reason that girl looked at me and I looked at her and we both grinned and shared our excitement for a second. That was really cool. We didn't hang out afterwards, I didn't know her name, she was just some chick in a theater, but we were there for the same reason and we got to share that cool moment. Not a huge deal, but I still remember it.
And I'm not saying that if we sat next to each other in theaters we would all be magically connected. And yeah, there are obnoxious people who take up the arm rests and chew with their mouth open and talk during movies. I'm not saying it would always be pleasant or ideal. I'm not proposing a worldwide shift in movie theater social norms. But I dunno, it's just something to think about.
the end
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