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First things first...why were a bunch of 10 year old boys watching Titanic in 3D? Seriously, odd choice of movie for 10 year old boys.
So, what age would I let my kids go to the movies by themselves? I guess that depends on the movie, who else they were going with and what time of day it was. I would probably say around 10 is OK assuming they are going with a couple friends and it was a movie they actually wanted to see. I would also be more apt to let them go if it was a morning or afternoon show which tend to be less crowded. By around 13/14 I think I would be fine with letting them go whenever they wanted.
Personally, I went to movies by myself with a couple friends or my cousin as young as 8 or 9. Our parents would see one movie, we'd see another. I remember one time when a friend and I were 15 or so that we got dropped off to see "Bordello of Blood". The person selling tickets was actually doing their job and wouldn't sell us tickets. Dejected, we called my friends mom for a ride. Since she hadn't planned on picking us up for a couple hours, she goes, "Listen find a movie playing around the same time as the one you want to see that you CAN buy tickets to. Go into that movie and then sneak into the one you want to see." We can do that? Really? We were such rebels, lol.
As for the phone/text thing it annoys the HELL out of me. I think there is a bit of a generational/age divide with it though. I'm 31 (almost 32) and find that people around my age still believe to an extent in theater etiquette. Maybe because we grew up at a time we weren't plugged into the internet and reachable by anyone and everyone 24/7...we aren't scared to turn our phones off. However, people just a few years younger who grew up with cell phones and texting seem to have the greatest attachment. I've actually taken a phone away from a younger friend of mine while watching a movie...."BUT BUT BUT what if someone NEEDS ME??????"
Because of the light is distracting. It draws the eye instantly, just as if you suddenly flicked on a flashlight in front of me. I care because it directly affects my movie going experience.
The better question is why don't you are about the people sitting around you who paid to watch a movie, not your phone? Selfish, much?
If an EMT can put his phone on vibrate and step out to take calls about actual emergencies, you can do the same.
I don't know and don't care but if they think they are so important they must be reachable by phone 24/7 they can step out into the hall to deal with the urgent messages they get throught the movie asking them what's up and do they wanna hang later.
If you can't be out of contact for 90 minutues your life is a mess and you shouldn't be in a theater. Period.
You never really know what will happen. Have you never had an unanticipated emergency?
I think my kids went to the movies unsupervised (with a couple of friends to a matinee or early show) in 5th/6th grade. I didn't have any reason to think they would be ill behaved but we also were careful about the movies and the showtimes understanding that certain times/movies are more apt to be filled with preteens/young teens and other moviegoers could plan accordingly.
Texting and moviewatching? Please don't. It's extremely annoying to others in the theater. As others have mentioned. Phone on vibrate then leave to respond. You'd think no one ever had emergencies prior to cell phones....
You never really know what will happen. Have you never had an unanticipated emergency?
So STEP OUT. Instead of distracting everyone around you and making them miss parts of the movie, get out and check your phone in the hall. That way the only person who misses part of the movie is you.
We got along fine at a two hour movie before there were cell phones. You don't have to be constantly connected to your umbilical cell.
I wasn't talking about me personally.
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