Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Talk in a theatre and this might happen to you

I am feisty when it comes to movie noisemakers--talking and texting being the prime culprits--but do NOT interrupt James Cialella of Philadelphia, PA when he is trying to watch The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. If you do, you risk getting shot. According to the Associated Press:

A man enraged by a noisy family sitting near him in a movie theatre on Christmas night shot the father of the family in the arm, police said. James Joseph Cialella, 29, of Philadelphia, told the man's family to be quiet, then threw popcorn at the man's son, police said. The victim told police that Cialella was walking toward his family when he stood up and was shot. Detectives called to the United Artists Riverview Stadium theatre in South Philadelphia found Cialella carrying the weapon, a .380-caliber handgun, in his waistband, police said. Cialella faces six charges that include attempted murder and aggravated assault.

Maybe it is just me but he did just get shot in the arm. The man was warned to be quiet and then was peppered with popcorn and he didn't take heed. I know I'm a radical and all, but ignore those warnings and keep making a disturbance--a bullet to the arm seems pretty reasonable.

5 comments:

Dan said...

Sort of related to this post, but also a comment on your sidebar blurb:

When we went to a cinema on a holiday to New York (I'm English) I was surprised at the audience. There was clapping, cheering, ooohs and ahhhs. You'd never get the same level of audience participation in the UK.

I think it actually enhanced the film for me. Saying that it was a fairly mindless action film (Blade 2 i think) and we were on holiday so my tolerance levels were higher.

But no one was talking or making none-film related noises though, I guess that's the difference.

Guy Gadbois said...

Dude:
If you're going to start tying your hatred of theater interruptions into your new list of confrontations, I don't know if I can handle the stress of going to movies with you. I mean, last night you were aching to confront THREE different groups of people! I had issues with them, too, but....Jesus!

Anonymous said...

when you first told me about this, i couldn't believe it and you said...'maybe you would start taking up a collection for the guy!' now that's extreme camaraderie! the guy who got shot may never go see a film again!

when i told my friend patrick about this, he quickly asked..."did he use a silencer?" YEAH! the dude was a hypocrite!

Joshua Blevins Peck said...

Dan--Sometimes noise and rowdy crowds do make a film better--midnight movies, dollar movies, raucous laughter in comedies for example. I've seen films in multiple countries now and no audience comes near the sheer rudeness that Americans exhibit when watching a film. It's something I will never get over.

Guy--Your sensitivity will lesson your total for '09 then. I just saw Frost/Nixon and did I say anything to the woman behind me who stuffed a giant bag of M&Ms into her face? No. That was restraint.

Anonymous said...

Replicant,
Are you sitting in the Captain's Chairs while you are watching these films?

Guy,
Advice: sit in those chairs. Yes you might get a pain in your neck, but the people Replicant would like to throttle are generally far away from those seats.