Stop Bringing Your *** Kids To Horror Movies!
15 06 2007Chris W thought I would like this. I loved it.
It’s An Open Letter to Parents Who Bring Their Children to Extremely Violent Horror Films. It’s brilliant!
You know why? Not so much because I regularly watch horror movies at the theatre (or films at the cinema for we Brits). I do watch movies with quite a bit of violence. But because I have never been able to understand the stupidity of parents who take their young children to very violent, explosive, often very frightening films. With an R rating.
The children of course, in addition to exhibiting bratty behaviour get scared. Some of the violence would scare even me, and I’m an adult. I can handle what I go to watch. Along with my fellow cinema-goers, I go to have a good time, only to have it ruined by brats who have no business being there at all. By the time I’ve spotted the kids in da house, I can kiss any actual movie enjoyment goodbye, as the kids then proceed to completely destroy any possible enjoyment of my experience. It’s worse if they’re sitting near you, as they fidget all the time.
They should not be there. And it is completely the fault of their parents that they are.
Anyway, I think Anthony Burch has nailed it beautifully in his open letter. Read, enjoy and share, dear readers. It’s full of great bits, like this one, but you get the best of it by reading it in its entirety:
“Now before you start, I’m sure you had a reason for bringing your under-aged children into a film that, essentially, equates to torture porn: I’m sure that you couldn’t find a babysitter, and you hadn’t been out together in a long time, and it was a matter of absolute necessity that you bring your young, impressionable children into the most violent film of the year.
Oh, wait – my mistake, sorry. I forgot that this screening took place on a Monday, at 8 PM in the evening. It appears that I was mistaken: not only do you not have a legitimate excuse for bringing your children to the theatre, but I’m going to venture a guess and call you a couple of selfish fucking idiots. What in God’s name made you think that bringing your two infants into a horror film was a good idea?
And as he says at the end of his letter:
“…Again, I’m no child psychologist, and I’m sure that, had we had this conversation in person, you would currently be pulling out the “don’t tell me how to raise my child, this came from my womb and not yours” argument as if this were some bulletproof trump card that makes you immune from criticism, but it has to be said: you’re shitty parents, you’re shitty moviegoers, and you’re shitty human beings. Either give up your kids to someone who can properly take care for them, hire a damned babysitter every once in a while, or just don’t go to the movies.
Once more, please don’t hesitate to forward this message to every other idiotic, selfish, immature pair of moron parents who find it necessary to bring their toddlers along to the latest R-rated cinema bloodbath.”
Hear, hear! The next time I have my movie-going experience ruined by fuckwit parents who don’t care about anyone else but themselves, I’m going to think of this letter. In fact, I’m going to post it up on my blog so that everyone can hear of yet another ruined movie-going experience.
Oh, wait, are we childfree going to be told we should “put up with it because “they’re only chyldrun?” and have “every right” to go out with their parunts?”
Thanks Chris W great find!
Technorati Tags: movies, childfree
Excellent post.
It would also be nice if they quit buying them toy guns, allowing them to play violent video games, and letting them sit and watch WWE wrestling for hours on end.
They let all of this shit fly and then they wonder why their kids are rambunctious, violent bullies who do nothing but fight and have no compassion for others.
Great post and great letter, too.
I remember going to one movie and about halfway through, in come the Breedersons with 1 kid of about 6 and a baby about 8 months. Not only was the kid squalling and ruining it for everyone else (because it was probably exhausted) but the Breedersons sat about 6 ft from the screen. Were they trying to deafen the kyeedz?
And yet we childfree are supposed to be the selfish ones.
I remember being in my early years of teaching and being told by one of my grade 4 students (9 at the time) that he had gone to see ‘Silence of the Lambs’ with his parents. It stunned me because I found that to be one of the most disturbing movies at the time and to this day wish I could delete the images and ideas from my brain. His parents were very educated (lawyer and architect, if I recall) and I was just boggled.
Great post. Believe it or not, recently I had to CONVINCE my friend not to rent The Ring, and watch it with his 6 year old. Common sense, anyone?
There are a bunch of movies out there that I don’t even want to see due to violence, disturbing images, etc. that I know would leave me wanting to sleep with the light on for a few weeks. What are these parents thinking when they take their children to see these type of movies? A child’s level of comprehension is not the same as that of an adult. While we know that what we are seeing is a movie and not real, a child, depending on the age, doesn’t. After all, most children, at some point in time, believe that there is a monster under the bed, in the closet, etc. While adults know that monsters don’t exist, to a child, they are very real. They have ratings for a reason. Not only is taking a child to a violent/scary movie just poor parenting and judgment, but it’s also disruptive to the others who pay good money to enjoy a movie that they want to see. If you want to go see the movie anyway, that’s what babysitters are for. If you want to take your children to the movies, stick with Shrek.
there are 3 films that even me being 34, terrify me, but they are the haunting 1963, the japanese ring and ring 2, even knowing they are just films, they are disturbing on a psychological level. 34 and i wont watch them at night, i have to watch them with the curtains open, and in full sun..
but these parents dont care.. its about them, if they take their snotty brat there, people will have to take notice of them. and so by justifying their feeling of superiority
Wow! That’s opened my eyes to another new startling fact.
I never go to the cinema so didn’t realise this happened (if it does in the UK). Thank goodness for people with common sense who can ‘tell it like it is’ to these stupid parents. But why are they allowed past the front desk??? Love your blog!
Kids should not be allowed at ANY R rated movie. Period. Movies after 8pm should be kid free.
In Brisbane, they have started a mums and tots movie session at 10am 2 mornings a week. Romcoms, light fluffy dramas and non-violent movies are shown. The lights are not completely out and the sound is also lower. *I* know not to go to those sessions because I would hate it. Why can’t the parents respect other people’s movie times and not bring their screaming children to the evening sessions??
Thanks all - great comments. I thought the letter was so spot on. Beggars belief that parents don’t seem to get this. I find it isn’t only horror films either, any adult film with kids in the audience, is usually ruined. Considering I pay good money to go and watch a film I think this is one more area that I should be voicing my discontent to the cinema/theatre management. Thank heavens for DVD.
Walks far - That’s a good question. It’s a while since I’ve been to the cinema in England so I can’t recall if it does happen there, but I would bet it does unless there are strict rules. Thanks for the compliment as well
Tanya - I wonder how they get in too. How can management allow small kids in for a horror film - which must have an adult rating.
Mel - Ah, but babysitters are… wait for it… cost money! Much better to be cheap and disturb the enjoyment of others.
Carisa - I found the ring very scary. So much so that I could not watch the Ring 2. How can a parent even think of watching that film with a child??!
Anne- Marie - I’m gobsmacked. I watched the SOTL on DVD, years after it came out because I had heard so much about it… and I wished I hadn’t. I can now barely remember it, thank goodness. These parent’s are the ones who you would think would know better… obviously not.
CFC - well, you are going to love my nest post…
Liz - “And yet we childfree are supposed to be the selfish ones…”
Strange isn’t it? I find it increasingly strange, in fact. If we are selfish, then what would one call these non-thinking parents?
they can do it, because there are no humans at each screen, you pay your ticket, and theoretically you are free to see any film in the multiplexes.
in the good old days, there used to eb an usher at each door of the screen and you would have to show your ticket then.. to get in, but now, one ticket can get u into many films, and i have seen kids going back and forth from film to film even if it was age inappropriate.
Great post for real! Why do they do that? And then wanna wonder why they are acting out in school or sunday school and these “parents” wanna turn around and shout’em down for embarassing them in public. Raising Babe’s Kids in the theatre.
As a parent of 3 kids, ages 7,2, and 1 — I am constantly alarmed when I see small kids brought into theaters. 2 and 3 and 4 year olds don’t need to see car crashes, people shot, scared shrieks, or any other form of violence. I don’t bring my kids to any R movies — period. They’d have nightmares for months on some of these movies.
Nothing like watching a tense scene where someone is about to get raped, stabbed or murdered and have a kid in the audience say ‘daddy I’m scared’..no sh*t your kid is scared….use your FRACKING HEAD!!!
Just so you childless people know, not all of us breeders are idiots.
technically steve b, we are not childless, we are childfree ( less denotes something missing, free means we arent missing anything like sugarless and sugarfree)
Mercurior - so no more ushers in UK cinema’s then? Shame.
Steve b - Thanks for your comment - Just for the record, echoing mercurior, and for the reasons he states, we are not “childless people” we are childfree people. There is a difference and it’s an important one.
Back to the movies - It is puzzling that some parents don’t seem to think their kids would be affected by certain movies, quite apart from the lateness and bringing them into a rather scary adult environment and the fact that the kids disrupt both theirs and others enjoyment. I know several parents who get a baby sitter when they want to have an evening out at the movies and that to me seems the most common sense thing to do. The other of course is not to go to the movie.
nope no ushers anymore, no one to even go in and check for trouble.., its pay your money and get in.. no controls over anything like that..
when i was young the first movie i remember was flash gordon, went with a group for this lads birthday, it affected me a little bit, it was a PG film.
god help kids now watching 18.
(true story, i went to stay with rowan, and her dad had a house guest with 3.. brats, yes.. 4 and 2 and new born.. so not a happy time.. the 4 and 2 year old slept on the couch, and actually watched some gruesome films, i mean they made me feel a little queasy, but she saw nothing wrong with letting the tv look after them, the young lad, well he tortured animals, and loved fire, and had an unhealthly phsyical interest with Books, takes book lover to a whole new level, there is a evil in that kid, it disturbed me, he used to kick and punch his mother, and strangers,.
The first movies I remember seeing at the theatre were ‘The Entity’(I was 5), and ‘Cujo’. I never had restrictions on wot I was allowed to watch when it came to violence; sex, yes, but not violence. I remember seeing ‘Black Beauty’, and getting beaten by my mother cos I couldn’t sit still the whole time, and it was a LONG movie.
Yes, we had some sickening houseguests. Dad was going to have that whore back here a few months after she left, and at the thought, I had a breakdown, and got shingles. Luckily, he didn’t do it. Them being here was some of the WORST times in my life. I hated having to subject Merc to that just so we could see eachother for a while.
Merc’s right about the boy that bitch has. He’s evil, beat on his sister, my father, and others. Would leave bruises, bites, and scratchmarks on them. He did like fire, and to torture animals. The slutmoo’s excuse for him was that, ‘He has auuuutism; he can’t helllllllp it.’
Jeez, Rowan, he sounds like a serial killer in the making - torturing animals and a fondness for fire are textbook signs of psychopathology!
strangely theres a story today about this fact that ushers dont exist.
Anyone who has sat in front of a teenager playing with his mobile or rustling popcorn will mourn the demise of cinema ushers.
But if film fans have their way, they could soon be making a comeback.
A growing frustration with bad manners has been revealed by focus groups organised by the UK Film Council. They want ushers to help return the cinema to a sanctuary of courtesy, decency and respect.
David Steele, head of the council’s statistical unit, said: “People don’t seem to believe they should stay quiet any more and many regular cinemagoers think it is time for the return of ushers. They say we need a cinema police.”
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=468300&in_page_id=1770