Audience Reception of a Film: What Do YOU Remember?
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My favorite memory of a movie reaction was when, back in middle school, my friends and I all went to see "Raiders of the Lost Ark" for the first time.
After the fantastic opening sequence, when Indy leaps out of the cave, just inches away from being flattened by the boulder, the theater suddenly lit up--as Indy was suddenly in the sunlight again.
I looked down the aisle, and every single person in my row had a hand over their mouth or on their face somehow, as if in shock. It was awesome.
After the fantastic opening sequence, when Indy leaps out of the cave, just inches away from being flattened by the boulder, the theater suddenly lit up--as Indy was suddenly in the sunlight again.
I looked down the aisle, and every single person in my row had a hand over their mouth or on their face somehow, as if in shock. It was awesome.
Hmm. I had exactly the opposite experience. I saw it opening night in a theater full of enthusiastic fans who practically gave every crew member a standing ovation the first time they appeared.
People complain about that long, slow flyby now, but it was perfectly paced for that opening night crowd, whom hadn't seen the Enterprise on screen for years. You needed several minutes for the cheers and applause to die down . . . .
I didn't even remember that until you mentioned it. Then again, Spider-Man 3 is the only one of the trilogy that I've only seen once. I'm not a fan.
Spoiler alert (for a thirty-year-old film).
In the original DEATHTRAP, there were a lot of gasps in the audience when Christopher Reeve kissed Michael Caine. Ohmigod, Superman was gay!
Which reminds of a funny story: I was sitting next to this couple one night when two guys in the row in front of us started making out with each other. The male half of the straight couple got all grossed out, while his date kept telling him to be quiet and not make a big deal of it. In the end, he stormed out in a huff--but she stayed and watched the rest of the movie!
I'm guessing he didn't get lucky that night . . .
In the original DEATHTRAP, there were a lot of gasps in the audience when Christopher Reeve kissed Michael Caine. Ohmigod, Superman was gay!
Which reminds of a funny story: I was sitting next to this couple one night when two guys in the row in front of us started making out with each other. The male half of the straight couple got all grossed out, while his date kept telling him to be quiet and not make a big deal of it. In the end, he stormed out in a huff--but she stayed and watched the rest of the movie!
I'm guessing he didn't get lucky that night . . .
Clearly, Superman was hanging around Batman for too long.
Still, who wouldn't go gay for Michael Caine?
What comes to mind first is a special early screening of Tropic Thunder that I attended. Because it was a special event there were no previews/commercials shown before the movie, but we didn't know that....when the fake previews at the beginning of the movie started, everyone thought they were real previews. After the first one we all looked around like, "Hmm, that was weird..." After the second one a few people were laughing and others looked confused. After the third one we were all uproariously laughing our asses off, it was a lot of fun.
Another fun reaction was when I went to see Jeepers Creepers in the theaters with my little sister. My sister is easily frightened at scary movies, but even she, along with everyone else in the theater, was laughing at all of the parts that were supposed to be scary. I love those unintentional comedies.
Harry Potter spoilers ahead....
Another notable experience has been the last few Harry Potter movies, particularly the scenes dealing with the death of Dumbledore. And also the scenes after the Battle of Hogwarts in this last film where they are sizing up the death toll. When the camera passed over Lupin and Tonks there were audible gasps from many in the audience, followed by a deafening silence. You just know everyone was trying to find a way to slyly wipe the tears from their face! And Harry's death scene, even knowing that he would come back to life, was very emotional as well. Not a dry eye in that theater for a good portion of the movie!
Another fun reaction was when I went to see Jeepers Creepers in the theaters with my little sister. My sister is easily frightened at scary movies, but even she, along with everyone else in the theater, was laughing at all of the parts that were supposed to be scary. I love those unintentional comedies.
Harry Potter spoilers ahead....
Another notable experience has been the last few Harry Potter movies, particularly the scenes dealing with the death of Dumbledore. And also the scenes after the Battle of Hogwarts in this last film where they are sizing up the death toll. When the camera passed over Lupin and Tonks there were audible gasps from many in the audience, followed by a deafening silence. You just know everyone was trying to find a way to slyly wipe the tears from their face! And Harry's death scene, even knowing that he would come back to life, was very emotional as well. Not a dry eye in that theater for a good portion of the movie!
SW: ESB - the audience gasped when Darth Vader delivered his famous line. Too bad nobody over the age of two or three can ever be shocked by that line nowadays. 
Oh yeah, and the scenes where Luke first encountered Yoda had everyone howling, particularly when Yoda and Artoo fight over the powerbar and Yoda starts hitting him with a stick.
Oh yeah, and the scenes where Luke first encountered Yoda had everyone howling, particularly when Yoda and Artoo fight over the powerbar and Yoda starts hitting him with a stick.
Regardless of what you think of the changes, there's no denying it was fun as hell seeing the SW SEs in the theater that first time. The festive mood beforehand, the people in costumes... and then how EVERYONE would cheer and clap the first time Han or Luke or someone else would appear on screen.
Hell, even the Jawas got a round of applause from my crowd.
Hell, even the Jawas got a round of applause from my crowd.
Cool Hand Luke - Star Wars sized cheers and applause at the end of the egg eating scene.
E.T. - everyone cried at the end of this thing. I think the adults were more upset than the children. My gf was still sniffling a few minutes after it was over. "penis breath" gets a big laugh, although some kids gasped in shock
Rambo - My theater didn't have a midnight showing, so I dragged a friend with me to a 10 AM showing or something like that. There was only one other guy there besides us,but once the action started, you would have thought the place was full. We were literally jumping up and down and shouting at the screen.
E.T. - everyone cried at the end of this thing. I think the adults were more upset than the children. My gf was still sniffling a few minutes after it was over. "penis breath" gets a big laugh, although some kids gasped in shock
Rambo - My theater didn't have a midnight showing, so I dragged a friend with me to a 10 AM showing or something like that. There was only one other guy there besides us,but once the action started, you would have thought the place was full. We were literally jumping up and down and shouting at the screen.
Regardless of what you think of the changes, there's no denying it was fun as hell seeing the SW SEs in the theater that first time. The festive mood beforehand, the people in costumes... and then how EVERYONE would cheer and clap the first time Han or Luke or someone else would appear on screen.
Hell, even the Jawas got a round of applause from my crowd.
Yeah, I remember a couple of fans brought light sabres to the screening I went to and would "dual" everytime the light sabres appeared on screen. Everybody in the audience got a good chuckle out of it.
Crimson Tide, in a small theatre in Stirling. When the XO and the captain have their confrontation, the look on Gene Hackman's face had the whole theatre going 'ohhhhh' quietly.
Also in the same theatre, amidst the general haunted house shlock of Event Horizon. When they finally work out how to play back the last minutes of the EH crew's recording and it's like a minute of unrelieved splatter and shrieking. Laurence Fishburne turns it off and says "we're leaving". The whole cinema burst out laughing.
Also in the same theatre, amidst the general haunted house shlock of Event Horizon. When they finally work out how to play back the last minutes of the EH crew's recording and it's like a minute of unrelieved splatter and shrieking. Laurence Fishburne turns it off and says "we're leaving". The whole cinema burst out laughing.
There was some genre-con for horror/monster movies and the like back around '05-'06, and while I didn't go to the con itself, one of my wife's friends did, and he found they were showing Godzilla: Final Wars and thought we would be interested in going. It was an old time, full sized theater, packed with sweaty fanboys, and the building had very poor ventilation and the crowd was kinda disappointed with how much time the movie spent showing puny humans doing stupid things....
...but...
... when the big G dropped 'Zilla (GINO from the '98 American movie) with an absolutely epic-pimpslapping, the whole audience erupted with joy, instantly relieving those seven years of pent-up bad feelings about that movie.
...but...
... when the big G dropped 'Zilla (GINO from the '98 American movie) with an absolutely epic-pimpslapping, the whole audience erupted with joy, instantly relieving those seven years of pent-up bad feelings about that movie.
When I saw STIV the first time in the theater (Yeah, I'm old... 
), there was a standing ovation at the end when the flyover to the ENT-A occurred. Talk about an amazing feeling, even if it was big Reset Button... :-)
(Then again, I'm still not a fan of the Excelsior design to this day.)
When the Star Wars SE came out, I remember being in line behind some smart aleck kids who were trash-talking the idea of Lucas releasing the films again. One even said, "Why?"
Two minutes in, as the Star Destroyer started going overhead, bigger and bigger and bigger with the bass sound in the theater ratcheted up appropriately, these two were cowering/quaking in their seats in front of us. My friend Felix leans forward and says, "THAT's why, you idiots!!!"
Classic. (Sounds silly now, but you had to be there.)
Cheers,
-CM-
), there was a standing ovation at the end when the flyover to the ENT-A occurred. Talk about an amazing feeling, even if it was big Reset Button... :-) (Then again, I'm still not a fan of the Excelsior design to this day.)
When the Star Wars SE came out, I remember being in line behind some smart aleck kids who were trash-talking the idea of Lucas releasing the films again. One even said, "Why?"
Two minutes in, as the Star Destroyer started going overhead, bigger and bigger and bigger with the bass sound in the theater ratcheted up appropriately, these two were cowering/quaking in their seats in front of us. My friend Felix leans forward and says, "THAT's why, you idiots!!!"
Classic. (Sounds silly now, but you had to be there.)
Cheers,
-CM-
I remember in O Brother, Where Art Thou? that during the final song the entire theater was shaking because of people moving their feet to the song.
There's a part in Rise of the Planet of the Apes where
It shouldn't have been a surprise, but that movie was constructed so well that everyone was still shocked. I loved it.
There's a part in Rise of the Planet of the Apes where
Caesar shouts "NO!" and everyone in the audience just gasped.
I wish I could have experienced that, I love the movie, but since I generally don't bother with Coen Bro's movies I didn't see it till DVD.
Yup, my theater too. I was expecting something it, being a fan of the older movies, but it still gave me the tinglies to experience it.
I first watched Alien with my class in the elementary school. We used to have these trips to a youth center where we would play sports, watch a film, etc. Some of the choices weren't exactly for children.
Instead of being scared, everyone was laughing all the way through. We found the alien pretty funny. There were also catcalls and snickering when Ripley was changing while the alien was lurking.
I'm not sure how much my lack of fear or shock was due to myself and how much to the prevalent atmosphere in the audience. But I later heard my adult, much older cousin say that she found Alien incredibly creepy and scary, and wondered what that was all about.
(Speaking of children in cinema, although it's not SF/F I can't not mention another weird experience - when I watched Dead Man Walking. A couple of girls were laughing all the time, and it was really annoying since there's nothing funny about the film. They really spoiled the experience for me. When the lights were turned on, I saw that they couldn't be more than 12 and their mother had taken them to see it for some reason. The mom seemed displeased, and one of the girls said: "But I don't understand anything! What was it all about?")
Another memorable reaction was when I watched Wim Wenders's Until the End of the World (which is SF, so it does belong here). It was long, something like two and a half hours at least. When it was already around the 2 hours mark, the main character said in voiceover, about a plot twist: "...But the real story was just beginning". One guy sighed loudly, as if saying "OMG no" and everyone burst into laughter.
A reaction I don't remember but my mother did: apparently, when I watched Disney's Snowhite as a 4-year old, I shouted angrily "Oh no, you won't!" to the evil stepmother as she was talking about her evil plans, and everyone at the cinema laughed.
Instead of being scared, everyone was laughing all the way through. We found the alien pretty funny. There were also catcalls and snickering when Ripley was changing while the alien was lurking.
I'm not sure how much my lack of fear or shock was due to myself and how much to the prevalent atmosphere in the audience. But I later heard my adult, much older cousin say that she found Alien incredibly creepy and scary, and wondered what that was all about.
(Speaking of children in cinema, although it's not SF/F I can't not mention another weird experience - when I watched Dead Man Walking. A couple of girls were laughing all the time, and it was really annoying since there's nothing funny about the film. They really spoiled the experience for me. When the lights were turned on, I saw that they couldn't be more than 12 and their mother had taken them to see it for some reason. The mom seemed displeased, and one of the girls said: "But I don't understand anything! What was it all about?")
Another memorable reaction was when I watched Wim Wenders's Until the End of the World (which is SF, so it does belong here). It was long, something like two and a half hours at least. When it was already around the 2 hours mark, the main character said in voiceover, about a plot twist: "...But the real story was just beginning". One guy sighed loudly, as if saying "OMG no" and everyone burst into laughter.
A reaction I don't remember but my mother did: apparently, when I watched Disney's Snowhite as a 4-year old, I shouted angrily "Oh no, you won't!" to the evil stepmother as she was talking about her evil plans, and everyone at the cinema laughed.
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Yeah, I have never found any of the Alien movies even remotely scary.
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