Martin Scorsese says he's had enough of watching movies in theaters, blaming bad audience behavior for ruining the experience. In an interview with film critic Peter Travers for "The Travers Take" blog cited by the Guardian, the 82-year-old Goodfellas and Irishman director said he's too distracted by fellow moviegoers' chatter, phones, and snack runs to concentrate on the film, complaining of enough noise to drown out any dialogue.
- When Travers pointed out that they, too, talked as kids at the movies, Scorsese insisted it was different back then. "When we talked, it was always about the movie and the fun we had chewing over the details," he said.
- The director's comments come as many feel that cinema etiquette has declined. The shift to streaming and lasting effects of the pandemic have left audiences less engaged, and behavior like fights, shouting, food-throwing, and constant conversation is now commonplace. Some films have even leaned into the chaos, including this year's A Minecraft Movie, where kids reportedly have been running wild during screenings.
- BuzzFeed, for what it's worth, notes that Scorsese "10,000% has a point," and others joined in to support him, some with suggestions for more-severe punishment for the rude. "A jailable offense," one commenter noted online. Another wrote: "Shushing people isn't enough for me ... I need a button that ejects repeat offenders from their seats."
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