Today's post is about the typical ugly side of Cinema goers according to a report by the Straits Times. There is a wall of text below. Carry on at your own peril....
*Extracted from the 3rd Sept STi*
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TEN minutes. That's all the cleaning brigade has as cinemagoers walk out.
In that time, before the next screening, scattered popcorn kernels and paper cups - and even spilt drinks - have to be cleaned up.
Even condoms have been left behind.
The Straits Times staked out a popular cinema chain's complexes in Orchard Road and Bugis one Saturday night, and saw the spills amid the thrills.
Engineer Foo Mee Lin had just caught the film Mad About English and wasn't too crazy about the idea of taking her trash out with her. The 34-year-old said there were cinema cleaners who swooped in once the lights came up.
'It's their job and they're expected to do it,' she said.
The cleaners did move in - fast.
Mr James Tan, 54, a cleaning supervisor at the cinema for the past four months, explained the need for a speedy mop-up: The cleaners have only 10 minutes before the commercials kick in for the next show.
It is especially tough for them on Saturday nights, when it is full-house for most screenings. Resources are strained.
Small cinema halls get two cleaners, and the bigger ones have four.
Mr Tan drew a link between the kind of movies and the mess left behind. He said: 'The arthouse film crowd don't really make a mess.'
But it is a different story for blockbusters and movies that appeal to teens and young children, he said.
Mr Mohd Isa, 35, a supervisor at the cinema's complex in Bugis, backed Mr Tan's observations. When asked to name recent movies that yielded the most mess, he said without hesitation: 'Iron Man, The Dark Knight and Kung Fu Panda.'
These are movies more popular with the younger set - the ones who make life the hardest for people like Mr Tan and MrMohd Isa.
Five minutes before the closing credits rolled on the thrill-spiller film Death Race, MrTan and his crew were already waiting outside the cinema hall, armed with brooms and giant red buckets.
As the lights came up, The Straits Times saw the cinema hall dotted with empty shells of popcorn cartons.
The floor had not been spared either - two rows of seats were covered with kernels. An empty cup of Coke had been turned on its side, and its sticky trail of liquid stretched across five rows.
Mr Tan and his crew quickly mopped up the mess. He said that teenagers were the biggest culprits.
'Sometimes when I do a check while a movie is going on, I see them throwing popcorn at one another. They don't realise how difficult it is for those of us who have to pick up after them.'
Mr Tan said that caramel popcorn is a particularly annoying snack for cleaners. The sticky kernels are difficult to pry off the carpet and make cleaning more time-consuming.
He recalled a school-organised screening which left the cinema really messy.
'What's worse was that the teachers didn't do anything to stop the kids from throwing popcorn around!' he said, emptying his fourth dustpan of popcorn into a red pail.
That night's screening saw Mr Tan's four-man crew haul out buckets laden with empty cartons, drink cups, popcorn and potato chip remnants, and more.
Despite signs clearly indicating that food other than that bought from the cinema's food kiosks is not allowed in, moviegoers have not been deterred from 'smuggling in' fast-food meals such as burgers.
Ushers said it is difficult to catch these offenders because they are not allowed to search the bags of customers.
Cinemagoers The Straits Times spoke to said that the problem lies with the fact that cinema halls here do not have dustbins for people to dispose of their trash, which is why the option of leaving their rubbish behind is more convenient.
Mr Kay Chan, 34, who works in marketing, believes Singapore cinemas should emulate their American counterparts. He said: 'There, the ushers will carry in large bins and start shouting for people to throw their trash as they exit. We should do that here.'
Technician Mohamad Isa, 31, suggested putting up signs to tell people to take their trash out with them. He feels his suggestion will work. 'It works on the MRT because Singaporeans are generally quite obedient.' He carried his empty popcorn cartons out with him.
An American couple, who declined to be named, said that a year of living in Singapore had cultivated in them the local habit of not clearing their own trash. With higher ticket prices now, they added, having someone pick up after them should be 'part of the service'.
The cleaning supervisors said they occasionally find 'interesting' items left behind.
Mr Mohd Isa has had to sweep up condoms, presumably left behind by less-than-discreet couples in the back rows of the darkened cinema.
Mr Tan said he has come across a pair of shorts and the smelly insoles of someone's shoes.
He said: 'It's very unpleasant. Just because they're paying customers, they think they can do whatever they like.'
But Mr Tan is hopeful. He said: 'Good values need to be instilled from young. That way, people will behave with consideration and respect in any circumstance.'
Clutching his broom and dustpan, he then made his exit, stage right. Till the lights come on again.
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Damn irritating, right? Ok, I admit I do usually leave my trash in the theatre for them to clean up. BUT.... my trash is usually limited to only UPRIGHT drink containers & pop-corn packs. Can you imagine? Even condoms are found in there! Wonder how the couple is able to carry out the act without generating 'extra' noise or to get detected.
I hate it when :
- the persons around me takes up more then his/her fair share of space
- the persons around me keep talking to his/her companion
- the phone rings during the show (I sometimes wished they can install jammers in the theatres)
- eat/drink, making lotsa noise in the process
- sit very upright, thus blocking those behind (me)
- slouch on the seat and prop both knees against the backing of my seat
- keep rocking the seat back and forth
- keep walking in and out of the seats be it my row or the row in front of me
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