Disability in the Physical Environment: Let's Go to the Movies!

Falyn Tilley

Overstreet

Human Socialization

March 19, 2013

Let’s Go to the Movies

Over spring break the main goal was to forget about school for a week for some relaxation and serious de-stressing before you remember about finals, group projects, and last minute papers. So that is what I set out to do. It just happened to be blissful coincidence that I was able to do some homework while out and having some fun.

On the Tuesday of Spring break the local movie theater has a deal that between the times of 4 and 5 any movie is $5.25. To a poor college girl and her equally broke boyfriend that is a deal that we couldn't pass up. It only dawned on me when we were leaving the theater that I could use this experience as my inspiration for my accessible date assignment. The movie we went to see was Identity Theft with Melissa McCarthy as the hilarious and quirky but equally guilty, Diana. As well as starring Jason Bateman who has one week to capture the person who stole his identity and bring her to justice. This movie was so funny! I would recommend it to anyone with a sense of humor. I wanted to do my paper on how a person in a wheel chair would get around in our local Carmike Cinemas.

Accessibility: Let me set the scene for you, it was a cold day and very overcast and due to start raining at any second. Robbie, my amazingly considerate boyfriend offered to pay our way to see Identity Theft because we could not decide between a chick flick and the new Die Hard movie. When we finally got to the movies it was POURING we were soaked in the few seconds it took us to run to the front entrance. When considering a person in a wheel chair, the ramp was pretty far from the entrance and the person would have gotten completely drenched. And the movie theater is always super cold so to make the majority of people happy while enjoying the movie they paid the big bucks to watch. So that means the person on a wheelchair would be dripping wet and freezing.

After buying our cheap tickets we walked to the theater where the movie was playing. We were uncharacteristically early for our cinematic adventure so we got prime seat for the movie. We chose the exact middle of the theater for ample sight and hearing coverage where a wheel chair couldn’t be able to go. So where could they go? In the very back which would be a good choice unless they were nearsighted however they would have to sit off center. Not to mention that only one theater in the building where there is a ramp to get to the back row, everywhere else there is only stairs to get to there. Another place would be the front row which could accommodate the nearsighted fellow. But from my experiences that these seats just makes you crane your neck and makes the movie experience irritable.

Activity: The activity of the room while the movie was playing was low to moderate which is ideal to fully enjoy your cinematic undertaking. During the one hour and 51 minutes there was a lot of laughing (especially loud laughing coming from my normally loud boyfriend). Most of the movement was contributed from the other people in the room getting up to get more to drink or eat or to use the bathroom, or just shifting in the seats to become more comfortable, it is a pretty long movie from my standards. For the person in the wheel chair it would be easy not to get in the cross fire of everyone coming in and out of the theater at the time that we went.

Comfort: Does this environment provide a sensory and mobility acceptable experience? Personally I do not believe that it would have been pleasing to be the person in a wheel chair to get a neck ache. I had to sit in the first three rows while at the premiere of the last Harry Potter movie and that is exactly what happened. I got a neck cramp, was not able to fully submerge myself into the awesomeness that is Harry Potter. The most annoying fact is that I was unable to see everything that was happening on one side because the screen was so large.

Control: I don’t think that there can be any type of control over a room in the movie theater. I doubt that even the employees can have any control over their work place other in places like their break room or other places the public isn’t allowed into. Really though what can we do to change it? We can’t hang any posters, or put anything on the floor (other than popcorn that doesn’t make it into our mouths the first time, and even then the employees come in after you and sweep all that mess up. Even the seats in the upright position unless you have a butt plopped down in them or a huge pile of coats and purses that you don’t want to set on the ground.

Crowding: Everyone is different when it comes to the level of comfort with groups of people. Some are totally fine with being pressed check to check with a perfect stranger although I doubt you will find a lot of people like that in the US, we like our personal space. When Robbie and I went to the movies our theater was completely empty when we walked in allowing us to get the most optimum seats in our opinion. We counted how many rows there were (not counting the first three that are separated by a walkway) and then we count how many seats were in that row and got the exact middle of the entire theater. However as Murphy’s law predicts people came in to the theater right before the movie started. One party thought our chose of seats was super good as well because one group sat directly behind us and another group sat silently left of us and another still in the row directly in front of us. Robbie and I didn’t really mind but I did feel like “Hey, there is the ENTIRE theater to pick from but you have to seat as close to another group of people as possible?!” However the circumstances might have been different if Robbie and I choose to go to a scary movie instead. I would have pick the most congested area of the theater and sat right in the middle of it because I have a big baby when I come to scary movies. How does this relate to a person sitting in a wheel chair? It depends of their personality. All I know is that if we went to go see the horror movie Mamma I would be sitting in their lap.

Privacy: Control of self or group members while at a theater is slim as well. In my case the only control I had was to out my hand over Robbie’s mouth while he was laughing so we wouldn’t get kicked out of the theater. Since the layout of the theater is just rows of seat in front of a huge screen there is not much privacy to be offered, no desk to hide your hands or feet under. I just if you really wanted to you could lie down on the floor and try to shove your body under the seats in front of you but why you would want to do that because only God knows when they last moped. You can’t even get your cell phone out to change your “privacy settings” because in the dark room the screen will light up and everyone behind you can see what you are doing. Not to mention that is it terribly rude aside from being against movie theater law.

Sensory Stimulation: Lest you go to one of those 4D theaters in theme parks you are limited to using only your eyes and, ears during a normal trip to the movies. Unless of course you get a drink and popcorn to satisfy your taste buds. A person in a wheel chair would not have a problem with those things any more than the other people in the theater.

Sociality: while at the movies it is discouraged to talk to other people while enjoying the movie. Others (like me) like to be “sucked into the movie” and storyline to forget about life for the hour and 51 minutes it takes to resolve life problems in the character’s lives. However you can interact with the employees while you are buying your tickets and the bucket of popcorn, and they even have a lobby where you can wait for other members of your party while it is raining cats and dogs outside. The best part, especially in my little brothers eyes, is the gaming room where you can race other people in virtual cars or motorcycles or try your hand at the claw machine.

In conclusion, I had a great time going to the movies for homework and wish more teachers would assign field trips like these. I had a great time laughing my butt off while watching Identity Theft and would definitely recommend it. I can’t wait to go back the see The Host on March 29!! It doesn’t matter how broke I am I have got to see that movie! I know it is a shameless plug but if you haven’t heard of it, read the book!

Right before leaving to go see Identity Theft