Linnea's first trip to the cinema (and Emer's, who didn't care much)

[ailbhe]

(Because I checked my list of things about which I need to write)

On Saturday 20th September Linnea and Emer had their first trip to the cinema. Alison and co were going to the Saturday morning kids-cheap-adults-free showing, vaguely in honour of Buttercup's birthday (she'd come to the ballet with us the previous week) and we went too.

We arrived early, didn't get tickets because I thought it was worth making sure of seats near the others, and watched as a crowd built up around us. Eventually I went up and queued and there were large groups of seats left except in the front row, so I got two batches of two in adjacent rows. As I finished buying I saw Alison and zipped over and got her money and bought tickets for everyone, but that landed us in the front section, very few rows from the screen, which is never good. However.

What had happened was that a new Thomas the Tank Engine film was out and people were failing to get full-price tickets for that and going for the cheap Kung Fu Panda tickets instead.

So we watched Kung Fu Panda. I enjoyed it. Linnea and Emer enjoyed parts of it; Emer got bored eventually (she's only just two, after all) but Linnea sat through it all. She did find some of the violence disturbing - she hasn't had as much cartoon violence as she might have done; Monsters Inc was way too scary and she hasn't finished watching it or rewatched it, and The Lion King got ooooooh a minute in, perhaps, before being turned off, and no Doctor Who, and so on. I figure she'll become inured to violence soon enough, no need to make her sit through it if she doesn't want to. So I spent a fair bit of the film telling her when it was safe to look and saying "No, wait, he'll be ok, if we stay we'll see the happy ending," and so on, on the assumption that it's less scary to get past the terrifying bit to the happy ending. I hope I was right.

Linnea loved going to the cinema, and queueing for popcorn (we got a small, that is to say, a bucket larger than her head), and sitting in the cinema seats, and watching trailers, and coming out afterwards.

We will go again, when we find a suitable film. Wall E is a possibility but I think the loneliness (not to mention the whole dead-planet thing) might be a bit much for her yet. Kids AM is where I find out about it. What do you think?

Comments

[jentifred.livejournal.com]

Do your movie theaters have assigned seating, then? Ours do not. You buy a ticket for admission and then pick seats once inside on a first-come-first-served basis.

Bridget had her first movie outing on her 4th birthday. We saw "Horton Hears a Who" which was very cute and sweet and not the least bit scary to her. I've seen "Wall E" and wouldn't recommend it for young kids.

[ladyynara.livejournal.com]

Wall-E entirely depends on the kid I think. My hubby tried to take Andrew (4.5), but I knew it would be a disaster. He doesn't like it being dark and loud, and clung to Rick the entire time, with his hands over his ears. There was a scene where there is a flash of lightning about 40 minutes in, and that triggered Andrew to burst into tears, so they left. Andrew is a bit of a sensitive kid though, Abby (3) probably would have liked it, but would be yapping all the way through it. If Linnea liked the experience she might be alright, but there is virtually no speaking for the first half of it. It has a good message, particularly at the end but I'm not sure young kids would actually *get* it.

This is quite a good site for reading about movies, but they are a little OTT on some of the stuff in my mind. http://www.kids-in-mind.com/

[rmc28]

Oh, thanks for that. I've had a quick look around a few of their reviews and I can see it being very useful in future.

[buzzy-bee.livejournal.com]

My L went to see Wall-E with Dad and Grandma about two months ago and is still talking about it. He is not concerned at all about the loneliness etc. What he talks about is how Wall-E found his best friend, etc.

[(Anonymous)]

I have done a lot of talking over the years along the lines of "woo, this bit is exciting, isn't it? The people who made the film made this bit be really exciting - you are supposed to be feeling scared etc so it's even better when he escapes/she saves the world/whatever. Wow, how's he going to get out of this then?"

So e.g. when someone above mentioned comforting Linnea when it looks like Wall E's blown up with the ship, if I was talking to one of mine, I wouldn't even be thinking of it as 'comforting', I'd be saying things like "gosh, big explosion, how do you think Wall E got out? Where do you think he's going to turn up?" before s/he had a chance to get upset.

And yes to whoever asked (annoying that I can't see the other comments whilst writing mine!), our Vue now has assigned seating. Usually the kidsam showings are not that busy (my kids tell me about half-full - I don't usually go) and so you have plenty of choice.

Alison