Dear Editor:
Going to the movies has always been a favorite past time of
mine.
Dear Editor:
Going to the movies has always been a favorite past time of mine. It’s a place where someone can escape reality for a couple hours and leave their troubles behind. But last weekend, this was not the case. Unfortunately two girls were brought to tears, several families demanded refunds, and some very angry customers left the theatre. No, it wasn’t because the release of a new Ben Afflec/ Matt Damon action movie, but it lay at the result of one man’s actions at handling a situation very poorly – the general manager of Platinum Theatres.
On Saturday May 3, I purchased tickets for my sister and I to see the 5 p.m showing of “X Men 2”, after the 4 p.m showing sold out. Our tickets were already ripped, so we proceeded through the open doors and were greeted by no employees. We continued to stand by the entrance to the movie, where two couples and their children also waited patiently. What happened next came as a shock to me.
About 15 minutes before the movie started the manager walked by and told one of the families that if they were here to see “X Men 2,” they would have to go outside to the end of the line. We had been inside the entire time and did not know that there was a line. Keep in mind there were no signs anywhere outside the building stating where to stand, or giving any direction whatsoever of any kind. He then ordered several of his employees to blockade the doors to the theatre, not to allow any of the two families, or my sister and I to enter, until the last person from outside came in.
This angered us all, and while we debated with other members of management the general manager started letting customers in. We got nowhere in trying to explain our case to management.
Another customer, who was also waiting outside for the very same movie, proceeded to tell management how wrong they were for making these customers wait, and that he had witnessed all of us here an hour before any line had formed. He even took it so far as to confront the general manager himself, but to no avail. I do not know who this man was, but I thanked him for his generosity in seeing the truth to this incident.
I could see we were getting nowhere, and the only response I received from management, was that it was the general manager’s call. So as a last attempt, I confronted the manager myself, who was still letting people in, and questioned his policy. I asked him to show me a sign that said, “form line here,” or any sort of evidence to justify his actions. Right before he refused service to me all together, I overheard him telling two little girls, who were there to see “Holes”, that the whole time they had been in line for the wrong movie, and to their surprise, didn’t have to wait in that line. So how does one know what to do upon entering Platinum Theatres if there is no sign or direction? For the manager to insist so strongly on a policy that unclear baffles me. But my disappointment is with how they handled the situation and how we were treated as customers. In my opinion, a manager is supposed to resolve the problem, not create them.
This situation could have been resolved in a matter of seconds, instead, it resulted in an uproar of families with crying children. One family entered the movie very unpleased after everyone else was let inside and the second left completely, with their money refunded. This did not make their crying little girl feel any happier who had probably been looking forward to seeing this movie. I feel that because I questioned the management policies, I was refused service, along with my younger sister, who was a silent partner in this whole incident. As we walked away with our refund in hand, my sister was in tears, and I couldn’t help but wonder how an innocent trip to the movies, a place where you’re supposed to leave your troubles behind, escalated to a drama itself.
Andre Pagan, Gilroy
Submitted Friday, May 9 to ed****@************ch.com
