I really hate modern movie theaters.

We have the Alamo Drafthouse here, they serve beer and very good food
They show all of the recent movies but also run older ones (they do horror marathons and show lots of 80s films...)
The service is great, the seating is very large and comfy and they have a strict policy regarding cell phones and making noise during showings...they will toss a person out if they disturb the other viewers
I really like it (there are a couple dozen locations nationwide here in the States)

In contrast, I also like the rundown dumpy theater upstate where they do a horror marathon twice a year (12 hours of slashers and monsters, BYOB, trivia and prizes...)
The place hasn't changed since the 70s!
Small seats, worn casino carpeting and it stinks of 20 year old butter
It has a certain charm

I like the new large comfy recliner seating. There’s enough room on the arm rests so people aren’t elbowing each other. Also knees aren’t knocking other folks. I saw Aquaman this week (reserved seating) and a very large guy arrived after I did. He sat down next to me, but during the movie he was no bother...not in my space. With the older theaters I would have been uncomfortable, just like with airline seating which is a bone of contention with me. Seating with the airlines is shrinking in size....theaters are enlarging...go figure.

BTW, we have a brand new Premier Cinema which opened this month. Not only does it have the comforts of home, the seating has swing out trays for your food & drink! Those I can do without. It’s going to get real nasty dirty with those things! And I can just see a parent setting their kids on them! I plan on visiting the new one to see “The Return of Mary Poppins”. I do the matinee showings...not as many rugrats to contend with.

I hate the recliners too. Can’t get comfortable in them. Attracts weirdos who lounge in them with shoes off, shaking their bright white socked feet in my eyeline, all while knashing and knoshing stinky greezy cinema food.

Oh come now, for every problem you mention there is a benefit to the new theaters. You don't have to sit right up against someone you do not know and fight over the arm-rest. There is no one kicking the back of your chair throughout the movie. When someone has to get up to go pee they do not have to slowly move in front of a bunch of people at stick their butt in your face or rub it on the back of your head. Maybe you forget how bad old theaters used to be.

But there are some annoying things I agree with on. I don't like having to choose my seat before I enter the theater. I just want to get in, find a seat, or two seats together and sit down. I don't know what the view is like from the seating diagrams they give us to choose seats by.

My favorite theater is an old theater in my town that only shows old classic movies from Hollywood, and it is the old style seats, many of which are broken, and all of which are too close together. I love the theater, but it is a trial to get through a movie.

Oh gosh, it says there are 9 replies to your comment ... and I must have all of them on my ignore list! Tell me ... how many of them are smart-ass jerk responses, or stupid or pointless?

Yep. I’m not there to eat and be interrupted, I’m there to watch this movie, shhhhhh! Rarely go these days.

The theaters in my town don't seem to have changed that much compared to the 90s. The one thing I do dislike is the sound nowadays. It's way too loud. Maybe it's because of all the talking people do through movies these days.🤷‍♀️

I like the new tiered seats because then, tall people sitting in front of me don't block my view of the screen. I had issues with that in the older theaters back in the 90s.