The cinematic adaptation of video games Minecraft is currently experiencing a shattering success at the box office. But its immense popularity also causes headaches to the owners of rooms who must manage the chaotic atmosphere that reigns during projections.
In several cinemas in Quebec (and the rest of the world), young moviegoers have disrupted projections by launching popcorn everywhere in the room, jumping on their seats and screaming the film’s lines.
Participating in a Tiktok trend, these spectators make a biggage during a specific scene of the film, that of “Chicken Jockey”, in which a zombie rides a chicken.
In England last week, the owner of a cinema even called the police to restore calm in one of his rooms.
Quebec is not spared by the phenomenon.
“It’s been two weekend weekends that we have all kinds of problems with that during the Friday and Saturday evening performances,” said Tom Fermanian, the owner of the legendary Pine cinema in Sainte-Adèle.
“We immediately see that it is a challenge and that it is organized. There are even young people who buy popcorn, who are waiting for the scene in question to make their damage and who leave immediately after without having seen the end of the film. They just come to make a happening And to film themselves while they ransack the room. “
Mr. Fermanian deplores that the attitude of these spectators disrupts the experience of the rest of the public, often regular customers of cinema. During the last weekend, a six -month -old baby received a glass of liquor on the head and three young children went out saying “that they were afraid of people in the room”.
SQ on site
After a few performances, the Pine Cinema Management took the big means by designing a house announcement aimed at warning the spectators they could be expelled if they were grabula in theaters.
More than 60 people were expelled during the weekend, and the Sûreté du Québec went there for prevention.
The film was also scheduled in the smallest room in the establishment to limit the number of spectators and to allow employees to better control the public.
Tom Farmanian still considers himself lucky that his cinema has not undergone material damage at the moment.
“With us, nothing has been damaged. But I heard that in a room in Montreal, there is a screen that has been damaged, he slips.
“It’s been 77 years that we have been in operation at the Pine cinema and I can tell you that I would not endure that for a very long time. Even if it works super well, we are thinking of limiting access to this film by reducing the number of projections. ”
The co -president of the Association of Cinema owners of Quebec, Éric Bouchard, indicates for his part that the projections of Minecraft Take “on the whole” well in his cinema in Saint-Eustache but you have to “be more vigilant” for Friday evening performances at 9 p.m.
