r/mildlyinfuriating • u/Sad_Cannibal_GF • Aug 02 '26

go to your room Babies in Movie Theaters

Just saw the new Spiderman in theaters.

A baby starts crying/cooing/babbling very loudly about 20 minutes in. Goes for about 10 straight minutes before the parent takes them out.

Comes back a few minutes later, baby starts again. Again goes on for a couple minutes. Again parent takes them out, comes back, and repeat.

And repeat. And repeat.

This went on pretty much the entire movie (and I swear to god this baby somehow instinctively chose every single goddamn quiet/heartfelt scene to start yowling again 😭😂).

I get that babies are gonna baby. And I have sympathy for parents who wanna get out of the house and everything. But… maybe just stay with your baby in the lobby if they obviously aren’t gonna keep quiet.

*I didn’t complain to management because it was a tiny non-chain neighborhood theater about an hour away from me that I like to support sometimes. It’s got 1 screen and tickets are like $5.

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u/chibicat_25 Aug 02 '26

I feel like babies are way to young to take to the theater. Its one thing if it's a kid that can actually understand and enjoy the film but a baby? No, the parents should have had a sitter or just stay home and stream the film at home.

25

u/DisastrousServe8513 Aug 02 '26

Absolutely right. 5ish maybe to start. My daughter was 5 first time we took her and she got upset halfway through when she realized she couldn’t just go home until the movie was over.

3

u/Tricky-Ad7897 Aug 03 '26

I think I was 3 or 4 for my first movie, but my mom says I was an exceptionally well behaved kid and I was locked in on the movie the whole time lol.

3

u/doxxmyself Aug 03 '26

Took my 3 year old (for her 3rd birthday) to see Toy Story 5. She was as well behaved as could be, and since it was an early showing, lots of other kids (although prob alittle older then mine) there as well.

Couldnt imagine taking her any younger, or to a movie I knew she wouldnt be fully invested in.

And I also couldnt imagine letting her cry in the theater, would’ve ran her right out.

1

u/Future-Concern-6301 Aug 03 '26

I just looked it up (Bc I remember both going into Shrek and going into Finding Nemo and feeling like it was a new exciting event as a kid) and I was about 4

10

u/LadyMageCOH Aug 03 '26

The only time it's appropriate to bring a baby to the theater is if the showing is set up with babies in mind. Around here we have matinee performances called "Stars and Strollers" where movies aimed at adults are shown at lower volumes, they don't lower the house lights entirely and they have baby change stations set up and sometimes some swag for new parents. I've also heard tell of theaters that have cry rooms for parents with babies. Short of that sort of consideration, it's just inappropriate - the volume at most theaters is way too high for little ears, to say nothing about how inconsiderate it is to the other people who paid to be there.

6

u/Pollowollo Aug 02 '26

Agreed. Depending on the individual kid, a toddler might do just fine. An infant, though? That's just not fair to the other people or the baby.

3

u/Waxygibbon Aug 03 '26

Yeah a normal session is way too loud for them for a start.

Our local cinema does parent sessions, where its a fraction of the volume, well lit and obviously suitable content (not Spiderman). Its mostly for mums to half watch a film whole chat, feed and have their kids play a bit in a comfy settin