Martin Scorsese has said that people talking, snacking and using their phones during a film has put him off going to the cinema.

The debate over declining cinema etiquette has been in the spotlight recently, including when a viral TikTok trend saw teenagers erupting into chaos during a scene in the new Minecraft film.

Arts journalist and Sunday Independent Film Critic Chris Wasser told The Hard Shoulder that “the advent of streaming has an awful lot to do with how people currently behave in cinemas”.

“When you go to a film, I’m not saying that you’re supposed to keep absolutely still and keep your mouth shut from the moment you walk in the door, but have a little bit of respect,” he said.

“It’s very easy to point at COVID, but a lot of us sat at home, watched films in our own way, in our own time, for what felt like forever.

“[We] got used to pausing, snacking whenever we wanted, coming and going as we pleased, making as much noise as possible.

“I think unfortunately there’s maybe a bit of a hangover.”

A television with video streaming services and a remote control. Picture by: Michael Zech / Alamy Stock Photo

School of humanities lecturer in SETU PHD film studies Dr Jenny O’Connor said that audiences have never been perfectly behaved – but there is less policing of their behaviour in modern cinema settings.

“There’s a kind of permissiveness in the cinemas themselves I think,” she said.

“I remember back in the days with the throwing of the popcorn, you had to be really careful not to get caught because if you got caught, you’d get thrown out.

“I don’t think it’s the same now for obvious reasons – we have young people who are working in cinemas and they’re not ushers as such.

“The usher used to come in and shine their light and there was the shame of being kicked out by an usher would be just terrible.”

Dr O’Connor said that no 15 or 16-year-old part-time worker is going to be able to kick people out of a screening.

Main image: Credit: Tima Miroshnichenko Pexels