Web Surfing

I've just noticed a little trend in how many hits my blog receives in a day. I obviously get more hits when I post, but my hits seem to go WAY down on the weekend, WAY up on Monday, down on Tuesday, Up again on Wednesday, and then kinda levels off until Friday. It reminds me of trends that hit when people go to the movies, except that the trend leans more towards the weekend than during the week. Do people really have more time to surf the web during the week? Or do they just spend all their weekends at the movies, so they HAVE to surf during the week?

Saturday is an off day at the movies for me. (Not a huge fan of working 7 days a week) I did pay a visit to one though, and it was BUSY. Boston Common Theatre, if you're wondering. It was all for Bourne, so that's a good indication that I need to see it, in addition to recommendations that I've gotten here and what I've seen at my theatre.

So instead of the movies, I went to the beach today. Ate at Kelly's Roast Beef and Seafood for the first time. The scallops were incredible. Pretty damn good roast beef too. I think I ate too much, but I can definitely see why they're so popular. Food seems to be pretty important in my life too. Two of my favorite TV shows are Phantom Gourmet and Hell's Kitchen! I guess if I didn't write about movies I could try food. I'm not the greatest cook though, but I'd love to try new recipies if you have any suggestions.

Annnd the least exciting part of my day now. Went to the dentist. Got my teeth gouged at, and now my gums still hurt. I really don't think you need to make me bleed that much in order to make sure my teeth are clean. I'm so glad that's only twice a year.

Anyway, I'm off for now, more most likely on Monday since I have to work late tomorrow night!

WEEKLY UPDATE: At The Movies!

Again, no spoilers here! I got to see the end of The Bourne Supremacy today. Nothing at the end of the credits, as I suspected. The crowd reaction was actually really good to this movie. I heard a lot of people say "That was awesome!" as they were leaving. Surefire good signs for this movie. Now I haven't seen it myself yet, but based on the reactions that it was getting, I think I might have to find some time to do so! Another point of note.. it was the only movie that did any business for my theatre today. Once that movie started, the crowds just ended. The weather did not help us at all, hot and humid in the low 90s here in the Boston area.

I did not get to see the end of Underdog or Hot Rod, the other two movies we got, so I can't tell you if there's anything at the end of those. Underdog did some decent business with kids, but Hot Rod was absolutely a dud, at least here. I myself have no desire to see that movie. If you really want to laugh this week when you go to the movies, I suggest the Simpsons movie, or I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. I don't see Hot Rod lasting long in theatres at all.

No real interesting stories tonight, though I'll point out that the people who come to this theatre don't seem to really care about their money. My ushers make an average of about $5 extra each night simply from bills dropped onto the floor. I'm assuming mostly kids do that, but with the price of movies these days, I would think people would hold on to their money more tightly! I'm not going to complain though, cuz I got myself a little tip tonight too.

If any of you guys have seen the new openings this weekend, or any movie recently and you'd like to share what you thought, feel free to post on your blog and I'll link to it, or you can leave me comments and I will write about it!

Movie Preview: Becoming Jane

The Plot: The story of a young Jane Austin, an up and coming writer in 1795. Jane's (Anne Hathaway) family are searching for a husband to be for their daughter, while she dreams of something unthinkable for the time: marrying for love. They have several suitors in mind for her, but when she falls for the non-aristocratic Tom Lefroy, everything changes. They face a terrible dilemma: if they attempt to marry, they will risk destroying everything that matters to them.

How I think it will do: This movie has received great reviews from screenings and several writers. I don't think it will appeal to a major audience, but it will be a "date movie" for a few weeks. Guys will be embarrassed to go, but may end up enjoying themselves. I see an older audience driving this movie. It has received comparisons to Shakespeare in Love, and has a similar premise. It won't flop, but I don't think it's going to be a mega-blockbuster.

I can't provide any crowd reactions yet, but it opens wide on August 10th. If my theatre gets it I will write back with more feedback!

Nothing to do with movies, but....

I got my season tickets to BU hockey today! WOOHOO I love hockey! Pretty good seats too, Section 102, Row C, Seats 13 and 14. Feel free to look up where I'll be sitting at the arena's website. I'm pretty pumped, and I'll definitely be writing about some hockey in here too, as the season gets closer.

I started this post almost 9 hours ago, but I couldn't get some formatting to work, so I put it aside until now. (2:09 am). Since then, I've gone to work and had to deal with one of those people that I absolutely HATE dealing with. Let's set the scene for you. A guy comes in, and buys a student ticket and an adult ticket. He comes back, figuring that he paid one dollar too much, since he should have gotten too. Now I'll let you know that our theatre company's policy is one student ticket per id. I'm glad to waive that if you're nice to me but.....

He storms over to the ticket taker and says quite loudly: "You charged me too much! I should have gotten TWO student tickets, I only got one!"

The ticket taker says: "Uh... go to the box office, they'll figure it out for you there."

So he goes over there and starts screaming at the cashier. He calls me over. When I get there, my cashier tells me that he would like a refund on one of his tickets to get two students instead of one. I ask the cashier if he had two ID's. He said no. I turn to the guest and he says: "You charged me too much. My girlfriend is a student too!"

I ask him: "Does she have her ID on her?"

He says she doesn't and that he insisted she did not bring her purse cuz he was going to pay for her. I said "That's fine sir, but our policy is to only give one student ticket per ID."

He says: "Well then I want another student ticket. And a refund on this adult ticket."

I don't think he's getting this.... "Sir, you already bought a student ticket. I can't sell you another one without another ID."

He screams: "I've NEVER had this problem before and I come here all the time!!!! None of your cashiers have done this before!!"

Ok.. now I'm pissed... I don't like getting screamed at when I'm trying to close up. But I don't scream at him.. I just say: "Well this cashier did the right thing, it's our company policy. I will be sure to inform the other cashiers to work here to make sure they are following this policy, and I assure you it won't be a problem again." (I gotta back my own cashier right?)

Now he asks for a refund. "Are you leaving?" I ask him. "No." "Well then I can't give you a refund then sir."

So he storms back inside, and I leave the box office. As I walk past the ticket taker, he comes back at me and yells at me again! "Why are you making such a big deal out of a dollar!!! It's a DOLLAR!!" (Duh... I realize this too, I'm just backing my cashier. Not gonna make him look like an idiot. And isn't he making a big deal out of a dollar too?)

The next thing he says really surprises me and I want to laugh in his face. "Well next time I come here, I'm going to buy one ticket, walk into the parking lot, give it to someone, then come in and buy ANOTHER STUDENT TICKET!!!" Ok.. like this really affects me...

I just walk away. I'm done dealing with him. He's missing his movie and I have work to do. But THEN...

He yells across the lobby: "I have a Ph.D!!!!!" Ok.. and I'm a movie theatre manager. Whoop de doo. Guess what, you're at the movies. I run the show here... I don't care if you have a Ph.D. And if you have a Ph.D... does $1 really affect you? Yeah movies are expensive. But when the rich start complaining about $1.. you know that something is going wrong in the world. Afterwards my cashier told me that his girlfriend looked 40, and that's why he asked for her student ID. All in all, it was a pretty funny experience. If I had an extra dollar with me, I would have waited outside his movie just to give him his dollar back. How would he feel then?

Even better, I wish he had went to go get his girlfriend like he said he would. I'm sure she would have loved to see that. Wow, I go out with a big d-bag! Congratulations!

I hope he does come back and do his little ticket buying scam. I'll just tear his tickets politely.

"Theatre #2, on your left. Enjoy the show!"

I love people.....

Movie Opinion: Rocket Science

The Plot: The story of a guy who explores the difficulties of public speaking, love, and life. A comedy about the angst of teenage life. It's not easy for Hal Hefner, the main character, whose parents do not get along, and has a pushy older brother. Worst of all, he has a stutter which makes speaking that brings him embarrassment at every turn. So when it comes time to find a replacement on the school's debate team, Hal is clearly not the first choice in mind. However, Ginny Ryerson, the girl who approached him to be on the team, fights for his cause. Hal joins the team as Ginny's partner and finds himself thinking more and more about the attractive Ryerson.

How do I think it will do? Well, it was one of the favorite movies at Sundance 2007, so that is a pretty good sign for it. It reminds me of a Napoleon Dynamite type story, with a bit more of a serious edge. As you all probably know, Napoleon Dynamite was a box office smash, opening in a small theatre base and expanding over the weeks. I think that Rocket Science will have the same type of track, earning success in more independent theatres before moving to bigger theatres and finding similar success. I don't believe it will match Napoleon Dynamite, but I do believe it will do well.

It opens August 10th, so I'll be sure to update you with crowd reactions, as well as what I think if I get the chance to see it!