Aussies divided over ‘feral’ cinema act that’s become commonplace

A Melbourne man has exposed a sadly all too common sight while at the cinema, leaving him questioning Australian culture.

A cinemagoer who captured the “disrespectful” behaviour he witnessed while at the movies on camera has sparked widespread debate after sharing the image online.

The post, which was shared in the Melbourne Reddit forum, showed a photo of someone’s bare feet poking through the gaps in the seat and resting on the armrest in front of them.

But while many were disturbed by the antics, including an Australian etiquette expert who blasted the public act, others said it was something that happens “all the time”.

“At the cinema yesterday, as I went to my seat, I saw this …” the original poster explained,

“Where’s the respect? They must think they are in their lounge room …”

The man said that he ultimately decided to move to the end of the row, as he wasn’t looking for an altercation, and took the photo from afar.

“I did look at the guy, but he just stared at me and didn’t move his feet …” he recalled.

“I wasn’t after a confrontation, just wondered what happened to respect. Some people just don’t care.”

A moviegoer spotted bare feet at the cinema. Picture: Reddit

Sydney-based etiquette expert Anna Musson has weighed in on the thread, condemning the behaviour and calling it “disgusting”.

“We should not be removing our shoes in the cinema or on a flight, nor should they protrude into another person’s space,” she told news.com.au.

“Have some common decency and self-respect.

“Should this happen to you, on approach, one would hope the offender would remove their feet. If it occurs mid-movie, you could definitely ask them to remove their feet.”

She said the same applies to feeling feet on the back of your seat during a movie.

It is unknown which cinema this occurred in. Picture: iStock

It seems this incident is not an isolated one, as other Reddit users chimed in with their own stories of inconsiderate behaviour at the cinema.

One commenter recounted an experience where a man took a phone call on speaker during a movie, ignoring repeated requests to be quiet.

Another agreed that cinema behaviour is “atrocious” these days and said they have witnessed people having full conversations with their friends and checking their phone brightness at 100 per cent.

“Why I don’t go to the movies anymore? People are disgusting,” remarked someone else.

Then others took a more lighthearted stance and shared ways they would handle the situation.

“Knock a drink over them, accidentally,” suggested one, while another said, “Papercut their toes”.

“Tickle them!” chuckled someone else.

Meanwhile, others simply couldn’t believe someone would do this.

One said, “Ewww,” while another commenter said it was “feral,” and a third simply remarked, “puke”.

Others declared that this is the reason they prefer to stay home and watch movies.

“I actually loathe going to the cinema now. I used to be one of those people who would never pay to rent a movie and instead gave my money to the local cinema for a ‘nice’ experience out. Not anymore,” wrote one.

“It took a while for me to realise that the lounge room at home is quiet, I don’t have to take out a loan to buy junk food, and I don’t have someone’s smelly feet poking through the seats. To sweeten the deal further, I don’t have to listen to ridiculously loud chitchat during the movie or sit in old popcorn.”

People condemned the behaviour, calling it ‘feral’. Picture: iStock

Cinema attendance is down significantly globally, and Australia is no exception.

While it increased in 2023 after the pandemic, it still remains well below pre-pandemic averages, according to Screen Australia.

Before Covid, Australian cinemas had more than 80 million admissions a year and now they’re not even hitting 60 million, as per the ABC.

Factors contributing to this decline include the rise of streaming, changes in lifestyle and behaviour post-pandemic, the rising cost of living and movie ticket prices.

Ticket prices vary depending on the movie, cinema, date, session time, and format, but they are around $27.50 for an adult ticket at Hoyts and $27 at Event Cinemas.

Originally published as Aussies divided over ‘feral’ cinema act that’s become commonplace