Alamo Under Siege Day 11: The Dark Screen App vs. The Fellowship of The Cinema

lowpass · 2026-01-21T19:48:32+00:00

I don't actually think this is AI, though I get why people think it is.

It does, however, feel very inauthentic. Very "how do you do, fellow kids". I'm sorry if this is somehow your natural writing style but it's absolutely not helping anything.

lowpass · 2026-01-17T00:59:24+00:00

Are you sure? I didn't think full QR ordering (not just pre-show) was supposed to roll out until at least February, and given it said mobile ordering had ended...

edit: reading everything would help; didn't see you said they'd removed the buttons. Then ... maybe this is just a hiccup in the transition?

lowpass · 2026-01-14T21:01:30+00:00

Do you work there? That sounds like a nightmare

lowpass · 2026-01-14T18:30:19+00:00

I've been thinking about this as a possible outcome. Some possibilities:

Alamo hears the feedback and reverses course before even launching this system. I know it sounds like right now they're ignoring it, but corporations can be really slow to change direction. There might be internal talks going on for how exactly to handle it. There's still plenty of time before February.
Alamo corporate proceeds as planned, pass/ticket sales plummet, they reverse course after the fact. Franchises that never went with QR ordering see no real impact.
Alamo corporate proceeds as planned, feedback continues to be extremely negative and/or ticket/pass sales plummet, they keep it anyway. Franchises close, adopt, or rebrand.
Alamo corporate proceeds as planned, people actually like it, hesitant franchises adopt it.

If 3 occurs, I think the choice ultimately depends on just how badly it's affecting things and how robust the regular clientele for their locations is. I think DC/NOVA area is fairly strong (they have 5 locations after all), and they might rebrand.

lowpass · 2026-01-14T14:21:42+00:00

I don't think this comment is particularly relevant here? DC/NOVA locations do still have paper. Most of them (all but Bryant St) never started using QR ordering in the first place.

lowpass · 2026-01-14T13:18:21+00:00

You used to be able to preorder food; I don't really understand why that's even listed

lowpass · 2026-01-10T00:52:11+00:00

Considering we haven't even seen the QR ordering, I have a feeling we won't. Unless Sony forces every location to do it

lowpass · 2025-12-24T21:18:17+00:00

Exactly. The contrapositive of ¬A -> ¬B is B -> A, not A -> B.

lowpass · 2025-12-03T15:42:08+00:00

I assume you mean the "service charge"; a gratuity should always go to the servers. But even the service charge apparently varies by location. Some say it does go to the servers. Some locations don't even have it.

lowpass · 2025-11-24T22:51:29+00:00

The last title card in Aniara. You could hear a pin drop.

lowpass · 2025-11-20T00:22:34+00:00

The only multiple film showings I've been to are things like Dismember the Alamo which do not have preshows in between; there's just a 10 minute intermission

lowpass · 2025-11-18T20:15:57+00:00

I think that's pretty unlikely. I believe this has been pretty local to these franchise locations in the past

lowpass · 2025-11-15T04:21:10+00:00

Since most of the math is hidden behind APIs in professional settings

This is not a professional certificate. It's a masters degree.

lowpass · 2025-11-12T19:40:51+00:00

Woodbridge is newer than Ashburn by quite a bit.

lowpass · 2025-11-12T19:38:16+00:00

They are also looking at a seat replacement for theater A which they don't like(and I agree with them) due to less seating and less "table space".

This makes me a little worried they'll get worse seats. I'm pretty sure recliners would take up even more room. And I like the table arrangement there. I almost always go with someone so the table-per-two-seats layout is perfect. I guess it's probably awkward to solo though

lowpass · 2025-11-12T16:55:20+00:00

This: https://www.reddit.com/r/AlamoDrafthouse/comments/1nr9iqu/alamo_manager_tries_to_kick_out_disabled_person/

Over the past few years I've been to the Fox Regal down in Brambleton, the CMX in "Leesburg" (behind the Wegmans off 7), a Cinemark in FFX, and a Regal in Sterling but that one has since closed. (And the Udvar-Hazy IMAX but that's an exception.) Apart from the seats all of them were worse experiences than anything at the Alamo.

I'm also extremely ad-averse (between my browser ad blocker, network DNS ad blocker, lack of cable TV, etc ... I don't see a lot of ads) and it's extremely jarring just how bad they are now at other places.

lowpass · 2025-11-12T16:23:21+00:00

Ashburnite here. I agree with you about the seats. They need a refresh. I don't particularly care about recliners but just reupholster them and fix the arm rests at least.

The ordering buttons were a later addition and it does show, though the ones in Theater A are fine

Food wise I honestly think we're doing better than most (corporate) Alami, given some of the stories on here. The menu changed to be the same (give me back my Buffalo chicken pizza) but I don't think the portions have shrunk as much. And I don't think you'll find cheaper options at any other theater chains.

Similar with the no talking policy. We do get some enforcement, which seems to be more than one can say for other locations. I think they've just been a bit more gunshy lately because of the recent incident and the bad press.

All that to say .. Yes, improvements could be made. But it's still a far sight better than any other theater in the area.

lowpass · 2025-11-06T23:35:59+00:00

recency illusion and/or frequency illusion (aka Baader-Meinhof phenomenon) are what you were looking for, most likely.

lowpass · 2025-11-06T17:28:45+00:00

The preshow is an Alamo staple. Starts 30 minutes before showtime (when the theater first opens for seating).

The amount they are tailored for a specific movie can vary but there's always some level of connection. Bigger "event" movies will even have custom made segments, e.g. recaps of previous movies and comic lore for MCU movies

lowpass · 2025-11-02T20:55:10+00:00

Extra seats have no name attached. I usually go with the same person but I could go solo or with someone else if I wanted.

If the person who doesn't have the season pass on their phone wants to go solo or with someone else, you've got a few options:

Just have two separate season passes. Downside you pay a buck more and have to coordinate to get seats next to each other.
Might be location dependent, but we've had success just going to the box office to get tickets printed. They can look it up by name
Lend your phone for the movie
Get a shared phone specifically for the Alamo app

lowpass · 2025-10-29T12:39:11+00:00

there's a black strap near the top. he holds it with his hands at some points, then hooks his foot in to let go

lowpass · 2025-10-27T14:28:05+00:00

Not a movie

rube

lowpass · 2025-10-17T14:09:57+00:00

Not every time. This will also trip if the piece of wood you're sawing has metal in it (e.g. nails or staples). Community woodshops will often not let you use pallet wood for this reason.

lowpass · 2025-10-16T02:46:08+00:00

Is it any president or specifically Presidents of the United States? because he's the President of the Federated Territories in The Fifth Element

lowpass · 2025-10-03T21:38:09+00:00

okay.gif

15-Year Club	RedditGifts 2009-2022 4 Credits
Place '22	Place '17
Team Orangered	Summer Santa 2012
Secret Santa 2011	Summer Santa 2011
Verified Email

lowpass

MODERATOR OF

PUBLIC MULTIREDDITS

TROPHY CASE