I have been somewhat outspoken in my belief that people who use cell phones in the movie should be punished in some way. I would personally prefer an extremely painful way, in fact, in order to really pound in the lesson that the distracting lights of a phone are a detriment to the movie going experience, even if you think you're being sneaky and looking at it under your jacket or similar. People actually there to watch the movie can still see you, and they don't like you.
So, it is with great sadness that I have discovered Disney has decided to ruin movies. They are promoting something called "Second Screen Live" as part of the theatrical re-release of The Little Mermaid. If you were excited about the possibility of watching the beloved children's film in the theatre, perhaps with your own kids, too bad. Instead, Disney wants to revolutionize the experience of going to the movies by replacing it with the experience of fiddling with an iPad in a dark room while something is projected onto a screen.
The trailer for this experience even has a scene where everyone hoists their iPads to the heavens, blocking the screen for anyone who might want to watch the movie, because why would you go to a theatre and pay a bunch of money to do that?
There are plenty of places to play with an iPad, pretty much everywhere that is not either a theatre or behind the controls of a moving vehicle. There are good reasons why you can't use iPads in those places. If you are driving a moving vehicle, the iPad would be a distraction, and you would probably crash into a tree. If you are in a theatre, the iPad is also a distraction, for yourself and everyone around you. If anything, people caught trying to use an iPad in a theatre should have their device smashed with a hammer.
Instead, Disney has decided that instead of watching a movie that they paid for, kids should be encouraged to play games and do interactive nonsense while the movie plays. It won't change the movie, The Little Mermaid was not made with this kind of experience in mind. The only possible result is distraction, nothing more.
Besides, do kids even need the constant distraction the second screen experience promises? It's a movie, it should be entertaining for the time it is projected on the screen. In fact, it is entertaining, the Little Mermaid is a good movie, while kids are often distracted by anything around them, they should be able to sit and watch it for the hour and a half that it is on screen. Is it even healthy to indulge children in these endless distractions? Shouldn't they develop an awareness of when messing with some electronics is appropriate, and when those things need to be put away?
I just can't see the experience Disney is promoting being at all healthy. There are times when one has to be respectful, pay attention and put their toys away. Parents aren't the only ones teaching kids what they should and should not do, it's everyone, as social cues allow people to figure out what is acceptable in different environments. With programs like this, it is more difficult for parents and society to teach kids when paying attention is necessary, and what will happen when those kids become adults?
