How AMC Stole Christmas

I've been in tears over this several times today. My husband and I are fans of science fiction and
fantasy, and for years, we've shared this hobby together. I was a kid when Star Wars came out for the
first time, and I've always loved the movies.

For a Christmas surprise, he got us tickets to see the new Star Wars movie at a time when they offered
audio description. There were only two such shows during the day, and the morning showing on
Christmas day seemed to be the best chance that we could avoid overcrowded theaters and make sure
we got the right headset for audio description.

The introduction of audio description in movie theaters was such a wonderful advancement, and made
me so happy when our local theaters added it to their list of services. I have had terrible anxiety about
going to movie theaters ever since I went to see the LAST Star Wars movie: Revenge of the Sith. My
daughter was quietly describing the action on the screen, and the woman next to her kept tapping her
and shushing her. Then my husband, sitting on my other side, took over describing, and the woman
glared at us, even though it was impossible for her to hear him describing. After the movie, she yelled
at us, and at me in particular, and called me a bitch for ruining her movie experience, even after we
explained that I was totally blind. She said that if I needed someone to talk to me during the movie, I
should just stay home. That experience has stayed with me for a decade and colored my expectations of
going out to the movies.

When we got to AMC, we went straight to a manager, who flagged down a girl working there to give
us the headset. We specifically asked if it was audio description, as opposed to enhanced audio for the
hearing impaired. She assured us it was, but that it wouldn't start working until the movie started. So
we got into the theater and waited.

I don't think I need to describe the anticipation we felt, but when the long-awaited words “A long time
ago, in a galaxy far, far away...” came onto the screen, the headphones were silent. And with the
opening crawl of words, there was no reading from the headphones. When my husband started to
describe things on the screen, I heard sound in the headphones, but it was only amplified sounds of the
events on the screen. No description. No narration.

We left the theater and angrily complained to management. Yes, we got our money back after it took 20
minutes to explain the situation and for them to realize what they'd done and get the right headset, and
then they offered to let us back in with the right equipment. What good is that? We've missed the whole
first part of the movie! There was no other showing with audio description for 7 more hours. We
weren't going to come back at 6pm when our daughter is coming over for dinner with our 2-month old
grandson!

This was not the first time this has happened to us. The many many times we've tried to go out to a
movie, there has not been one single instance where they gave us the right equipment the first time.
And I can only think of two times where we caught their mistake in time to enjoy the movie. I have
complained to management each and every time, in at least 3 different theaters in our community.
Every time, they have promised to train their employees better in the future. And every time, we get the
same ignorance of disability accommodations.

I wonder if anyone else has experienced such difficulties at AMC theaters in particular, or movie
theaters in general. What do you do and how do you explain to them what you need BEFORE it's too
late to enjoy the movie? This was such a nice surprise from my husband, and it turned into such a
heartbreak on Christmas. We're going to try again in a couple days, but how does everyone else get past
this barrier?