In 1956, the film “Rock Around the Clock” made its debut in the U.S. and subsequently abroad. The movie featured Bill Haley and His Comets and other luminaries from the newly-birthed rock-and-roll genre. Reports came in from the States and Europe that during the scene in which Haley and the Comets played the now-famous song, teenagers went wild, dancing in the theaters and genuinely causing ruckuses, perhaps goaded into frenzies by the beat.
Some outlets reported riots, and there were stories of instances where teenagers, apparently driven mad by the music, tore up the seats. And to be honest, it is a really fun song, not fun enough to induce rioting, but fun nonetheless. Judge for yourself:
They say history does not repeat itself, but it does rhyme, and I suppose that “Rock Around the Clock” might have set a precedent for the teenage boys of today to go full “Lord of the Flies” during screenings of “A Minecraft Movie.”
The biggest stunt is for the boys to jump up on each other’s shoulders during a scene featuring a “chicken jockey,” but other antics in the U.S. and abroad have included throwing popcorn, jumping on seats, and even fistfights.
Via The New York Post:
“These teens trashed every single theater playing this movie and since we have so many showings we had to clean them in less than 30 minutes as we had crowds outside the theater lined up to go inside!” a theater staffer commented on a YouTube video Monday.
Other online accounts have detailed shocking behavior.
“In my movie theater someone was yelling ‘WATER BUCKET RELEASE’ and threw a water bottle,” said one poster.
“I got a whole bucket of popcorn dumped on my head,” another movie goer noted on social media.
A staffer from an AMC theater in New Port Mall in Jersey City told The Post they’ve taken a hard line. Prior to starting the film, audiences are warned that any rowdy behavior will get them kicked out.
According to a story at northjersey.com, the Township Theater in Washington Township has placed a ban on unaccompanied minors coming to see the film.
We want to make all parents aware of an unfortunate situation that occurred at Township Theatre last night during a showing of The Minecraft Movie.
Large groups of unsupervised boys engaged in completely unacceptable behavior, including vandalism. We also received multiple complaints from other moviegoers who were trying to enjoy the film with their families. Video footage of the incident has been obtained.
Moving forward:
→ Any minors wishing to see The Minecraft Movie MUST be accompanied by a parent or responsible adult. Unaccompanied groups of boys will not be admitted.
If your son was at Township Theatre last night, we strongly encourage you to have a conversation with him about his behavior.
Thank you for helping us maintain a safe, respectful, and enjoyable environment for all of our guests.
A cinema in Whitney, Oxfordshire, in England, has posted a sign warning that people acting out will be shown the door without a refund.
You can chalk this up to the exuberance of youth and the fact that boys have been taught to suppress their excess energy and plied with a veritable pharmacopeia of drugs to make them compliant. You could view this as a remnant of the COVID-19 lockdowns or the impact that social media has had on developing minds. And that is all probably true up to a certain point.
Mitigating circumstances aside, I can be forgiven for channeling my inner curmudgeon when I ask, “Who raised these monsters?” I may sound like the old guy in his bathrobe and boxers griping about the neighbor’s stereo, but what the hell? If I had done this as a kid, I’d still be dizzy from the punishment I got when I got home.
As a Gen Xer, I am all for free-range childhoods. My generation was the first of the latchkey kids. I got pretty good at warming up my TV dinners in the oven and doing my homework, waiting for Mom and Dad to come home. But at the same time, over the past few generations, we have failed boys miserably. And by failed, I don’t just mean doping them up and telling them that girls rule and that boys have no place in STEM, or anywhere else for that matter.
For Our VIPs: Society Has Failed a Generation of Boys and Young Men. Where Are They Turning?
What boys have been told is that they don’t matter. And because they no longer matter, no one expects them to learn how to labor, sweat, spit, swear, sacrifice, cherish their wives and children, or endure any of the complicated rites of passage that allow them to grow into “honorable manhood.” We have created a class of boys who have found some identity in screens. It is very little identity, but it is all they have.
We continue to manufacture weak-willed men who feel as if they have achieved something by throwing a tantrum from behind a keffiyeh they bought on Temu or kicking the door of a Tesla. Not only is nothing demanded of them, but they have also heard that boys need not apply for anything. So that energy comes out during “Call of Duty” or “A Minecraft Movie.”
We don’t need any more male feminists. What we need is more Sullivan Ballous.
