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Q. I read the letter in your Answer Man column about TV commercials playing in movie theaters. I, too, am pissed off about this. If advertisers don't want their commercials to be scorned by moviegoers, perhaps they could sponsor a short film. That would add to the entertainment value of my movie ticket and maybe even encourage me to buy from that advertiser. (Herb Kane, criticdoctor.com)
A. Having heard moviegoers boo and ridicule the paid commercials, I am puzzled why advertisers would want to offend audiences in this way.
Since theaters place great emphasis on how many times they can show a movie in a day, the addition of 20 minutes of paid commercials will sooner or later result in pressure for shorter movies--a penalty for filmmakers and audiences.
John Fithian, president of the National Association of Theater Owners, has been quoted as saying: "You can either have movies with ads and pay $7 a ticket, or you can pay $12 a ticket and not have commercials."
If anyone has found a first-run theater that has lowered its prices because of commercials, please let me know.
In the meantime, Chicago area attorney Douglas Litowitz has filed a class-action lawsuit against commercials in movie theaters, and has established a Web site about his campaign at www.nomovieads.com.