SilverCity Riverport Cinemas — Local services in Richmond

(Excuse the email name I picked in the seventh grade!)

Yesterday evening I came into this theatre to watch black panther! I figured it was a Tuesday so I did the responsibile thing and purchased my tickets/seats online. Upon arrival at the theatre there seemed to be an issue with our online ticket! No problem, I understand things don’t always work out and it might be a couple minutes until the issue is resolved. However this was not the case at this Cinniplex. Do keep in mind I’m a very patient person and have never felt compelled to write a negative review about a business, until now. It took three staff members to resolve this issue. At this point I’ve waited 25-30 minutes AFTER the movie had started. The reason at the end of all this was that my account had been flagged and the transaction never went through. If this was the case then why would I get a confirmation emails saying “thank you for your purchase” and no email telling me my purchase had been declined? Essentially this is an issue on your end not mine. All of this isn’t even the reason I’m writing my review. I’m writing this review because of how your staff members serisouly lack BASIC customer service skills and obviously don’t care about their jobs or the customers coming through the doors. Seriously not an ounce of thoughtfulness from your staff members. I never received a SINGLE apology throughout the entire process. Not even a simple “sorry” even though our movie had already started. And then this butch woman with a name tag bearing “she’s the man” was the last one to help me. She told me; again without a single apology and in the most unempathetic careless tone that if I wanted to still see the show I would not only lose the seats I had booked but I would also have to pay full price, and basically gave me the ultimatum that I would have to pay full price in cash or I wouldn’t be able to watch the film because apparently the machines don’t work either! I had no cash and at this point your staff had made me wait 30 minutes past the movie time. I told her I had no cash and she told me that there was nothing to be done.

Your staff (especially “she’s the man”) seriously have the brain of a slug as to not even think for one second “maybe this customer would like to hear an apology for our mistake”

Not only did you waste 30 minutes of my time but you also wasted 20 more minutes that it takes me each way to get to your theatre. Your staff offered me no compensation at all and didn’t even offer a single apology throughout the entire process. Again, I’ve never written a negative review in my life but my experience at your theatre yesterday evening and the way your staff handled the situation seriously compelled me to do so. (I’ve been going to this theatre since I was a kid) I don’t plan on ever coming back here ever again, unless I receive some form of apology.

Thank you for taking the time to...

IF YOU DON'T LIKE MICE OR RATS I SUGGEST THAT YOU DO NOT COME HERE!! I'm still fuming after experience me and my friends had last night at your theatre. We were celebrating our friends Birthday and came to watch Flight Risk.

As we were watching the movie we noticed a rat go down the stairs as we were sitting right in front of the aisle . At first I second guessed myself but soon it became clear that the theater was infested. Not only a rat but Mice were running all over the place.

I left the show and went to find the manager to let him know what was going on . His response was unbothered almost seemed like i was bothering him. I asked if he could send someone in to at least inspect it . Nothing happened .

At this point I was trying to not let this ruin our friend's birthday and tried to continue watching the movie . Let me be clear no one came to check in on the theatre.

We tried to make the best of it, but it was impossible to focus on the movie . Eventually, we had no choice but to leave mid-movie because more and more mice wears climbing up and down the stairs . As we walked out, one of the mice even jumped in front of my friend on the stair, causing her to almost fall.

What really took this to another level for me was Keith! As I exited the show with my friends he was hanging off of the counter talking and laughing with one of his employees. What kind of management is this?? When we brought the issue to his attention, he had a very whatever kind of attitude about the whole situation . Not even an apology or acknowledgement of the problem. He grudgingly refunded our tickets, but the lack of customer service and concern for our experience was Shocking!

Keith explained to us he knows about the issue and still not even a sorry!! How can a theater expect customers to sit in the dark, surrounded by mice, without even warning them about the issue? It's unacceptable and a serious health concern. The fact that Keith seemed more concerned with just giving us our refund where he should at least addressed the problem says a lot about the theater's priorities. THE ONLY REASON WE SAW THE RAT AND THE MICE IS BECAUSE WE WERE SITTING AT END OF AISLE . Management responded to my complaint and gave me a bunch of lies about they will tell their exterminators.

I am extremely Disappointed with the treatment we received tonight. I will be reporting this...

Terrible experience.

Went to see Ben-Hur on 65th anniversary and the movie was way too loud. Not IMAX-loud when the sound is rich but regular-speakers-loud when it’s just volume to a maximum.

And when I saw Enter the Dargon on the movies anniversary in 2023, it was the opposite- the movie was too quiet. So quiet that people were uncomfortable eating popcorn while the characters were talking.

Get it together, Cineplex!

I believe the movie going experience is dying not because of the streaming but because of stuff like that - too many risk variables to end up with poor experience: too loud, too quiet, low-contrast image, broken chair, poor security to make sure people behave appropriately, hidden fees. All of that is applicable to Cineplex.

Love movies but sincerely hate this chain. Hopefully Cineplex goes bankrupt or gets new leadership.

Personally I decided to watch movies at home - 4K HDR TVs are very accessible nowadays and come with pré-installed apps allowing you to rent/buy favorite movies. Sonos soundbar for about $400-500 will give you a better sound than at a regular admission screening - and you’re in control of volume, not some dude playing with random numbers behind the wall of the auditorium.

My recent visit to Cineplex proved to me that movie theatre experience is mostly an illusion - there is no one unified experience. It’s just a series of encounters with random outcomes where you either end up satisfied or disappointed, sometimes disappointed to the degree where you wish you didn’t go to theatre in the first place. And with their current prices ($15 for regular admission), it may not even be...