It may interest readers to know that popcorn at the cinema is really only a North American treat. In Australia and New Zealand, ice cream cones are the first snack choice for movie goers. The popularity of ice cream is based, no doubt, on the same properties it shares with popcorn; it doesn't crunch so is more suitable to the movie theatre than chips or pretzels.

The other huge advantage ice cream cones have over popcorn is that it is eaten quickly so is consumed before the curtain rises, whereas a box of popcorn can last the whole movie. I have long stopped going to movies, partly because of the noise of people eating and rattling plastic packages.

I am like you, I practically stopped going to the theaters because other viewers were so rude and inconsiderate. One lady opened and closed her plastic bag after each piece of candy she ate, I finally turned around and threatened to grab it out of her hands. I could barely hear the dialog because of her.

Didn't people ever have their mom tell them to chew with their mouths closed? For some reason they think that ponying up their ten bucks at a theater allows them to act like cretins at the expense of others.

Buy some foam earplugs and use them. Not only does it help to tone down the rediculously loud volume in a theater, it dulls the rude noises made by plastic candy bags, popcorn munchers and whisperers who think their theater buck is more valuable than your's.

I swear by this.

I too have used foam earplugs at the cinema. But let's face it; by the time you pay the admission fee, sit through a dozen previews and ads, deal with cellphones and noisy eaters, it is hardly worth the effort in the first place, especially given the choice of movies. I now exclusively buy movies on DVD and watch at my leisure in the peace and quiet of my home. And I can stop viewing anytime to make myself a snack that will be way better than a box of salty, overpriced, popcorn.

I too have found the methodical munching of popcorn by theatregoers to be crude, obscene, and hugely distracting, although I have found that where it most occurs--action-packed blockbusters--to be least disturbing due to the ear-splitting decibel-levels of the noisetrack.

My solution, for when I must see a film in a darkened theatre as the director, DP, cinematographer, art director, and everyone else involved intended, is to wait several weeks after opening weekend and then go to a matinee. But if the film is a popular blockbuster, then I go to the theatre as much for the audience response and energy as for the film itself, because outside of organized religion and professional sports, few venues exist for the public sharing of emotions, and theatres provide an inexpensive means of communing with your fellow man.

Due to a miserly Asian upbringing, it wouldn't be a feeling of nostalgia I'd be feeling throughout the movie, but a piercing guilt of blowing 10 dollars on a popcorn and soda. Add that to the exorbitant price of movie tickets these days (what is it, $9?), the greasy seats, and the spilled soda that I will invariably step in, it's just not worth it. I can't even agree with the idea of a community vibe from going to the theaters; I feel absolutely no connection with anyone around me except a distinct frustration at their ringing cell phones.