Big thank you to AMC Theatres for carrying rear window captioning and open captioned movies. AMC captioned movie information is here and NCAM/Motion Picture Access (MOPIX) info is here.
Yesterday was the first time I attended a movie with rear window captions. I’ve been to open captioned movies twice at AMC Grapevine Mills. The nearby rear window theatre I went to last night was AMC Valley View in Dallas.
I prefer rear window because we can pick what day and time we want to see a show and it’s not limited to weekdays like open captions. Plus, I can see it with a regular audience rather than those who need captions. while hearing folks can attend open captioned movies, no one did unless they accompanied someone needing captions.
The rear window isn’t without its flaws. The couple sitting next two us made TWO trips out of the seating area… therefore, I had to adjust the window four times and it isn’t easy to get it adjusted just right. The captioning isn’t on during previews and it would be nice if it had a test message during previews as it didn’t give me enough time to set it up when it said to adjust positioning right when the movie started.
It’s hard to read the captions when the movie scene is light-colored as the text is digital orange. The text looks like 3D. It took a few minutes to get used to having a different shade (from the window’s black like sunglasses) between the window and the movie screen. MOPIX explains better:
The patented Rear Window? Captioning System displays reversed captions on a light-emitting diode (LED) text display which is mounted in the rear of a theater. Deaf and hard-of-hearing patrons use transparent acrylic panels attached to their seats (I put mine in the cup holder) to reflect the captions so that they appear superimposed on the movie screen. The reflective panels are portable and adjustable, enabling the caption user to sit anywhere in the theater.
I sat where the display was straight behind me. I don’t know how hard it is to adjust the window if I were sitting on the far right. Didn’t want to try it. The FAQ also has good info.
Wish there was a way to look up the movie schedule ahead of time instead of wait until Friday. Haven’t had luck finding a list anywhere on AMC or NCAM’s Web sites.
I plan to drop a thank you note to AMC Valley View. I’ve done the same for AMC Grapevine Mills. I hope others do the same so they know how much it’s appreciated and that we use it. I wrote to another chain about adding it and its management wrote a rude reply and clearly has no plans to add captioning. Guess what? My family and I sees movies mainly at AMC even though rival theatre is walking distance from my house. I’m the only one who needs captions, so the chain is missing out on four other tickets plus whoever comes with us.