The sound of cracking from every direction drowned out the ‘pew pew’ sounds from Avengers Infinity War. It seemed we missed the memo: Almost every person in this Mandalay, Myanmar, movie theater had traded popcorn for sunflower seeds. Inside this mirror image of an American-style cinema, with stadium-style aging velvet seating, a jam-packed theater noisily ate and chatted through the movie. When the lights went up, shells were strewn from every seat, and instead of a sticky floor, we trudged across a crunchy one.
Leos Carax’s Holy Motors was the first movie I ever saw while traveling. When I was 20, studying abroad in Paris, I decided to test my French skills in the theater. Luckily for me, this arthouse flick didn’t have much dialogue.
“France is the home country of cinema, where it was invented in 1895, and Paris is still the world-capital of cinema today,” says Manon Kerjean, founder of Lost in Frenchlation, an organization whose objective is to allow non-French speaking people to access French cinema through screenings with English subtitles at independent cinemas in France. “Cinema is part of the everyday life in France, like shopping or going to the restaurant, but is more perceived as a culture rather than entertainment.”
When traveling, a trip to the cinema isn’t just a rainy day activity—it’s a cultural experience. Across languages and countries, movies are a global unifier these days. Regardless of what language you speak (thanks to subtitles and dubbing), people in the theater will cry when the fan-favorite dies, laugh when the sidekick makes a joke, and cheer when the bad guy loses. Yet every country has its own movie rituals, unique snacks, and theater quirks that a trip to the cinema well worth a few hours of your far-off trip. Although you may not be a local, 120 minutes spent sitting amongst dozens of them can make you feel like one.
I have seen more movies in Thailand than anywhere else, from Top Gun: Maverick to Jordan Peele’s Us. The first time I went to a movie theater in Chiang Mai, moviegoers started to stand as a royal anthem boomed from the sound system. I looked around, confused, as someone motioned for me to stand and images of the king flashed across the screen in a multi-minute montage. While Americans have something similar at sporting events, I’ve never come across it at any other theater in the world.
Thailand is also home to the most expensive movie experience I’ve ever had. Inside Bangkok’s posh Central Embassy Mall, a ticket to Embassy Diplomat Screens costs $50. While the movie we saw, The Lost City, wasn’t worth the cost of admission, the over-the-top movie experience was. This theater comes with a pre-movie buffet, free-flow drinks, and, once you’re in your bed-like seats, a fully-stocked mini-fridge and blankets.
In true American fashion, my go-to movie snack is usually coated in chocolate. But in South Korea, the choices for Elvis were distinctly savory, from popcorn and hotdogs to dried squid. According to Dr. Hye Seung Chung, Professor of Film and Media Studies at Colorado State University, South Koreans visit movie theaters an average of 4.37 times per year, compared to the four times a year that Americans buy a movie ticket. “Due to high density and overpopulation of the capital city of Seoul, there are few places where young couples and families can go to spend leisure time and enjoy one another’s company,” she says. “In fact, movie theaters are among the cheapest places where couples and families can spend two to three hours without incurring expenses other than admissions (and concessions).”
