Rachel Kramer Bussel has written up a very interesting article on The Frisky about having a first date at the movies. She definitely puts a more female spin on the experience, that a guy would not think of. She has some interesting points about it, but I respectfully disagree with her.

Typically, I find a first date at the movies to be very awkward, especially if you’re getting to know someone. I feel it doesn’t allow you to get to know the person because you really can’t talk during the movie. Yeah, you have some time before the movie for chit-chat, but you’re also thinking about the limited amount of time that you have before the movie starts that you try to rush to things that you think would be good to talk about to try and win some points so you have something to look forward to after the movie, but if you can’t, and most like you will fail at achieving some meaningful conversation before the movie, you will be thinking during the movie, “damn I messed this one up already.” I find that first dates at movies can be difficult because you’re trying to do two things at once; watch a movie, and figure out your next move after the movie.

I’ve had the experience of going to the movies as a first date on a few occassions.

The first time I did this was on a blind/double date. My aunt by marriage, who is just a few years older than me decided to hook me up with her friend for the night. I was young, and the most she would tell me about her friend was that “she has a great personality.” I did not know it back then, but that was code for “she’s not pretty, but she’s cool to be around because she makes the other girls look better.” Her and I did not hit it off at all. I basically sat there during the entire movie thinking “when will this be over.” I don’t even remember what movie we saw, and couldn’t wait to get home.

The second time I did a first date movie was a friend of mine, that we had an expressed interest in each other. The time during the movie felt so cautious and she looked a little uncomfortable because of her sitting posture; she was curled up like a ball in her seat for the entire time of the movie.

The third time I did this, was on another blind/double date. This time I bought my friend Jeff along as my support. We were going to meet someone I had been talking to online, and her friend. I never met them before but stated to her before we met that we were going just as friends, nothing more. This way it helped to set the tone of the date early on so that if we didn’t click, it was ok, it was stated before hand. Yeah, that didn’t work out as planned.

We met up with them at the Barnes and Noble in Union Square, in NYC. The girl I had spoken to online for a few weeks now I thought, her she’s cute; her friend on the other hand, well, I’m sure she has a great personality. So we make our way to the movie theater, and her friend managed to make it to the ticket window before I or my friend Jeff could. My plan was to pay for two tickets, and Jeff would pay for two tickets. It’s what we do. No, it didn’t happen like that. Her friend, who I will call “Blondie”, purchased all four tickets. I was a little surprised by the gesture and didn’t think much of it.

After the movie we went to a near by bar, and had some drinks. Apparently my drinking abilities at the time impressed “Blondie” so much that she was really liking me. Liking me to the point that her hand found it’s way to my leg. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel the same about her. So I politely told her that I didn’t like her in that way, and well, to put it short, the date went straight “to hell in a hand basket” from there. It ended with her throwing up a number of times on the way home, and me telling her off in the nicest way possible, and giving the cab driver extra just for having to make a mini stop because she needed to throw up again.

So yeah, movie dates too early in the dating can be bad. I think they are best left for later in the dating, after the third date.