Dirt, shouting and neglect: what is happening in Israeli cinemas?
The big hits brought a large audience to the cinemas this summer - but also exposed how unpleasant watching a movie in an Israeli cinema can be: long lines, old chairs, dirt, constant noise, and ushers who are not always there when needed. While the audience returns to the cinema and prices climb, we went to check the situation - and found viewers who tell of an experience that is eroding: "The prices are more expensive, but the service is worse."
2026 is shaping up to be one of the best years for cinema in recent years. After the pandemic, streaming, and predictions about the death of the big screen, the audience returned to the halls this summer. In Israel, films like "Kupa Rashit - The Movie" and "Hill 338" manage to arouse great interest, alongside international hits that fill the halls like "Spider-Man: A New Day", "The Odyssey", "Obsession" and "Michael". At least in terms of the number of people willing to leave the house again and watch a movie on a big screen, the obituaries for the cinema were premature.
But just when the halls are filling up, testimonies about less pleasant experiences of viewers in various cinemas in Israel are increasing. The documentation that arrived about a month ago from Hot Cinema Ashdod presented a bleak picture. In videos published on social networks, very neglected chairs were seen in the hall. "Just be ashamed, this is a cinema that should be closed," wrote the mother who went with her children to a movie and published the documentation. The reactions that accompanied the video were filled with testimonies from viewers about dirt, poor maintenance, noise, and disturbances in other cinemas.
What does the viewer get for their money?
What could have looked like a local malfunction in one branch raised a broader question: what exactly does someone who pays for an evening at the cinema get today? Following the documentation and claims - we went over the last two weeks to four cinemas: Cinema City Rishon LeZion, Planet Rishon LeZion, Rav Chen Tel Aviv, and Lev Tel Aviv. The visits were held in the middle of the summer vacation, and the gap between the cities was noticeable. The complexes in Rishon LeZion were very busy, with long lines and a large young audience, while in Tel Aviv there was less traffic and the experience was calmer and more orderly.
The price? Not cheap at all. A regular ticket at Cinema City currently costs 49.90 NIS at the box office, and when ordering online, a commission of 4.50 NIS is added. At Hot Cinema, a regular ticket costs 46 NIS at the box office and 50.50 NIS for online ticketing. Of course, the list price does not tell the whole story. The cinema market in Israel is full of benefits, vouchers, consumer clubs, and 1+1 promotions of credit companies, and many of the viewers do not pay the full price. The chains themselves also offer subscriptions that can significantly lower the entrance price.
The vanished usher
Once, an usher was an almost taken-for-granted part of the screening. In every hall, there was an employee who entered with a flashlight, kept order, made comments to those who disturbed, and if someone was late, he would accompany him to his seat so that he would not start shining with the phone and looking for the chair in the middle of the movie. Today, this presence has disappeared. When someone talks, films, shouts, or shines in the hall, the viewer who is affected by this is sometimes required to choose between confronting him himself or leaving the movie and looking for an employee.
We started the check at Cinema City Rishon LeZion with quite a few concerns, but even before we entered the hall, the first problem was waiting. In front of the buffet, a huge line stretched, and the wait lasted more than 20 minutes. On the side of the buffet stood automatic stations that are supposed to shorten the process, except that while the audience crowded in line, no one directed the viewers to them or explained that they could be used.
Violence and fear of employees
A conversation with an employee at the place who asked to remain anonymous at the end of the screening raised a bleak picture. "People prefer not to enter so as not to cause a commotion or get hurt. We have already heard about employees who were hurt and we have already seen fights and shouting between people in the hall, if we are not really forced - there is no reason for us to get into it." This fear of the employees can be understood. Only last summer, a case reached the headlines where an usher at the Hot Cinema hall in Rehovot was brutally attacked, after he approached a group of teenagers and asked them to stop smoking during the screening of "Kupa Rashit".
The one who is ultimately hurt by the fear of the ushers in the cinema is the viewer. Ori Ronen, host of the podcast "Performance from Hell", encountered a similar case about two weeks ago, at a screening of the movie "Michael" at Cinema City Glilot. "This was really one of the worst experiences I remember," he says. He notes that the home viewing experience has become more fun, and the prices are not worth the service.
Chain responses
From Cinema City, it was responded: "This summer, the Cinema City complexes were visited by hundreds of thousands of customers, who enjoyed a full leisure and viewing experience. We take any disturbance to the viewing experience seriously and act through the complex's teams and ushers to maintain order in the halls."
From the Lev cinema chain, it was responded: "We are happy to see that the visitors were impressed by the cleanliness, order, and silence at the Lev Tel Aviv cinema. Out of respect for the audience and their viewing experience, the complex is constantly being renewed and upgraded." In the Planet and Rav Chen cinema chain, they chose not to respond.
