In India, going to see a Hollywood film often comes with an unexpected twist: the interval. Some film studios have tried to address this by placing designated intermission points in their movies, but the recent release of Superman has caused quite a stir due to an issue of ‘double intervals’ at several cinemas.
Superman, which runs for 2 hours and 9 minutes, was designed with a specific intermission roughly after 80 minutes. Warner Bros chose this timing carefully, wanting to maintain the movie’s tension and flow. However, many cinemas seemed to have missed this communication and opted to add their own intermission around the one-hour mark. This has led to confusion among viewers who were unaware of the film’s planned break.
A source shared that despite being informed ahead of time, some cinemas either did not pay attention to the instructions or decided to ignore them altogether. As a result, many moviegoers ended up having their film experience disrupted twice—first by an unexpected intermission and then again by the official break after 80 minutes.
This has understandably upset audiences. Reports indicate that some viewers confronted cinema managers about the issue. While the studio has tried to clarify the situation, it appears that this miscommunication is still happening in certain locations. Thankfully, fewer complaints were noted over the weekend compared to Friday.
Two moviegoers shared their experiences. Harshad Bende, who watched Superman at a theater in Mumbai, reported, “After an hour, we had an interval, and then, 30 minutes later, another break with an anti-smoking ad. It completely ruined the experience.” He later spoke to the manager, who apologized but couldn’t provide a clear reason for the mishap, citing an error on the part of the projectionist.
Meanwhile, Nayan B Rathod, who saw the film in Goa, experienced a similar problem. “We had two intervals; the first felt random, while the second came with the official slate. It left us confused about which break was legitimate,” he explained.
On a contrasting note, the other new release of the week, Maalik, has an interval scheduled at the one-hour mark. Its structure is simpler, with the second half of the film being longer, preventing any confusion.
As viewers navigate these hiccups in their movie-watching experience, theaters and studios are urged to streamline communication to ensure a smoother experience for everyone.
