'Dark Knight Rises': Security enhanced at local theaters

The department's downtown unit, which includes undercover officers, planned to work closely with the Americana's security detail on future movie showings, he said. Officers from department's graveyard shift will also be monitoring activity at the city's theaters.

It appeared most movie-goers didn't let the incident keep them out of theaters Friday afternoon as both local Pacific and AMC theater complexes were busy, particularly for “Dark Knight” showings.

“We've been having heavy sales,” said Stacie Ayon, manager of the Pacific Theaters in Glendale. “It is a blockbuster.”

Chris Rosa, 25, was headed into the 2:20 p.m. showing of “Dark Night” Friday at AMC Theatres.

“Burbank is way different from Colorado,” he said, “This is a different demographic, so I'm not too scared.”

He added, though, that increasing security would be a good idea.

“You can pat me down. I don't care,” he said.

Selena Shavagyan, 16, who was going into a restaurant outside AMC Theatres, said she won't be quite so carefree.

“I don't think anything like that would happen around Burbank, but it does give me a different perspective on going to see [“Dark Knight”] or going to the theater,” she said. “I'd just feel weird.”

Carla DeLaCruz, who was watching her young son play in the park outside Pacific Theatres at the Americana at Brand, said she would still take her child to the movies.

“That was an isolated incident,” she said. “I would still take him to the movie theater [for a] matinee. For a kids' movie, I think it's different.”

Paul Dergarabedian, a box office analyst for hollywood.com, said it's too early to tell if the tragedy will impact the movie's bottom line.

“Presales are huge,” he said as the film was entering its opening weekend in the U.S. “The die-hard fans are still interested in the movie.”

He also said that some people may be apprehensive about going into a theater for while, just as they were after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. However, as time goes by without additional incidents and more security measures may be put in place, their anxiety should subside, he said.

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