Look, I’ll come right out and say that, in my college days, I was a fiend for bringing outside snacks into a theater.  Rather than pay ridiculous prices for the same old dreck, I would smuggle in just about anything from a liter Mountain Dew and a Snickers bar to, on one memorable occasion catching Enemy of the State with my then-girlfriend, two foot-long Subway sandwiches.

She thought I was some kind of scary genius.

It was awesome.

As for the how, never underestimate the simple expedient of a zipped up winter coat and your front pants pockets.  But anyway, the crew out at AMC is going to give you a whole new reason to work your home theater–they’ve declared outright war on outside snacks.

Of course, their options are rather limited–they can’t search you outright–but they make the case you’d expect for this: revenues are down, costs are up, they need more cash, so buy their hyperinflated Milk Duds rather than bring in your own.  Chances are most people will ignore this, and any heavyhandedness in enforcement on their part will only shoot them in the OTHER foot, so how far this goes is anyone’s guess.

Some theaters, however, are backing this up with expanded concession lines including surprising fare like French toast and Thai coconut chicken tenders.  A smart approach, frankly, but one fairly easily duplicated at home. A better move than the alternative, but still.