I truly despise going to a movie on a first date because as far as first dates go, the movies demonstrate as much originality as a white wall. There’s no thought process beyond scheduling a time to go and what movie to see, and for about two hours, you and the date are doing pretty much the same thing you two could be doing by yourselves. But, then again, anyone in a relationship knows good and well the joys of going to see a movie together. Want to get out of the house even though it’s raining outside? Go to the movies. Not ready to go home after a long day of running errands? Go to the movies? You and your partner find yourself in a sleepy town where there is not much to do? Go to the movies.

Yes, like it or not, the movies, are a cure-all for those of us who want to do something with someone but don’t know what to do. Even I, the man who just said he despises first date movie dates have gone on my fair share of them. As unoriginal as they may be, there are ways to make a movie date, a great date. Here are five of them. GO SEE A GOOD ONE Sounds so easy, and almost impossible to gauge. The goal of any journey to the movies is to see our next favorite film, but so rarely does this happen. Before buying a ticket, scan some reviews. I usually stick to one simple rule to determine this: If Roger Ebert says it’s good, I should probably check it out. Also, if it’s a choice between a movie you want to see and the movie everyone else is saying you should see, choose the latter, if only because we know eventually we’re going to see the movie we want to see, so what’s the rush? Trust me, very, very good things come to those who choose a good movie, and when I say very good things, I absolutely mean sex.

Personally, I prefer to hit up a drug store for more snack food options and I implore every man to insist on this. Make sure to get a shareable item, don’t be the jerk who knows she hates Juniors Mints and buys Junior Mints anyway. Adapt. If movie popcorn is preferred, go with a small to split. Anything bigger and watch a knot form in the stomach by the film’s closing credits. Try to save room for a bite to eat afterward, which brings me to my next rule… MOVIE BEFORE MEAL, NEVER THE OTHER WAY AROUND Always, always, always insist on going to a movie before getting the bite to eat. Doing it the other way around is a quick ticket to being the guy who fell asleep at the movie, a man I have been plenty of times.

Maybe it’s just me, but I always seem to date the kind of woman who is a seat diva. You know the seat divas, the type of woman who just can’t sit anywhere, talking about, “We’re too close” or “We’re too far.” She is also the type of woman who won’t hesitate to yell over six people to ask, “Is someone sitting there?” and then proceed to ask an entire row of people to move one chair over to “make room.” If a man did any of these things, another man in the row is probably going to say something not nice back to him (I know I would). A woman on the other hand can get away with this, hence why whenever I walk into a movie theater, I always just look at my date like I’m lost. MATINEES ARE THE BEST. Christopher Walken once said the morning time is the best time to watch a movie, and I couldn’t agree more, especially in movie theaters. Not only are matinees cheaper, they’re also usually less crowded, and schedule friendly. If I like the girl I took with me to the matinee, maybe we can get brunch afterward. If I don’t like her after the matinee, guess what? We can part ways with enough time for me to call up another girl, and ask her if she wants to go to the movies with me that night. A perfect plan if I do say so myself.