Been Caught Stealing

Posted on Author Ryan McNeil


Two days ago, I was talking with someone who may or may not read this blog. I asked if they’d seen PARANORMAL ACTIVITY, and likewise what they thought of it.

The person told me that they weren’t all that creeped out by it…which for better or worse, causes a pretty hefty degree of shock to yours truly since it got me pretty good. But then the person went and made matters worse. They told me that they didn’t go to a theatre and watch it, that they in fact downloaded it from Ninja Video.

Grrrrr……

For starters, I’ve never believed in downloading movies. I think that unless it’s something that absolutely MUST be seen right away (and such occasions happen very seldom), one must at least be able to wait for dvd. While I will always advocate getting to a screening, I realize this isn’t always possible. When it isn’t, I don’t think the hard work of filmmakers should be experienced through a broadband connection.

What’s worse is the particular film in question. If you must download…download TRANSFORMERS…download TWILIGHT…download a film that really doesn’t need the money or the word of mouth. Don’t rip off a director who turned eleven grand into an entertaining flick. Don’t get me wrong kids, I’ve been privy to the odd bootleg copy or theatre jumping – but never at the cost of screwing indie cinema.

I know…I know…I’m a snob. But am I alone here? Have our cinematic morals dropped so far that we don’t want to pay for anything anymore??

17 Replies to “Been Caught Stealing”

  1. If you ever want to get into a serious conversation on this send me an email and I could do some edumacation. I did an ethics debate some time back on the plus and minuses of torrents whose primary use these days is for illegal software and downloading of movies.

    I get into lots of conversations (arguments) about this with my fellow comp-sci majors, especially since many are of the belief that everything should be free (the downside to Linux people is obsession with open source). It doesn't help that Hollywood has seemingly no ability to keep their films protected anyways many of which are online in DVD quality up to one to two months prior to the DVD release. Though I do heavily agree with you and of course are in the same boat.

    No matter how much we debate the issue though, it'll always come back to one simple question:

    Should people have to spend money on something without forehand knowledge of its quality? The counter argument I often provide is they can read reviews, but of course then comes in should they have to? That's a toughy for me.

  2. I absolutely agree with you. The only time I ever downloaded anything (actually, I had some friends download it for me) was when I really couldn't see it otherwise. Like when I lived in Europe and it just wasn't shown there.

    I used to go to the cinema about once a week but since moving to NYC where the ticket price is $12.50 ($16.50 for 3D and 18.50 for Imax!) I really had to cut it down to about once a month. I hate it but the prices are just horrendous! So now I tend to do double features and just stay in the cinema for another film.

    Do I feel bad about it? No. Normally I would pay half the price for the ticket so I feel like I am paying for two screenings anyways…

  3. "Should people have to spend money on something without forehand knowledge of its quality?"

    Couldn't you say that about any product, though? Should people take bites of fruit at the grocery store prior to buying them? Should people steal cars so that they might personally judge said car before having to purchase later? You might say "well, they get to test drive them," and I might say "a) child, please – 5 minutes in a car tells you nothing and b) movie trailers = test drive."

    People don't truly know the quality of anything before purchasing – they have to go by the word of mouth of others, and for movies and music, it's reviews.

    I don't even really see where the debate for "everything should be freeee!" starts. It's ludicrous. I'm more than happy to spend my supplemental income on movies and music.

  4. I agree that the more independent, worthwhile movies (or bands, or writers, etc) are worth the money for a theatre ticket or dvd. But I'll admit sometimes I stream really fluffy movies that I'm embarrassed to be seen watching (self-indulgent romantic comedies mostly), which I assume don't need the money.

  5. Unfortunately, perhaps because this person has wasted their money on a Transformers or a Twilight, they felt justified in illegally downloading a movie. It raises all sorts of piracy issues, the strongest of which I feel are product control, but in the end, stealing is stealing.

  6. “many are of the belief that everything should be free” Filmmaking is a business, it is designed to make money. It does this by creating a product that people are prepared to pay for. If films where given away free, the actors, directors, electricians, carpenters, caterers and all the other millions of people who play a part in making films will have to give away their services for free. If this were to happen you could argue the same about everything else from food to electricity and any other commodity. This is the start of a moneyless society. I really can’t see that happening.

    “Should people have to spend money on something without forehand knowledge of its quality” is a really week argument, how do you measure the “quality” of a film or any other piece of art. Many films I think are rubbish are actually successful.

    The simple answer is people like me will continue to watch films at the cinema as I prefer to see films on the big screen and don’t think any home system can match that. Other people will download films illegally (and possibly legally in the future) dysesse

  7. I notice lots of people whipping out the bash stick for what I wrote, I'd like to point out those aren't my comments, just the most common statements I hear when I get into this conversation… a conversation I get stuck in the middle of far too often.

  8. Looks like with all the comments this post got, I picked the wrong day to stay in bed with a cold!

    @ Univarn… I understand what you are saying, so no hate here. You're right, this generation has grown up with far too much free access to entertainment. Thus, there is precious little they want to pay for. Kinda gets back to the whole "Why would I buy a dvd when I can burn your copy?" mentality.

    @ Vanessa… I'll be honest – if you were living in Europe, wanted to see ACTIVITY but it wasn't on screens there, I could ignore that.

    Given how many times people like us pay full price, occasions such as those are permissible…IMO anyway 🙂

    @ Fletch… I agree – I have the money. Given how happy movies make me, I'm alright taking a gamble…even if quality isn't assured.

    @ Alex… It's OK – we won't tell anybody. Now go back to watching that advance bootleg of NEW MOON.

    @ Big Mike… Ever notice the correlation between the alltime box office champs and actual movie quality? I'll give you a hint – it ain't pretty!

    @ Fandango… Thanks for your honesty! You reming me of a fellow blogger who asked me why she should pay for cable when with as router and a T1 connection, she could pirate anything she wanted (aside from live events) in HD.

    As a man who just married a woman working in the television industry, I took great offense.

  10. I agree, especially in terms of a film like Paranormal Activity, which is much easier to appreciate in a theater environment. Personally, if there is a film I really want to see, I will try my absolute best to see it in theaters, or else I will wait it out until DVD. I wouldn't think about watching a bootleg version on the internet, it completely disrespects the film.

  11. Of particular note with "Paranormal Activity" is the sound design. The thuds, creaks, bumps, crashes, etc. are all part of the experience of being scared. Those low rumbles before anything happened were a big part of setting up the dread.

    There's no way that would've come through on your friends computer. So they totally missed out on the film that was shown in theatres (at least in this case).

  12. @ Andrew… When your friends burn copies for you.

    @ Danny… Good on ya, though sometimes I fear people like us are slipping into the minority.

    @ Bob… Couldn't agree more. It was the subtle audio mix that really made that flick so creepy. Unless the person I know watched the film with headphones on (which I doubt), those elements would have been lost on her. Mighta well been why she didn't find it so scary.

  13. I agree Hatter voting with your dollars is essential.

    To me though the films where this really count aren't so much, indie films or huge budget movies. But mid level studio stuff with genuine personality made by a good director. Stuff like Drag Me To Hell, The Fountain, or coughThe Boxcough. Everytime one of those movies fails the studios play it a bit safer and we all lose out. The mainstream needs to not be afraid of some idiosyncracies, the minute the stop divulging from pure formula is the moment we're all good and fucked.

  15. @ Evil Dead… Good point. I'd much rather take a flier on something mid-level but promising like THE FOUNTAIN, because even if it fails, Hollywood will still be apt to make more like it if we show that we're here to listen.

  16. I'd say it's too bad that said person not only cheated the filmmakers out of some hard-earned cash, but also that they cheated themselves out of a genuinely creepy movie experience by opting to watch it on their computer instead of in a dark, suffocating-you-with-dread movie theatre, where such a film belongs.

    Big shock they weren't frightened by it. *shrugs* Everyone loses in THAT scenario!

    -SooZie

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