Ryan McNeil
So as you might imagine, I spend a fair share of time reading about all sorts of things movie related. I can pass hours at a newsstand, and even more hours online reading about green-lit projects, casting, box office reports, etc. You name it – I read it. I have a few recycling bins full of old entertainment magazines to prove it (along with a light wallet at $5 a shot or more).
However, as I picked up the most recent copy of Entertainment Weekly, I was reminded of the worst part of exposing myself to all these juicy details: Sometimes you just want to be surprised.
You see, there on the cover of this glossy paged goodness was Harrison Ford, all Indy’d up and ready to go. However, I found myself skipping right past the cover story on Indy 4. I did this, because even though I already know more details of the movie than I want to know, I still want to be able to sit down on May 22nd, and enjoy a surprise or two.
This isn’t the first time. While my thirst for details has often got the better of me, there have been many movies where I skip past TV spots, online posts, trailers, and the like, in the hopes that some crucial detail won’t get ruined. I can’t tell you how I go about choosing what I want to keep under wraps…why it is that I don’t want to find out that Darth is Luke’s father, yet won’t lose sleep over knowing that Bruce was dead the whole time. There’s no formula to it – there’s just something about certain movies that make me want to cover my ears and hum.
Anyone else out there like me? Anyone else reach for the remote when Extra is about to run an interview? Anyone else stay away from ain’t it cool news for weeks before a big blockbuster?
Anyone?…Anyone?…..Bueller?…….Bueller?………
I certainly do. I find it a continual challenge to find out film news & coverage without spoilers. In fact, I will be honest and only read the first and last paragraphs here just to cover my bases.
It’s such a challenge not to find out to much, people also have an odd ‘oh, this won’t give anything away’ mentality and then say something huge that happened. It’s so crazy.
I do it more now, but the first time I was *adamant* about it was for Silence of the Lambs. I’d seen the trailer a few times (“Tell me his name, Doctor!”), but refused all else, and saw it opening night to avoid overhearing anything by accident.
I find that knowing stuff ahead of time creates expectation. And expectations can ruin the actual experience. So I try to know very little going in.
Seems now, though, I can’t even ride the subway in the morning without seeing a headline that screams something about how the movie I wanted to check out over the weekend SUCKS…I think opinion can be even more damaging than ‘fact’, sometimes!
– Sue