Vishnu Warrier
6. Excessive Thinking
If you are at the comfort of your home, watching a movie on your laptop, there is always a tendency to sneak into the plot section of the Wikipedia and try and understand the plot-details of the movie in between watching it. Have patience, give your time to it and don’t think a lot about the film. Go with the flow and let the film consume you. There is a whole lot of time left to discuss, analyze and understand the plot intricacies of the film. Too much thinking would only prevent you from enjoying the film to its fullest.
7. Not Finishing the Movie
As a cinephile, complaints about not being able to finish a certain film often run around my ears everyday. While I understand this particular situation and have often been a sinner of this crime myself, I do believe it’s absolutely necessary to finish a film regardless of how bad or how tedious it may seem unless, of course, you’re probably in the worst of moods. One of the most exciting aspects of being a cinephile is when you sit through a film with little to no expectations at all and the film managing to do wonders with you; something I’ve learnt over the years. Having a certain amount of curiosity and inquisitiveness are essential to get exposed to better cinema and this can only be achieved by showing a great deal of patience.
8. Feel Threatened by the Running Time
As an Indian, I can proudly say that the length of the running time of a film hardly ever intimidates me. The running time for most Indian films range from about 120 minutes to 180 minutes, thanks to the song and dance numbers and mindless action sequences. But in some way or the other, being exposed to such films have only benefited me in evolving more as a cinephile later in my life. And trust me when I say that there is absolutely no need to feel threatened or intimidated by a film’s running time. A great film grabs your attention and pulls you towards it, without ever letting you know of the passage of time. Famously, Sergio Leone’s ‘Once Upon a Time in America’ was a film that got butchered by the studio and theaters due to its frighteningly long running time that extends to almost 4 hours and was forced to shorten it by around 40 minutes. The result was a massive critical and commercial failure while the original uncut version wooed critics and audiences and has since been regarded as one of the greatest gangster films ever made. Just find some time to invest yourself in the movie and you are sure to be rewarded.
9. Not Having an Open Mind
When you go in to a film completely unaware of what its about or have absolutely no idea of the filmmaker or his previous work, it’s very necessary that you keep an open mind for what you’re about to venture into. Expect the worst and you might not end up miserably disappointed. Filmmakers in world cinema often experiment with narrative structure and form and you may find yourself in a cinematic maze that numbed your intellectual senses. But instead of going on a rant about how terrible the film was, take some time out to analyze what the film was all about; try and decipher its hidden meanings, construct your own interpretations and come to a fairer and more reasonable judgement.
10. Falling Asleep
It might seem like a joke but this is perhaps the worst manner in which someone could treat a movie. “Fell Asleep” is a term that is often thrown around way too often by movie goers and other viewers. The hyperbolic part of such a statement is understandable but what’s worrying is I have actually come across people who literally snore at the cinema. I don’t believe any film could ever put you to sleep unless you’ve had a really bad day in which case it’s best that you skip the film and push it for another day.
