Wednesday, April 27, 2011

The Voice

So, I watched "The Voice" today. Well, I watched parts of it. The important parts. I watched it "On Demand" and fast forwarded through most of the reality TV crap--the sappy interviews and whatnot--and just got right down to the performances.

As a concept, I like "The Voice." Indeed, it's the only reality/singing-competition show I've bothered to watch. Unfortunately, in the end, it's still just another reality show. I might pop in to watch another episode or two but I can't bring myself to say that I'm a "fan" of the show.

Monday, April 25, 2011

Pet Peeve: Talking in movie theaters

I went to a movie recently with someone. Someone who kept talking about the movie while it was playing. Someone who yelled at the screen during a particularly harrowing moment in the film. Their excuse: "I really get into movies."

I get into movies too, I show it by remaining silent and concentrating on what I'm watching. When other people distract me, it pulls me OUT of the film and ruins the experience for me.

Such behavior is disrespectful. It's disrespectful to the other audience members, it's disrespectful to the artform, it's disrespectful to the artists who created the film.

As a filmmaker myself, I find it disrespectful to me, even when it isn't my film that's being screened.

The word "Audience" comes from the latin "audentia" which means "listening" not talking, or yelling, or commenting. At least not in the middle of the screening.

Now, I've been known to offer a brief comment or quiet remark from time to time. Emphasis on the words "brief" and "quiet." Indeed, I made a couple of quiet remarks during this particular screening. These remarks did not distract the entire theater nor diminish their experience because of the rude guy yelling at the screen during the climax of the film.