If you’re looking at your phone (or anything else for that matter) during a movie, you’re not watching the movie.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot because my wife is constantly looking at her phone while “watching” a movie. (She also skips through movies — even ones she’s never seen before — but that’s another topic that’s even more annoying.) Also, my mom had a boyfriend when I was young who would read a newspaper while we were watching a movie. I picked up this pet peeve of mine from him. He would have his face behind a newspaper then ask what’s going on in the movie or ask what someone just said. I’d tell him to just pay attention to the movie. He’d say he was paying attention, and I’d tell him he wasn’t: one because he’s reading a newspaper and two because if he was paying attention, he wouldn’t need to ask what’s going on. My wife does the same thing, asking what’s happening in the movie, and she also gets indignant when I tell her to pay attention.

They’ll say that they’re listening to the dialogue while looking at something else, which doesn’t work as evidenced by the fact that they ask what a character just said, but also, movies are more than just the plot; a truly great masterpiece isn’t just that way because of its plot, it’s also great editing, cinematography, blocking, shot composition, lighting, production design, non-verbal acting, etc, and no amount of half listening while your eyes are somewhere else is going to help you appreciate those things.

I don’t know if I’m the weird one or if it’s everyone else (because it seems the rest of the entire world can’t keep focused on movies), but I just don’t look at my phone at all while watching a movie, and the only times I do is because the movie made me think of something I want to look up, and I know I’ll forget if I don’t do it then and there, and I often pause the movie to do so (or it’s a movie I’ve seen a bunch and I don’t need to pay real close attention). But it seems like no one can just pay attention to movies. And this isn’t a “the kids these days” rant; like I said, I first became aware of this annoying habit before cellphones were around and the thing someone was looking at instead of the movie was a newspaper. Also, the most face-glued-to-a-phone people I’ve met have been boomers.

If you’re one of these people who can’t go 2 hours without looking at your phone, and your attitude is “let me watch movies the way I want,” then whatever. I just know that you’re not actually watching the movie, and don’t expect anyone to fill you in on what’s happening while your eyes are somewhere else.

Submitted January 14, 2024 at 12:32AM by FilmsOnFilms https://ift.tt/mrAdHf5