I made a new friend the other night, and we’ve been chatting about movies a lot since then via email. It’s been fun because we have similar but not identical tastes, and they work in the industry so they have a very different perspective from me. They suggested I check out a website that is basically a social media thing for people to rate movies, make lists of films, see what their friends are watching, etc. At first I thought, “neat.” I love a good flick and enjoy digging into it with esteemed colleagues.
Then I thought, wait a minute. Why do I need a social media account to do any of those things?
I already have a list of flicks I want to see. It’s in my email. I’d be fine with friends seeing that and giving me a heads up on some stuff, like “loved it” or “don’t bother,” but then again, I’ve learned that there’s just no accounting for taste. Even the people in my life I love and respect most can watch a movie and feel completely different about from me, so if I have a strong inclination to watch or not watch something, I go with that regardless of what my peeps tell me. So it doesn’t really matter to me how anyone else feels about a flick that’s on my list.
And besides, the internet is already saturated with every dumbass’s movie review, most of which I completely disagree with. Do you know how many people think The Avengers is a good film? Do you know that Under the Skin had a piss poor rating on Netflix when I watched it, but then it turned out to be utterly fucking sublime? This is the kind of nonsense that average schlubs think. I have no doubt the climate is similar on social media sites dedicated to films, and even less interest in being constantly made aware that such asinine opinions exist.
Furthermore, you know what? I’d rather just fucking talk about movies with my friends without some stupid social media site facilitating it. You know, hang out in real life around a campfire and chat horror movies, email back and forth, text a pal after watching something great — what’s wrong with those options? Nothing. I, and everyone else in the developed world, spend way too much time online as it is. No need to sign up for more shit that will keep me tethered to this fucking machine.
It sounded fun for a minute but fuck it. I’ll continue to pass on social media.
crimson highway 