It’s also for this reason that I don’t read reviews.  I think most critics are ridiculous, and I have yet to find a single one that I agree with all the time (based on looking at scores after I’ve seen a movie).  As I haven’t found a critic whose reviews match my own point of view 100% of the time, or even 50% of the time, how can I trust any critic to really get how I’ll feel about any movie.  They might hate a movie that I’ll love, or love a movie that I’ll hate.  Critics hold no sway over my perspective, for this reason, and I’ve found that I love some movies that even the critical mass has hated.  If I had listened to them, I wouldn’t have found the movie.

What does that have to do with movie spoilers?  Well, when I later go back and read a review, I note that they make mention of some pretty big plot points, or twists in the story that I would have been angry to know about before I saw the movie for myself.  This is another valid reason to avoid reviews.

When I make a list of movies to see, I generally know what the content of the movie is going to be, because I carefully pick out the movies that are of the subject matter that I am interested in.  I rarely see any R rated movies, and I try not to see very many movies that I’ll forget in a week, let alone a year.  I know what I’ll like, in general, and for this reason I am rarely disappointed with a movie that I see.  This has lead to some of my friends wondering if I’ve seen anything that I have hated or been disappointed with (as I liked the Matrix sequels and the Star Wars prequels).  I have: Land of the Lost, for example, took what should have been a family movie, and made it into something vulgar, and alienated the fans of the show and families at the same time.  What seemed to me to be a known quantity turned out not to be so.

Such things do happen, though they can be rare.

Cape Town also wrote something I agree with almost entirely, which reminded me of a conversation I had about Shutter Island, which I still have not seen:

Generally I do not mind reading spoilers as long as they are on my terms—and it can never be about a movie that I plan to see. If I’m not planning to see a movie I’ll ask you to spoil everything—partly because I’m curious and partly because I love the trepidation on the person’s face. “Are you sure?” the person asks, certain they’re breaking some unwritten celluloid law.

[...]

There’s something about having a movie spoiled for you that can ruin the entire experience. I want to be surprised. I don’t want to know before I sit down in the theater how the story is all going to unfurl.  A movie only has on chance at telling a story, while a television series gets a new opportunity each week. Spoiling the ending of Smallville would not be as devastating as spoiling the end of Thor.

I don’t like television shows spoiled almost as much as movies.  Having Lost spoiled would have been really horrible.

The article at Cape Town came from the fact that the writer watched a scene that I have not: the after credits scene that appears at the end of Thor.  He thought it might be something simple like the one at the end of Iron Man 2, but apparently it wasn’t.  When I saw that the scene was available, I also thought that I’d take a look, but something told me that I shouldn’t.  So I didn’t look at it, and am saving it for the big screen.

As a matter of fact, on my list of movies to see this year, there are a load of trailers that have released in the last few weeks, and I haven’t watched one.  The only trailers that I have seen are ones I’ve seen attached to movies that I was seeing theatrically.  When it comes to The Hobbit, however, I plan on watching every behind the scenes video and every trailer that comes out.  I can count on Peter Jackson to give just enough, and know that it’ll be all of that and more when it hits the big screen.

How do you feel about movie spoilers?  Are you someone that doesn’t care?  Have you ever cared?  Do you feel that your entire movie going experience is enhanced or reduced by how spoiled you are?

Related Posts

• May 9, 2010 -- Iron Man 2 – Another Marvel Comics Movie better than the First
• February 15, 2009 -- My Most Anticipated Movies of 2009
• December 31, 2004 -- The Best of 2004
• December 16, 2011 -- Lego The Lord of the Rings is coming! (Lego The Hobbit, too!)
• April 30, 2011 -- On Movie Theater Etiquette – How to be a Good Cinema Citizen

James Poniewozik, Time:

The great puzzle of the last season of Lost has been: how can both the flash-sideways universe and the Island universe mean anything? If Sideways is the universe in which Oceanic 815 never crashed, who cares what happens on the Island? If the Island is where the characters’ fates are sealed, how can there be any meaning to what happens in the Sideways?

The moving, soulful finale that Damon Lindelof and Carleton Cuse gave us met that challenge. The Island world, we learned, absolutely mattered to the physical fate of the survivors. (And sci-fi purists ticked over the spiritual ending should at least give it up for this: what happened, did, indeed happen.) And the Sideways world mattered because it was the culmination of the spiritual, moral, human lives–the souls–of the characters.

It mattered, it moved, and it achieved.

Liz Kelly, Washington Post:

If, as some said, “Lost” was to be judged by its finale then all I can say is Damon and Carlton pulled it off. I’ve been crying and laughing and basically an emotional basket case for the last 2.5 hours. I could not possibly have asked for anything more. I am in awe.

Henry Hanks, CNN:

Answers or not, as two-and-a-half hours of television, the final “Lost” was extraordinary, and I think it accomplished what it set out to do: It was a very memorable ending, and people will be talking about it for years to come. One thing I never expected was how emotional I would feel watching this finale, and reflecting on it.

Jeff Jenson, EW:

“The End” was an emotionally draining epic that had me crying with almost every single “awakening” and has left me mulling the true significance of the Sideways world, which was revealed to be a Purgatory-like realm created by the souls of the dead castaways themselves.

Maureen Ryan, Chicago Tribune:

Finales are hard. And I must admit that my expectations for the “Lost” finale weren’t high. Perhaps later in the week, I’ll go into the reasons that caused me to lower my expectations. Suffice it to say, I just wanted Sunday’s finale to be … not bad. I was hoping for a middling ending, to be honest.

Yet “The End,” the show’s final episode, was so much more than middling. The first two hours were exciting and emotionally engaging, especially when the island castaways in the Sideways world began remembering their “real” lives. Those “flashes” were powerful and many cast members did some of their best work in those scenes. I got chills as I saw Juliet and Sawyer talk about that coffee date. Sun and Jin, Charlie, Kate and Claire — all their recollection moments were moving and powerful.

But the last half hour or so took the finale to another level.

Rex Hammock, Rexblog:

I think the creators of the show did precisely what they should have done with its finale: They gave the series a conclusion, but did not make it conclusive. In the same way any great work (and I’m not ready to place Lost in this category) of literature, mythology, philosophy or faith, there is still room for interpretation existing that offers those who want fundamental, simplistic answers to have one: “they all died;” as can those who want ambiguity that can provide the foundation for a lifetime of debate: “where was that plane flying to?”

Related Posts

• April 27, 2011 -- On the Etiquette of Movie Spoilers
• November 8, 2008 -- Lost Returns January 21 with Season 5
• August 2, 2005 -- Lost Season 2 Speculation
• December 31, 2004 -- The Best of 2004

Not only that, but the season will be seventeen episodes long, instead of the sixteen that were originally ordered. This is to compensate for the episodes missed due to the writer’s strike.

Lost is going to run through the end of the sixth and final season, which is expected to start in January or February 2010.

Related Posts

• August 2, 2005 -- Lost Season 2 Speculation
• December 31, 2004 -- The Best of 2004
• April 27, 2011 -- On the Etiquette of Movie Spoilers
• May 24, 2010 -- Lost – Series Finale – Amazing Ending to an Epic Adventure
• September 7, 2008 -- New Purpose for This Blog

Episode One:
“Man of Science, Man of Faith” written by Damon Lindelof
9/21/2005

Speculation: Jack is a doctor, the Man of Science. Locke is the Man of Faith. I believe that this episode will focus on the struggles between these two characters. Both are alpha males, but in many different ways.

Jack has no agenda, seemingly flying by the seat of his pants and rushing into things and making judgement calls on things without really thinking them through, most of the time. He makes many many assumptions and, while he believes he’s in the right most of the time, sometimes he’s wrong and ends up hurting more people than just himself. This is a character without real direction. All we know is that he’s a leader, and that he wants what is best for the people on the island.

Locke is a man of Faith. He’s a somewhat eccentric character that quietly became a favorite of fans of the show. He was paraplegic, but by a miracle he is now able to walk again. What I’d like to know is, what made him paraplegic? “Walkabout” was a great episode featuring him, that revealed this problem, and the next episode (that featured flashbacks of Locke) he could walk. This is a man that believes that they are all there for a reason, that there is some big reason for all of this, and that it is some sort of supernatural force that is responsible for it. Locke is borderline fanatic, and I hope that he does not cross that line, as it could very well destroy the character that they’ve built up so well. I hope that he doesn’t turn out to be a villainous character.

Episode Two:
“Adrift” written by Steven Maeda & Leonard Dick
9/28/2005

Speculation: Adrift will probably feature the survivors still afloat on the remains of the raft: Michael, Jin and Sawyer. Their adventure at sea ended in disaster, and the aftermath, I have a feeling, will be shocking for these characters, as where they end up isn’t where they are going to try to get to. I think they’re going to ain for returning to the island, but come in on the other side and run into more survivors.

Episode Three:
“Orientation” written by Javier Grillo-Marxuach & Craig Wright
10/5/2005

Speculation: In the aftermath of the bouts between Jack and Locke, the people of the island will begin to separate..orienting themselves with the views of either Jack or Locke. This split is a very dangerous thing for the people there, as it causes definite division in the ranks and clique mentality. The only resolution that I can think of, would be if something big happened that required them all to work together, and also required the use of all the skills that they have, including the doctor and the hunter…Jack and Locke.

Well, there you have it..my theories based on the first three episode titles. I took the safer route by just talking about the essenses of the story and staying away from as many specific plot points as I could. We’ll see what holds up, though, when the show comes back.

Related Posts

• November 8, 2008 -- Lost Returns January 21 with Season 5
• December 31, 2004 -- The Best of 2004
• April 27, 2011 -- On the Etiquette of Movie Spoilers
• May 24, 2010 -- Lost – Series Finale – Amazing Ending to an Epic Adventure
• September 7, 2008 -- New Purpose for This Blog

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King :: Best Picture of 2003 :: 11 Academy Awards

Movies:

Finding Neverland
Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban
The Incredibles
Napoleon Dynamite
Ocean’s 12
The Passion of the Christ
Spider-Man 2
The Village

TV:

Alias
Arrested Development
Extreme Makeover Home Edition
Lost
Scrubs
StarGate Atlantis
StarGate SG-1

I hadn’t seen a single episode of any of those shows before 2004. Now I’m a huge fan of all of them.

Related Posts

• March 23, 2004 -- Some of the best DVDs of 2004
• November 2, 2008 -- The Book Isn’t Always Better – Part 1: Big Fish
• June 7, 2004 -- Beach Party and Harry Potter 3
• April 27, 2011 -- On the Etiquette of Movie Spoilers
• July 1, 2009 -- My Most Anticipated Movies of July 2009: Ice Age 3, Harry Potter 6, G-Force