Fear and Loathing in La La Land
I haven’t seen La La Land yet, but I really want to. The problem is that word of mouth, rave reviews and endless awards have put him on a pedestal so high that I feel like real experience won’t be able to achieve it. The hype around this is strong. But maybe there is a way to start from scratch. Maybe there is a way to kill the hype monster before it strikes.
My story actually starts with Deadpool , a Ryan Reynolds film that came out last February. I’ve always been a fan of this character and was thrilled to see him in action, but when the movie came out, I didn’t have time to go to the theater. A few weeks later, when I finally managed to catch a matinee with a friend who had already seen him, it was too late for me. I knew everyone loved it. I knew it was “the best superhero movie that has never been a superhero movie.” And I knew it was the highest grossing R-rated movie of all time. The film was beautiful , but when I walked out of the theater all I could think was, “Is that all? Is that what everyone was rubbing their pants on? “The hype has stolen the film from me, and I won’t let it happen again.
La La Land has been missing for over a month. And if I’m going to shake this movie up, I need to take some precautions. After a little prep work, I’ll watch the movie and you can read my thoughts on it below.
How do I turn off my critical voice
I’m overcritical and good at details, but my critical voice can get out of hand. For example, I love theater – I studied it in college – but I don’t like watching most of the plays anymore because I sit there and think of all the ways someone can do it better . This is a problem that I cannot solve completely, but I can definitely solve it in this particular case.
First, I will give a name to this critical side of myself so that it is easier for me to identify these types of negative thoughts. His name is Kent, and he is a cynical asshole who hates everything. And you know what, Kent? Your ass is not invited. I’m watching La La Land without you, so why don’t you stay home and complain about the character balance in Overwatch . If I start to be too critical while watching the movie, I will remind him that he was not invited. And if I start to be too critical after the movie, I will tell Kent that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about because he didn’t see the damn thing.
Then I will pretend until I do it . I’ll take a page from film critic Roger Ebert’s book and want her to please . I will tell myself that I like it. And when I’m done watching it, I’ll give up the “cool” notion that I don’t like something because everyone else likes it. It’s okay to love what everyone likes, I tell myself, but what about pizza? The Beatles? Stephen King? “If after all this I still feel like it wasn’t good, maybe it just wasn’t for me. That’s okay too.
How will I manage my expectations
Frustration is a direct result of incorrect expectations. It is important to remember that expectations almost never coincide with reality . And I must remember that the past does not necessarily predict the future. Just because I didn’t like the last publicized movie I watched doesn’t mean it will happen to me every time.
I also need to go to La La Land with a realistic picture of what I’m going to get out of it. So instead of thinking, “I’m going to see a movie that has been nominated for over 200 awards and has already won 140 of them, ” I need to break down what I’m actually getting. For example, “the best burrito in the world” is really just rice, beans, some kind of meat, tortilla, and maybe some salsa. It’s still tasty, no matter what. What’s in La La Land Burrito? Some catchy music, interesting characters, dance numbers and a little show. Sounds funny.
How I Prepare My Mind Before Watching
A few weeks ago, my friends and I had a bad movie night. We had a bite to eat, sat on the couch and watched two not-so-good films in a row. The first, ” The Seventh Son,” was pretty bad, but our jokes and jokes made him enjoyable. The second is Gods of Egypt , a film that we all expected to be equally bad or even worse. The reviews were bad, people hated it and we all thought it would be rubbish too. But that was not the case. Passing through the sewer that is the Seventh Son , the Gods of Egypt were like a refreshing shower. Somehow we found the bottom and could only climb from there.
I need to do the same with La La Land . I need to watch a terrible movie ahead of time so that my mental frame of reference can only look up, hoping that the savior will pull me out of the film dumpster. But I think that it should be within the same genre of “musical”. My choice: Grease 2 . It is widely regarded as one of the worst musicals ever produced. If I watch it right before going to the theater, La La Land will almost certainly impress me.
How I run my environment
I am convinced that even the smallest things can affect the entire experience as a whole. A perfect meal can be reduced a little by a wobbly table, a serene walk can be ruined by the fact that your boots are blistering, and a visit to your favorite group can be confusing when the sloppy drunk guy next to you wins don’t stop singing along the wrong words.
I’m not saying these things completely ruin your experience, but these quirks stay with you and eventually go into the process of mentally assessing how good the experience was. I feel the same way in the movies. Phones are constantly buzzing, it is too cold in the cinema, people are whispering, there are children – all this can instantly spoil the experience of watching films. For example, I didn’t really like Inside Out because when I saw it my seat was really uncomfortable, my nacho cheese was cold, we were late and missed the preview (this is one of my favorite parts of going to the movies, Overall, I have had a pretty cheesy day and the guy behind me was more interested in consigning my chair to oblivion than watching a movie. I unfairly labeled Inside Out in my mind as “dislike,” but I didn’t really give it a chance. I didn’t I can take such a risk for La La Land , especially when I know I’m taking on one of the biggest hype monsters ever seen in the wild.
Fortunately, setting up your environment should be easy. I will go to the matinee when there are fewer people around and, I hope, there are no children. I will go to a nice theater with super comfy reclining seats. I’ll get there very early so I don’t miss any previews or get stuck with shitty snacks. I’ll turn my phone off completely. And I will dress very warmly and comfortably. That’s all you could do when you go to the movies, but I don’t plan things like that very well.
Why i watch it myself
For me, this is the most important part: I absolutely need to watch this film alone . I’m outspoken, opinionated, harsh and, frankly, sometimes a jerk. I like sharing my thoughts out loud and I like having an audience because I attach a little attention to myself. I know these things and try to be aware of them as much as possible. If I see this with someone, I can’t resist criticizing after the credits roll. In fact, knowing that I’m going to have someone to talk to after a movie will make me keep notes in my mind while I watch it, instead of just enjoying it.
It would be even worse if I tried to watch it with one of my friends, who all suggested watching it again with me because they really liked it. Again, I would look for ways to split it in half, because it just can’t be as good as you guys say, damn it . And partly because I feel that they will be watching me and how I will react. “Did you see this?” “What did you think of this?” “Pretty cool, right ?! RIGHT !? “The opposite, selfish side of me, appreciating my ‘unique’ thoughts, will be forced to go against the flow. But I do not want to do this. I know that these are my shortcomings, so I will try to work around them.
results
Well, after all this, I would call my experiment a moderate success. Seeing La La Land was a pleasure. Although this is not my favorite film, I definitely did not leave the theater disappointed. The music is catchy, the dance routines are fun, and the acting is one of the best I’ve ever seen in a musical, especially by Emma Stone.
Seeing it alone turned out to be the most important aspect of enjoying this experience for me. I didn’t need to talk about the film immediately before or after, and I could stay in the moment I was watching, instead of subconsciously marking what I wanted to touch on later. From time to time I had to tell Kent to leave, but he did, and my criticisms remain few and far between. I still haven’t talked about the movie with my friends.
Charging my mind with a bad movie was also very important. It definitely lowered the bar in my mind and helped adjust my expectations accordingly. When you hope the movie is “please better than Grease 2, ” La La Land will blow you off your feet.