Extra Credit
 

We've all done it; left the theater just after the movie ends only to find out that we missed something that will either set up the sequel, or make us laugh. And we thought the credits rolling meant that the movie was over. Why doesn't the movie end when it's supposed to end anymore?

Remember Iron Man or Pirates of the Caribbean? Why would the audience need to sit through the credits to advance the story when film makers could just incorporate the advancement during the last scene, or somewhere inside the main picture.

Of course the answer most of you will give is that some crew members with minor roles love to go to the cinema with their friends and family and make them sit there until their name scrolls by, and the WHOLE world should know they set up the boom, or helped get the assistant to the assistant coffee. But why impose that on the rest of us by adding little advancements to story after ALL the credits are done?

Honestly, I leave when the screen fades to black and the director's name fades in: I've got a long way to walk to get to the parking lot and I hate walking behind REALLY slow crowds of people. I swear people are walking slower and slower each day and they seem to stop mid stride, right in front of me to piss me off!

Who cares about ALL the people that worked on the movie? I don't. And if you're going to add bloopers to the last reel, do it before the credits end because I think that's even MORE disrespectful to the crew members; I ignore the drone of the rolling credits to watch the outtakes!

I would even be happy if movies rolled their credits like most television networks airing mainstream films. USA channel shuffles the names by so fast it reminds me of a slot machine.

I can think of about 5 people I'm interested in when I read the credits, the rest I couldn't care less. Keep the story in the movie, and the bloopers just before the credits roll. Otherwise your wasting my time!

Re: Extra Credit
 

Well, I guess you don't care about the music which plays at the end either. I've always watched the end credits in the theatre, but back when I started watching them, they only lasted 30 seconds! I guess it can be a chore to sit through them, but I've never considered a film over until they were. Do you fast forward the opening credits (if any) when you watch a DVD? :)

Re: Extra Credit
 

That would be an interesting statistic: How many credits are shown before the movie starts (probably only the people paid more than anyone else) as compared to when it "ends".

Good point Mark. Yes, a good composer can make the credits easier to watch, but I've found so few that make it worth my while.