Movie Arguments

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Have you ever had an argument with someone over a movie?

(Who hasn't?)

I was tempted to just ask this on the "Is Die Hard a Xmas Movie?" thread, but then realized there could be arguments over any number of movies or movie-going situations!



One silly argument I had was with a friend while on a bus trip to Canada that had movies playing on it.

One of the movies in the cue was Evita (1996). My friend described it to me as being almost totally done with song.

I said, "so it's an opera."

He said no, it wasn't an opera, but it was all done with song.
I said, well that's an opera.

He said it wasn't opera music and I replied that although there is a style of music people consider as classical opera, that the word can still describe any story told entirely with music and I cited Jesus Christ Superstar as a "Rock Opera."

He said that was different since Jesus Christ Superstar was a "Rock Opera."

I said it's still an opera, but it uses rock-style music thus they called it a "Rock Opera."

So he says Evita is not a rock opera or any kind of an opera because it's not opera music.

I said we just clarified that any type of music can be used and it can still be an opera - so if it's done almost entirely with song telling the story, no matter the style of music used, then it's an opera.

He said, "It's not an opera."

I have to admit I never did see it as we reached our destination before the movie could play, so I don't know if it was just a musical (music mixed with dialogue) and his description was incorrect that almost the entire thing was done in song or if it could actually fit the definition of an opera.



My brother and I had a heated debate about Revenge of the Sith. He was pro, I was anti. Hard to believe there was a time when that's all we had to worry about.
Anyhow, I feel like I was on the right side of history there.


He's come around in the ensuing years.



Here's one, which was even addressed in an episode of Seinfeld:
Is it okay to talk during the previews in a movie theater?
I don't think so. You want to get the full effect to see if it's something you might want to watch. It's a moot point though because anyone who would talk during a preview would talk during a movie. It is totally okay though to talk during those effing commercials. How did that manage to become acceptable?

"We're going to make people pay to watch commercials."

"What? That's nucking futs. People aren't going to pay to watch commercials."

"Hold my beer."



I just had one.

I showed my girlfriend Dr Strangelove, which is one of my favorite movie and she absolutely hated it. She thought it was boring, that the characters were non belivable/fake, that it wasn't AT ALL funny. It's the first time we disagree that much about a film
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I don't think so. You want to get the full effect to see if it's something you might want to watch. It's a moot point though because anyone who would talk during a preview would talk during a movie. It is totally okay though to talk during those effing commercials. How did that manage to become acceptable?

"We're going to make people pay to watch commercials."

"What? That's nucking futs. People aren't going to pay to watch commercials."

"Hold my beer."
I agree with you.
But the lady's argument in Seinfeld (after Elaine asked her to stop talking when the previews came on) was that she was only talking during the coming attractions NOT during the movie which hadn't begun yet.



I don't think so. You want to get the full effect to see if it's something you might want to watch. It's a moot point though because anyone who would talk during a preview would talk during a movie. It is totally okay though to talk during those effing commercials. How did that manage to become acceptable?

"We're going to make people pay to watch commercials."

"What? That's nucking futs. People aren't going to pay to watch commercials."

"Hold my beer."
Not even remotely true.



Not even remotely true.
I agree with that too.

I haven't been to the movie theater in years, but when I was I'd sometimes say, "That looks good!" after a preview (if I was with someone else of course) or I might say "Meh." with a so-so hand gesture signaling I wasn't impressed by it. Or rarely, I'd give an "I can't wait!" - I think I said that when I saw the preview of Batman '89 as Nicholson came on the screen saying, "Wait'll they get a load of me!"

But aside from an occasional quiet comment, I wouldn't talk during the movie (unless maybe if asked a question... or to whisper "cool!")

With one friend, whom I grew up with and went to a lot of movies with, we'd usually elbow each other if there was something on the screen we really liked or some unintended inference to an inside joke. So our communication was noiseless.



The trick is not minding
I've definitely gotten into arguments, mainly on this forum. Probably the biggest being whether or not Gremlins is a horror movie.
Or if Who Framed Roger Rabbit is animated film, or a live action film with animated elements, right?

Oh, and Gremlins is totes horror.



Or if Who Framed Roger Rabbit is animated film, or a live action film with animated elements, right?

Oh, and Gremlins is totes horror.
Silly fun horror
(Is that a separate genre or just a sub-category of horror?)



Or if Who Framed Roger Rabbit is animated film, or a live action film with animated elements, right?
I don't remember there being much animosity in that argument, though. Just lots of people on both sides making their points. Of course, the people saying it is an animated movie are wrong.

Great movie, but it's live action with some animated elements.

Oh, and Gremlins is totes horror.
Absolutely.




I agree with that too.

I haven't been to the movie theater in years, but when I was I'd sometimes say, "That looks good!" after a preview (if I was with someone else of course) or I might say "Meh." with a so-so hand gesture signaling I wasn't impressed by it. Or rarely, I'd give an "I can't wait!" - I think I said that when I saw the preview of Batman '89 as Nicholson came on the screen saying, "Wait'll they get a load of me!"

But aside from an occasional quiet comment, I wouldn't talk during the movie (unless maybe if asked a question... or to whisper "cool!")

With one friend, whom I grew up with and went to a lot of movies with, we'd usually elbow each other if there was something on the screen we really liked or some unintended inference to an inside joke. So our communication was noiseless.
Indeed. Also, I PAID to see Licorice Pizza. I'm not treating a commercial for the new JLo romcom that seemingly was cryogenically frozen since the early 2000s and will be unleashed on screens in the nearby future with the same level of decorum.



Since this seems to be about the movie-going experience as much as arguing over the movie itself, I'll tell one about the experience that I thought was funny but my wife didn't, and looking back, I can side with her (but I still think it's funny):

One theater chain back in the 80s (I think it was General Cinemas) had a commercial that was kind of like Star Wars in that it was in space, but it was a commercial from the theater chain to "please place your trash in the trash receptacles" kind of thing and the animation would show a giant trash can coming towards you like a space ship and it would open and consume whatever trash was floating towards it. Well, whenever that trash can would close its "mouth" over the garbage, I would let go with a self-induced burp. Now, the theater sound system was so loud, nobody around would even glance at us, but my wife would slap my shoulder over and over after I did that, leaving me laughing. And I did that more than once when we'd attend the theater chain. My wife seemed to forget that I could burp at will (that is after I ingested anything) and that the GC chain had that commercial. And I'd get the shoulder slap every time. Not a real argument per se but my wife let her feelings be known about "making noise" in the theater.
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I got into a bizarrely heated argument with a stranger who overheard me express a middling opinion of Guardians of the Galaxy. The worst part is that my friends were agreeing with him and goading him on even though he looked like he was trying to get me to fight him or something. I was twice his size so there was no real threat to my safety, but still.


Irrefutable proof that Marvel stans are the ****ing worst.