+1
I've only understood hate watching as the act of trying to be a spectator to lifestyles or politics or artistic philosophies that generate anger in a person. Something to generate rage. And I guess what some people don't seem to get about this (thankfully, because hate watching is a horrific thing and the cause of most of our troubles these days) is that anger is a stimulant and people can in fact become addicted to it. It's one of the main reason all media is beginning to fail is, in that in leans into this, because it entraps viewers. It's a vile vile thing that people need to be extremely wary about. I know from experience as I've fallen into that trap at times and it is all bad news.
The person who mentioned wrestling is on point as that is probably the genesis of hate watching. Frequently heels were popular draws because they represented people we were conditioned to hate. Russians, Arabs, arrogant braggarts, rich people, homosexuals. So even though something like wrestling isn't a specifically deep spectacle, it absolutely aims at exciting our deeply rooted biases and prejudices.
As for just watching a bad movie, I've never understood that to be hate watching, although it's also possible the definition has changed over the years. And in regards to this, I'm all for this kind of hate watching, because it is what is pretty much necessary to expand ones vocabulary of what cinema is. Just because we hate something that we are watching, in no way means it is bad. It very well couls just be something unfamiliar to us. Something on a different wavelength. And the only way to determine this and potentially allow our initial hate of it to turn into an understanding of something that was simply different, is to return and give it another chance. Otherwise, films only gratify the same itches over and over again, and we limit the chance we will start to grasp other worldviews. So doing this is hardly a waste of time if one loves the idea of film, and not simply being entertained by a film.
From my perspective, saying one is a film lover who then refuses to watch what doesn't quickly appeal to them, is the equivalent of saying youre a fitness lover, who just doesn't like the exercises that make you tired or your muscles hurt. It actually doesn't make a lot of sense, and is probably why I find so many conversations about the art of film so unbelievably dreary.
Like, I get why people don't want to return to things they didn't like. It makes sense on a basic level but....um....ya...let's just say I think it's unfortunate so many people have such a reactionary and visceral response to something that doesn't immediately 'grab them'.