samkydd

Are you a private viewer or do you like to share your viewing experience?

Probably as a result of getting older and more cantankerous I find these days that I prefer watching favourite DVDs as a solo event rather than sharing it with others. The problem with others being in the room is that they always have this tendency to pass comment, or say something totally irrelevant during a crucial part fo the plot ".....isn't that so-and-so off such-and-such?" and you find yourself quite rudely stopping the action and going back a few frames until you get to the point where they first interupted! If you know that the other person is going to start talking "........she's going out with so-and-so now you know!" you also find yourself hitting the pause button and waiting for them to finish yakking before resuming the cinematic feast, almost like someone opening the front door to a double glazing salesman then impatiently waiting for the intruder to deliver the opening spiel before slamming the door in their face!

Consequently I much prefer to watch solo, and the idea of sharing the viewing with other people spoils it for me! (No I'm not talking about those types of films FELL!)

Does anyone agree with this, or am I being a miserable old sod as usual?

"...the chairman of Littlewoods stores made a Keynote speech!"

Fellwanderer

I quite agree and for exactly the same reasons!

It doesn't help that Mrs Fell and Miss Fell don't like the same films as me - they can't understand why I like "old black and white films". Actually, I think the only film we all agree is great is The Railway Children [the 1970 version, of course] - which is very fortunate for me!

FELL

All the best
FELL

A signature is no substitute for a life

sanndevil

I'm the opposite - I like to play the game of 'name the obscure actor' with girlfriends. First one to get it right wins! To make it easier, if you can't get the name then you can still 'win' by listing two other films the actor has been in. An internet-connected laptop needs to be at hand of course to check the answers. Oh what fun we get up to!

These days I can't be bothered to get totally immersed into a movie so it keeps the conversation going nicely - I think I've movied myself out after years of academia and film buff deconstruction so can only watch at a superficial level!

If any partner utters a word during football however - different story! And if a lady asks "Who's winning?" during the cricket, then it's grounds for dumping!

smudge

Mixed here. Some stuff HAS to be watched solo, but in the main the B&W stuff is watched together and, like Sann, we play the 'actor' game, with occasional variations such as the 'Dead' game...

Sometimes, though, it does turn into 'total rewind' when the questions come up and smother the dialogue (I must be going deaf !) and that can be rather irritating. If it goes to extremes, said film is deselected, stopped and a huffy retreat is made by the offended party !

SMUDGE

Welcome to my house. Enter freely, and of your own will...

Jack Gurney

I prefer to watch films in the company of others. If it's the first time I've seen something then I generally view it alone, but once I've seen it I like to share the experience with other people. Getting involved in too many solitary pursuits can make one depressed- I suppose psychologically I don't want to be thought of as the only person in the world who enjoys this stuff, and generally viewing it with other people makes me feel less like a loner. And if it brings certain things to mind that I and my friends might share a memory of, then it's normally great to mention it. However, when they start making comments all the way through to the point where you can't hear the dialogue- like my friend Gerald does- then one has to tell them to 'shut the fuck up'.

I dream, of course, of finding a woman I can share this enthusuasm with. I showed COVER GIRL KILLER to my last girlfriend, and she just laughed. Ah well, one day!!

"Whatever happened to Fay Wray?"

mysteriesofedgarwallace

Is this who you see when loooking in the mirror?

samkydd

I find that with comedy women and men are totally incompatible. I enjoyed the humour of This Is Spinal Tap, most women I know who watched it couldn't see anything funny apart from a few out and out slapstick moments! It's a similar tale with things like Little Britain, Hancock, Steptoe and Early Doors they don't seem to get the humour at all. Put something in front of them like The Upper Hand, or My Family,Absolutely Fabulous and Robin's Nest and they're well pleased with that sort of "comedy" where you can see the jokes and innuendo coming a mile off, and usually it's something they've seen or heard before in something else.

"...the chairman of Littlewoods stores made a Keynote speech!"

Johnjackgilbert

Don't be so stupid!

It is nothing to do with being male or female but rather the type of person you are. The comedy shows you mention do not even come under the highly dubious notion of 'gendered' entertainment - as in men like Westerns and women like Romances. Are the shows you have chosen the ones you like and the others are ones Mrs Samkydd likes? Your comment suggests that women are not as sharp or intelligent as men.

There is nothing subtle about "Little Britain", "Hancock" or "Early Doors" - the humour in each is easily accessible - particularly as "Hancock" has a recognised universal appeal! "The Upper Hand" and "Robin's Nest" were simply dreadful shows but were very popular in their own right with both sexes. It would be like saying that older people will not understand the humour of so called 'cutting edge' comedy - like "Little Britain", "Peep Show" and "The Green Room". Nonsense of course! They are loved and loathed by all ages and sexes.

I am under the impression that your James Whale style comments and rantings are deliberately made to shock and inflame the discussion board. Is this true or do you seriously believe the nonsense you come out with?

David Brent

Consider yourself told Sam.

I seem to have jumped into the wrong thread here.
When I saw the topic "Do You Do It Solo?" and that Lady Lois had answered I couldn't wait to read it. I had thought......well, you know!
How disappointing.

Dave.

theuofc

Hello, SamKydd,

Well I'm glad to know I'm not alone in hating to watch a favorite movie at home with others who are talking, eating, walking in front of the screen, phone ringing....egad. I want to immerse myself in the film. Either I love the film I've put on or I am intently curious about it if it's new to me. I want to hear the dialogue, look at the lighting, the way it's framed, feel the tempo of it, decide whether the score is a thumbs up or not. What I don't want to do is answer endless, inane questions or complaints about it while it is playing...or have to hear unrelated gossip someone is just dying to spill in delight at a group setting. I don't mind sitting in a theatre watching it with other people who paid to see it. At least there's a remote chance they will watch and not talk. I feel the same way about listening to classical music. I know I'd have the urge to throttle someone who talked their way through Beethoven's Fifth.

All the best,

Barbara

arty-dave

Or even Beethoven's Third

Ascoyne D'Ascoyne

As I now live alone, apart from a dog who doesn't seem to care much what I watch (apart from the George Sanders "Saint " films as the trademark whistle sends her scurrying for cover upstairs), I do most of my viewing solo but when I have a friend around I'm careful to choose films that I think that both will enjoy. For instance, I rather like Danny Kaye but have one friend who loathes him so much that to play one of his films would create such bad vibes that I choose to save the experience to savour as a solitary vice. Perhaps some discussion with a partner on choosing what to watch might result in shared interest in a film.

foha80

Maybe the VCR have ruined it for us.In the past maybe we knew there may not be a second chance to see the film on t.v so it commanded our attention.Watching a film with my family can become a marathon with the constant interruptions.But if I watch and enjoy a film alone then I immediately want to share the pleasure.

Terry