THE ALL DAY MOVIE EVENTIf you look at my top 100 films it doesn't take much effort to see that I'm an overbearing fan of long, epic stature, films. Similar to my love for television, I enjoy feeling as if I'm going on a journey with these characters, growing as they grow, and learning more about them along the way. Being such a big fan of epic films you can imagine it doesn't leave up a lot of free time when I look for films to sit down and relax with. Sure I have movies like Moon, Sunshine, Unleashed, Hot Fuzz, Serenity, In Bruges, Iron Man, etc. that have high rewatchability and aren't necessarily long, but to be quite frank these are seldom my go to films.
Instead I often reach for movies such as Saving Private Ryan, Patton, The Longest Day, Spartacus, Bridge on the River Kwai, Seven Samurai, Laurence of Arabia, Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Good The Bad and the Ugly, and films of that nature. Only one problem: none of them clock in under 2 and a half hours! In fact, if you count potty breaks, computer breaks, and my short attention span (which is incredibly short and should not come as a shock to anyone), most of these movies take 4-5+ hours for me to watch. So do you do with them? Let's be honest we don't all have that much time lying around to watch these movies everyday. What's worse is when you hit that craving to watch one, but you just don't have the time, what to do!?
Well, that's where this comes in. Personally I derive pleasure from making an event of it. So I pick a day coming up, one I know I can create some free time. I go to the store, grab some snacks, pop some popcorn, get my most comfy chair in the right position. I make sure the lights are off, my tray is perfectly positioned, and there's not a spec of dust on the disc. Then I sit in my perfectly positioned chair, and hit the play button and (to the best of my attention) enjoy every moment of these masterpieces of cinema.
On some level I feel as if I've created my own mini-theater, with the pause button conveniently near by. There's a certain pleasure, or beauty in this I feel. To spend an entire day with these characters, and see their journey. It makes me feel as if I'm somehow apart of their tale. The quiet observer, overseeing all. Yet at the same time a close friend, the kind who gains that secret access no other human can see. Perhaps it's just the cinematic romantic in me, but I dare say when it comes to movies, these are my most treasured of days.
Instead I often reach for movies such as Saving Private Ryan, Patton, The Longest Day, Spartacus, Bridge on the River Kwai, Seven Samurai, Laurence of Arabia, Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Good The Bad and the Ugly, and films of that nature. Only one problem: none of them clock in under 2 and a half hours! In fact, if you count potty breaks, computer breaks, and my short attention span (which is incredibly short and should not come as a shock to anyone), most of these movies take 4-5+ hours for me to watch. So do you do with them? Let's be honest we don't all have that much time lying around to watch these movies everyday. What's worse is when you hit that craving to watch one, but you just don't have the time, what to do!?
Well, that's where this comes in. Personally I derive pleasure from making an event of it. So I pick a day coming up, one I know I can create some free time. I go to the store, grab some snacks, pop some popcorn, get my most comfy chair in the right position. I make sure the lights are off, my tray is perfectly positioned, and there's not a spec of dust on the disc. Then I sit in my perfectly positioned chair, and hit the play button and (to the best of my attention) enjoy every moment of these masterpieces of cinema.On some level I feel as if I've created my own mini-theater, with the pause button conveniently near by. There's a certain pleasure, or beauty in this I feel. To spend an entire day with these characters, and see their journey. It makes me feel as if I'm somehow apart of their tale. The quiet observer, overseeing all. Yet at the same time a close friend, the kind who gains that secret access no other human can see. Perhaps it's just the cinematic romantic in me, but I dare say when it comes to movies, these are my most treasured of days.
4 better thoughts:
This sounds like a lovely idea- I love movie-centric days. Too bad my new schedule doesn't really allow for any long-term devotion to film viewings. Sigh. I hope you enjoy your epic movie day!
Ummm I might try this myself! I saw the Longest Day at least 30 times when I was a kid and Saving Private Ryan is my 2nd or 3rd favorite movie of all time, I have seen that film so many times and yet, I will tune in to watch every time it's on TV and even get the urge to pop in the DVD now and then.
Great post here. I can't tell you how many times I skip the 3 hour film from Netflix in favor of a 90-minute film like Moon or Big Fan. It's not something I'm proud of, but it always happens. This helps a lot though, thanks!
Do you do this and watch a slew of the 2 1/2 hr + films? That's amazing! I know after seeing The Good, The Bad and The Ugly the first time I knew I *had* to have it, but after I got it - never rewatched it :(
I find it a challenge to set aside time to rewatching, but some of these epic length films really deserve it!
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