I’m not a big pop culture person. I quit watching movies several years ago, and I have been sporadic in my book reading. I do ‘listen’ to songs on YouTube (videos), but it’s very now-and-then, and it’s usually something I already knew. TV? Can’t remember the last show I watched with any regularity. Why is that? Well, strap in because I’m about to tell you.
I don’t realized I don’t like movies in general about twenty-five years ago. When I mentioned that to my substitute professor at my grad school, she looked at me as if I had grown another head. She didn’t say anything for several seconds, then blurted out, “That’s like saying you don’t like sandwiches!” in a shocked tone.
I didn’t say it to her, but that didn’t seem weird to me, either. If someone didn’t like two slices/pieces of bread/breadlike substances on the outside and meat, veg, cheese, and whatever on the inside, then that person had just eliminated sandwiches as a whole. Which I could see someone doing. As I said, I had the good sense not to say that out loud, but I was thinking it.
I get why it seems weird that someone doesn’t like movies, but my brother made me see one reason why. When I told him about it, he laughed and said, “Of course you don’t like movies. They aren’t real enough for you.” Which, he’s right. Even realistic movies aren’t real because they can’t be. They have to make cuts and concessions or every movie would be as long as it would take to actually do what’s happpening. Or it would be a David Cage* game, and ain’t nobody got any time for that.
No movie feels real to me. Even the best acted ones, I am well aware that I’m watching a movie. And, I’ll be frank. I don’t want to watch a bunch of white men doing white men things, which cuts out a good chunk of Western movies. If I don’t see a person of color as one of the first six actors, I won’t even consider watching the movie. I don’t care how good it is: if there is not diversity in it, I shall not watch it.
That’s a red herring, though. I don’t have any plans on watching any movies any time soon. There is nothing that appeals to me, not that I’m plugged into the movie circuit. Wait. There is one movie that I have interest in–Sinners, directed by Ryan Coogler. That looks interesting to me, but that’s it. The last movie I watched was Everything Everywhere All at Once, which I really likked–until the last monologue by Michelle Yeoh. That completely undermined everything I had previously felt about the movie, though it took some time to sink in. It’s a shame, because I enjoyed the movie tremendously (despite itself) up until that point.
The movie before that that I saw, and that I was genuinely hyped to see was Knives Out, directed by Rian Johnson. I was concerned when I saw the trailer, but I told myself that I liked whodunnits with a huge cast of characters and a quirky detective. I decided to give it a shot once I could watch it with Amazon Prime.Huh. In rereading the review I wrote about it, it turns out that it was an Amazon original and it was released in September of 2020. Which means still during the soft lockdown.
I haaaaaaaaaaaaaaated it. I don’t think that’s enough As to truly underscore how much I hated this movie. It really emphasized the gulf between me and normies. I knew within five minutes who the perp was, and I spent the following two hours saying to myself, “That can’t be it, can it?!?” because it was too obvious, too juvenile, and too trite. But, yes. It was exacttly as I thought it would be, and I was incredibly let down.
It left such a bad taste in my mouth, I refused to watch the second movie. My brother saw it and said with a shrug, “It’s OK.” He wasn’t enthusiastic about it at all, so I have not bothered to watch it.
I’ve given up on TV shows. Any time I watch one that I like, it gets canceled. I can’t remember the last TV show I watched in entirety. Any time I watch an episode of the current ‘must watch’ TV show, I’m disappointed. In fact , I can’t remember the last TV show I watched more than an episode of.
As for music, I just hear a song now and again that I like. Or, I’m looking for a song that fits a certain theme, and I come across an artist I like. That’s how I came across Rina Sawayama’s STFU, and I instantly fell in love with her.
Book-wise, I want to get back to reading. I might get a Kindle to serve that purpose. I do have the app which I can use on my laptop, but that’s not conducive to reading in bed. I don’t know when or why I stopped reading–well, I do mostly know why. It’s because I’m on my computer all the time, futzing around. I can focus on one thing for a prolonged period of time, but for whatever reason, I no longer can hold a book and just read.
To be fair, I have not tried for quite some time. I don’t know why I get anxious just thinking about it, but I do. I have a few books I’d like to try, but I just haven’t done it since I got back from the hospital. The last book I nearly finished was a mystery book (Korean, I believe) I bought for a flight, probably the one right before the world shut down, and I haven’t finished a book since. It was a solid, engaging book until the last chapter, and then it all fell apart.
I don’t know why I don’t have a desire to read, but I just don’t. I’m done with this post for today; I will right more tomorrow.
*One hallmark of a David Cage game is that he LOVES to show people doing mundane things like taking a shower or shaving.