About Me

Movie Watching Philosophy

I watch a ton of movies because the filmmaking process and directorial intent genuinely interest me. I love diving into the visual and auditory elements of a movie: the framing of a shot, the blocking of actors, the dynamism of complex set pieces, the development of characters, the flow of riveting dialogue. I consider the cinematic arts to be a holistic embodiment of human creativity, as it is a culmination of so many other art forms. It is also my gateway into general art appreciation and analysis.

Watching movies has turned into a sort of mental exercise, one in which I get to explore the conveyance of an artistic or philosophical crux. It's also a way for me to understand the world just a little bit better. International cinema gives me the opportunity to improve my worldliness, to provide new perspectives which I can then apply in other situations.

I try to give most movies a fair chance. I prefer giving generous scores, rather than viciously critiquing flaws and issuing nitpicky post-watch eviscerations. I also can appreciate the fun popcorn flick as much as the challenging arthouse movie. A loud minority of film buffs will jabber on and on about how they do not "watch movies for entertainment", but that sort of mindset would sap the joy right out of this hobby. I don't do it for a career, so I would prefer to enjoy it.