I want you all to become critical film viewers, to the best of your ability. This idea is a highly ethical one. Being "critical" requires you to be responsible in the way you watch films. That's it: RESPONSIBLE. This means that you must, at the very least, respond. But it also means that you will have reasons for the way you evaluate and appreciate the films we watch. It means that you will meet the film where it is, not expect the film to meet you where you are. It requires that you look at the film according to its own nature, not according to what you would prefer it to be. It requires you to set aside your likes and dislikes of certain kinds of films and watch films actively. YOU are responsible for a good viewing experience, not the film.
"It's boring"--even I say this sometimes. When I do, I mean, "I am bored"--and that is a state of mind that I can control. I have to lift myself out of it. Now, if you can reasonably assess a film as being silly, childish, shallow, or empty, and you are bored by such films, no problem. But the comment "It's boring" is still an uncritical comment. You need to dig deeper to critique a film, whatever level of sophistication it has.
Responsible film viewers learn to let go of complaint and replace it with assessment. Look for ways to think about the films so that you don't fall into these familiar traps:
- "It's too slow."
- "Nothing happens."
- "Where's the action?"
- "It's too dark."
- "It's too violent."
- "There's too much profanity."
- "I don't like the characters."
Also, being "critical" does not mean that you have to challenge the film or find negative things to say. Of course, you can CRITICIZE a film, as long as you do so intelligently. However, being critical also does not allow you simply to say, "oh, I loved it!" or "It's boring!" Being critical means asking yourself why a film works the way it does, how it is put together, what kind of value it holds, and how it changes the way you watch films, and you must inquire about these ideas whether you enjoyed the film or found it dull. In other words, you need to discuss the film, not express personal opinions (though we might, at times, survey the class for opinions as part of our discussion about the emotional effect of a film).
The least critical thing you could do in this class is look over the list of films I have chosen for us and say, "Ugh, does that one have subtitles? Oh no, a black and white film? Where are the action movies?" Instead, set out to tackle each film as a new challenge. I think you'll find that movies can be rewarding as well as entertaining that movies that merely entertain are sometimes shallow. The films I have chosen ARE entertaining, thought-provoking, disturbing, uplifting, all these things, to SOME people. Are you one of those people? If not, the films are not to blame. Even so, these films can teach ALL of you how to watch films better, and "watching better" is our goal.
