Still doing this
After proof that MoviePass does, indeed, work again, I decided to see another photoplay yesterday. This time, the Approved Selection featured Mission Impossible: Fallout, so I said sure, I heard it was a good action movie. I didn't see the previous Impossible Mission, but long character arcs and a rich mythology aren't really what I expect from these movies, so fuck it.
Somewhat like the novel experience of seeing a movie I knew nothing about, the experience of seeing a sequel without having seen all the previous installments is not something I ever normally do. So, again, it was a bit interesting to see how that played out: Oh, they seem to be referencing something that previously happened. I feel like I'm supposed to have some kind of feelings about this person. But oh, in the reference, they also quickly explain who that is and why this matters. I always knew why they did that, but it was never done for me before. And oh, in a movie like this, it ultimately does not matter.
Unlike my evening watching Kin, though, this theater had people in it. It also had assigned recliners. I got to the theater maybe a minute after the advertised showtime, but with a half hour of trailers preceding every feature presentation, I wasn't exactly sweating it
just kidding I still felt a terrible pressure to get in there as quickly as possible
So when it came time to pick out my seat beforehand, not knowing who or what I'd be surrounding myself with, I just saw that the default coordinates were roughly in the middle, and said fine. Easier to just take that and move the process along.
The seat was, however, right next to other people.
As I had entered during the beginning of the trailers, I figured not many more people would be coming in, so when I saw that all of the seats from the aisle to my assigned place were empty, I merely sat one to the right of the recliner I had rented for the evening. As a backup, I figured I could say that I thought this was my seat, as the numbering system can be a tad confusing (Does the number in the middle refer to the seat on the right or the left? Goodness gracious me, who could ever tell!). I felt justified in my decision, as during the trailers, it became evident that the guy I was supposed to be sitting next to was basically the "That's Chappie" guy (see this tweet). Yet, as luck would have it, more people kept walking in. Is that guy using his phone flashlight to find his--oh it's already off. It was a flash. HE'S TAKING HIS FRIEND'S PICTURE. Oh, good, trundling children. Oh, best of all: people filing in right next to me. Am I in their seat? Is this going to be a problem? AM I GOING TO HAVE TO INTERACT UNDER THE LIGHT AND CRUSHING SOUND OF THE CINEMA?
No, they just sat there.
Although, the guy two or so seats down from me had so much fucking phlegm in his disgusting mouth he probably had to buy it a separate ticket.
As the movie played out, it was interesting to be in this particular audience, on a Saturday evening for an action movie that has been out a number of weeks. They seemed, to the best of my cunning anthropological detective skills, like an absolutely average audience. Like the kind of people focus groups pray to get. Middle-of-the-road Americans, in that, they are somehow DRIVING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD and don't immediately realize it. Sometimes, it was nice! When the person next to or in front of me would gasp, or audibly worry about a character's fate, or laugh with recognition and realization, that's the sort of thing that absolutely enhances a theater experience. But then there were moments where characters were TALKING, UGGHHH, no one's even RUNNING or EXPLODING, oh my GODDDD, so then the audience starts talking. I could effectively gauge audience attention retention by when people would get up to go get snacks or, eventually, return the snacks back to the Earth via the miracle of indoor plumbing. Now, for all the snarky derision I had earlier in this post about the unimportance of character and plot in a Mission Impossible movie, I still paid the fuck attention to the movie in front of me. There were moments, especially early on, when I was getting used to the idea of watching a movie with people around (god damn was I spoiled by Kin or what?) and didn't catch every last bit of dialogue as things were exposited. Things like "how far can I move my head without changing seats so I can get the most distance away from that guy clearing his very unclear throat" took a certain amount of attention away from all the places and names coming at me from the screen. And then when some people chased the other person, or the one pretty white lady who looks just like the other pretty white lady makes an apparently dramatic appearance, it only mattered very little, because this isn't a movie about people so much as it is about pure kinetic thrills.
(Sorry, Michelle Monaghan, you will always remain awesome for Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and I really like Source Code, but that other woman looks WAY TOO MUCH LIKE YOU.)
What was interesting, though, is the speed at which some of those laughs of recognition and realization came. As a twist in a plan, or a reveal of a location or problem would unfold, I would hear those audible bits of understanding well past the point that it became clear. To be fair, I have noticed times where I catch onto something like that, but the little laugh comes after the realization. Maybe it's triggered by a more overt visual cue, or something that solidifies the reveal, something that confirms your suspicion. Still, I was definitely laughing earlier than many of my fellow moviegoers.
The point, here, is that I'm SO MUCH SMARTER THAN OTHER PEOPLE. I WATCH MOVIES BETTER THAN OTHER PEOPLE, SO I'M A BETTER PERSON FOR IT. REAFFIRM MY DESPERATE NEED FOR VALIDATION AND AGREE THAT I'M THE BEST AT MOVIES.
But yeah, the movie itself was good! I went in only looking for "really good action," and I got FUCKING GREAT ACTION.
Also! I'm on currently on a rewatch of 30 Rock, and Alec Baldwin is also in this particular Mission Impossible. There was a moment when he said that the president ordered something, and that was odd, given his impression of Trump, and also that Trump is one of the worst people who've ever lived. But then! There was a moment when Alec Baldwin said, "Good god, Ethan!" and I wondered: was it scripted that way? Is that something Baldwin adds? No matter, I'm now making it my headcannon that his character was, in fact, Jack Donaghy. I don't remember his actual character name in the movie, just that he was the secretary of something in government, whatever. Jack Donaghy did get a government job at one point. It's official: 30 Rock is part of the Mission Impossible cinematic universe. No! MISSION IMPOSSIBLE is part of the 30 ROCK CINEMATIC UNIVERSE.
Somewhat like the novel experience of seeing a movie I knew nothing about, the experience of seeing a sequel without having seen all the previous installments is not something I ever normally do. So, again, it was a bit interesting to see how that played out: Oh, they seem to be referencing something that previously happened. I feel like I'm supposed to have some kind of feelings about this person. But oh, in the reference, they also quickly explain who that is and why this matters. I always knew why they did that, but it was never done for me before. And oh, in a movie like this, it ultimately does not matter.
Unlike my evening watching Kin, though, this theater had people in it. It also had assigned recliners. I got to the theater maybe a minute after the advertised showtime, but with a half hour of trailers preceding every feature presentation, I wasn't exactly sweating it
just kidding I still felt a terrible pressure to get in there as quickly as possible
So when it came time to pick out my seat beforehand, not knowing who or what I'd be surrounding myself with, I just saw that the default coordinates were roughly in the middle, and said fine. Easier to just take that and move the process along.
The seat was, however, right next to other people.
As I had entered during the beginning of the trailers, I figured not many more people would be coming in, so when I saw that all of the seats from the aisle to my assigned place were empty, I merely sat one to the right of the recliner I had rented for the evening. As a backup, I figured I could say that I thought this was my seat, as the numbering system can be a tad confusing (Does the number in the middle refer to the seat on the right or the left? Goodness gracious me, who could ever tell!). I felt justified in my decision, as during the trailers, it became evident that the guy I was supposed to be sitting next to was basically the "That's Chappie" guy (see this tweet). Yet, as luck would have it, more people kept walking in. Is that guy using his phone flashlight to find his--oh it's already off. It was a flash. HE'S TAKING HIS FRIEND'S PICTURE. Oh, good, trundling children. Oh, best of all: people filing in right next to me. Am I in their seat? Is this going to be a problem? AM I GOING TO HAVE TO INTERACT UNDER THE LIGHT AND CRUSHING SOUND OF THE CINEMA?
No, they just sat there.
Although, the guy two or so seats down from me had so much fucking phlegm in his disgusting mouth he probably had to buy it a separate ticket.
As the movie played out, it was interesting to be in this particular audience, on a Saturday evening for an action movie that has been out a number of weeks. They seemed, to the best of my cunning anthropological detective skills, like an absolutely average audience. Like the kind of people focus groups pray to get. Middle-of-the-road Americans, in that, they are somehow DRIVING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD and don't immediately realize it. Sometimes, it was nice! When the person next to or in front of me would gasp, or audibly worry about a character's fate, or laugh with recognition and realization, that's the sort of thing that absolutely enhances a theater experience. But then there were moments where characters were TALKING, UGGHHH, no one's even RUNNING or EXPLODING, oh my GODDDD, so then the audience starts talking. I could effectively gauge audience attention retention by when people would get up to go get snacks or, eventually, return the snacks back to the Earth via the miracle of indoor plumbing. Now, for all the snarky derision I had earlier in this post about the unimportance of character and plot in a Mission Impossible movie, I still paid the fuck attention to the movie in front of me. There were moments, especially early on, when I was getting used to the idea of watching a movie with people around (god damn was I spoiled by Kin or what?) and didn't catch every last bit of dialogue as things were exposited. Things like "how far can I move my head without changing seats so I can get the most distance away from that guy clearing his very unclear throat" took a certain amount of attention away from all the places and names coming at me from the screen. And then when some people chased the other person, or the one pretty white lady who looks just like the other pretty white lady makes an apparently dramatic appearance, it only mattered very little, because this isn't a movie about people so much as it is about pure kinetic thrills.
(Sorry, Michelle Monaghan, you will always remain awesome for Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and I really like Source Code, but that other woman looks WAY TOO MUCH LIKE YOU.)
What was interesting, though, is the speed at which some of those laughs of recognition and realization came. As a twist in a plan, or a reveal of a location or problem would unfold, I would hear those audible bits of understanding well past the point that it became clear. To be fair, I have noticed times where I catch onto something like that, but the little laugh comes after the realization. Maybe it's triggered by a more overt visual cue, or something that solidifies the reveal, something that confirms your suspicion. Still, I was definitely laughing earlier than many of my fellow moviegoers.
The point, here, is that I'm SO MUCH SMARTER THAN OTHER PEOPLE. I WATCH MOVIES BETTER THAN OTHER PEOPLE, SO I'M A BETTER PERSON FOR IT. REAFFIRM MY DESPERATE NEED FOR VALIDATION AND AGREE THAT I'M THE BEST AT MOVIES.
But yeah, the movie itself was good! I went in only looking for "really good action," and I got FUCKING GREAT ACTION.
Also! I'm on currently on a rewatch of 30 Rock, and Alec Baldwin is also in this particular Mission Impossible. There was a moment when he said that the president ordered something, and that was odd, given his impression of Trump, and also that Trump is one of the worst people who've ever lived. But then! There was a moment when Alec Baldwin said, "Good god, Ethan!" and I wondered: was it scripted that way? Is that something Baldwin adds? No matter, I'm now making it my headcannon that his character was, in fact, Jack Donaghy. I don't remember his actual character name in the movie, just that he was the secretary of something in government, whatever. Jack Donaghy did get a government job at one point. It's official: 30 Rock is part of the Mission Impossible cinematic universe. No! MISSION IMPOSSIBLE is part of the 30 ROCK CINEMATIC UNIVERSE.