My First PG-13 Movie
So Rik Mayall died today. My friend posted a link about it on Facebook. I don't really know much about him or who he was. I wasn't a fan of his. I really only know that he starred in this movie Drop Dead Fred. I only saw the movie once and I really can't tell you much about it or the plot. What I can tell you is that it was the first PG-13 movie I saw in the theater, having just turned 13.
I had seen a PG-13 movie before, my neighbor had HBO and we secretly watched The Monster Squad. I loved the movie, The Wolfman has always been my favorite. But I was racked with guilt about seeing a movie I wasn't old enough to see and to be disobeying my parents. I was naîve. I was also a goody two shoes.
So I was a little excited to officially be seeing a PG-13 movie legally. My 13 year old mind thought the trailer looked funny. (Trailers can be deceiving.) I attended the movie with my twin brother. We're fraternal, I'm the cute one.
So we get to watching the movie. And there are a few funny parts. There's a lot more sexual innuendo. I actually don't understand a lot of it. I don't find it funny and I'm not that interested in it. There's an older gentleman who has come to see the movie by himself. He was sitting a seat away from me. The movie theater is far from packed. He taps me on the shoulder and leans in to talk to me.
He tells me that what is transpiring on screen isn't true. That once people are old enough to fuck, that's all they want to do. I don't recall everything he said, but he kept trying to have a conversation with me. After the third time I just ignored him.
At the time, I wasn't exactly sure what was happening. Was this guy a pedophile? I didn't even know what that word meant. It wasn't until I was a little older that I even began to question what had occurred. I like to think that my brother's presence that day helped deter a potential nasty incident, but the man could have easily overpowered both of us. There's lots of talk about not getting into cars with strangers and not talking to strangers but none of that fit my situation.
I was taught to be quiet at the movies. At first the guy had been polite. He could have easily asked us to move down a seat or to talk quieter. But I didn't even know something wrong was happening at the time. What could I have done differently? Educate your children that inappropriate behavior can happen anywhere. I should have made more of a scene to draw attention to the guy. I could have moved seats or reported him to the movie theater. If I ever have kids I'd be the parent sitting in the back row keeping an eye on things.
Honestly, I had forgotten that any of that had happened until seeing the post today. But I felt compelled to write about it.