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Schadenfreude and Film Enjoyment

post #1 of 9
4/11/10 at 5:40pm
Thread Starter 
Schadenfreude is pleasure derived from the misfortunes of others

I can't be the only person who can have their opinion of a film changed by others. In particular I'm talking about those rare moments when someone who you actively dislike seems to be personally offended or upset by a movie and as such a film, no matter how bad it is, gets a few bonus points just for that.

As an example I saw Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull a little while after most people on Chud. By that point Litmus had whipped himself into a tizzy with apoplectic rage and there was a Chud thread devoted to rewriting the script to make a better movie.

As such I kind of went into Kingdom with a determination to enjoy myself and I found the film bareable, and even amusing at certain points.

So, have any of you guys ever had this sort of experience.
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post #2 of 9
4/11/10 at 6:46pm
So you're saying that the reason you found Crystal Skull bearable was because you knew other's disliked it?

I guess I used to champion grotesque, supposedly unlikeable b-movies among my friends when I was younger. But then I found CHUD and realized my friends really were dumb. So I don't think this was a case of me deriving enjoyment from their displeasure.

At first I thought you were going to discuss how schadenfreude actually applied to films themselves. After all, comedy has almost always been about laughing at another person's misfortune.
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post #3 of 9
4/11/10 at 6:48pm
Thread Starter 
I just took a certain pleasure in knowing that the film had worked up people so much. It's why I find the prequels hate to be kind of hilarious, it's all so overblown and overwraught that it becomes almost comedic. I almost kind of respect Lucas for managing to create so much strife.

Another example would be the new Star Trek. It turned out to be great anyways, but knowing that the full on Trekkies had been wailing and gnashing their teeth before it came out made it's success seem far more amusing.
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post #4 of 9
4/11/10 at 6:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Spike Marshall View Post

I can't be the only person
I think maybe you can.

I can't actively dislike a message board poster so much that their opinion on a given film is actually in my mind while I'm watching it, much less contributing to my enjoyment of the film.

This is entirely different from a controversial movie, where I might feel people are coming at it from the wrong direction.
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post #5 of 9
4/11/10 at 7:03pm
The only thing I can really think of is when people misinterpreted Fight Club and started their own fight clubs, I had more respect for the actual movie because it only further proved it's point. But that's not really the same thing at all.

You're an interesting fellow, Spike.
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post #6 of 9
4/11/10 at 7:35pm
I like films too much to let other people's opinions make me like or dislike it. I might think someone I'm not fond of doesn't get things on the level I do, but I'm getting too old for even that thought process. What tends to bug me is when people get really into characters and suggest they relate to someone like Barry Egan, or Greenberg or Samwise Gamgee. The problem is if I watch those movies again, I think about how that person thinks about the character or whatever and I find that distracting. I've passed through fire on this one, as I have seen some of my favorite directors bad mouth other favorite directors.
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post #7 of 9
4/11/10 at 8:15pm
I'm a contrary bastard and tend to have a similar attitude to Spike. When I see internet nerds throwing mass tantrums and launching geek ideological crusades against a movie, be it Die Hard 4, Abram's Star Trek (before it became okay to like it), Zombie's Halloween or any given Lucas product, I find myself feeling that any movie that can make these twats suffer so must be doing something right, so I'll find myself wanting to take the movie's side. It's almost disappointing when it turns out the nerdraging mobs were actually right.

I even had a similar Crystal Skull experience to Spike. After months of white noise geek hysteria I found it harmless enough when I finally saw it. Sadly after seeing it a second time some months back I have to concede that, harmless or no, that movie really is one sloppy as hell pile o' shite.
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post #8 of 9
4/12/10 at 12:56am
Quote:
I think maybe you can.
Nah, Spider-Man 3's reception around here is kind of uniquely built on spite.
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post #9 of 9
4/12/10 at 12:40pm
The only reason I enjoy b-action movies is because I know it makes Spike wail and gnash his teeth.
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