Here’s another topic I’m stealing from Ron and Fez: disaster movies. We sorta discussed this a few times already, but the movie 2012 broke all sorts of records at the weekend. I’d make a big stink about Americans having zero taste, but if I could make $80 zillion per movie sleeping through my lines like the cast of 2012 presumably did, you can guarantee I’d be right there alongside them. That aside, the topic on the radio show was this: what is it about disaster movies that make people so excited?
There’s a few theories. The one I found most interesting is that since nobody wants to die in real life, people enjoy seeing movies where the entire planet is threatened. “I don’t want to die and know that you guys are still having fun without me,” that type of thing. So watching a movie where everyone is in danger, well, count us in. (And it really does need to be that everyone is in danger, and none of this I Am Legend action-adventure nonsense, otherwise you alienate people who aren’t into Indiana Jones-style movies. One man versus crazy odds.)
Which brings us to 2012: why did so many of y’all watch it this weekend? Were you attracted by the special effects? Do you like the director or the actors? Just needed to kill some time with your friends at the mall? The movie is bloody awful, so I’m just curious.
Then again, I used to watch WWF/WWE all day long, so who am I to question people’s judgement vis-à-vis entertainment?