Ignorance is Bliss

Yesterday I mentioned in passing that I've somewhat given up on Hollywood and explained, in part, why. Perhaps a bigger part of it, though, is that I was (almost) a Film Studies minor in college. (As a transfer student, I ended up 3 credits shy even after completing an independent study, and it didn't seem worth dropping almost a grand just for bragging rights.) I rate everything I see on IMDb, and I haven't given a movie a 10 in over eight years - since the summer before I went to college.

The last 10 I gave out? Bruce Almighty.

Yes, that Bruce Almighty.

I immediately lose all credibility among my fellow cinephiles film snobs when this comes up, and get puzzled looks from just about everyone. Many assume I'm joking, but I'm totally serious. I generally like Jim Carrey, and this movie in particular struck a cord with me. I thought it was extremely well-done, had a good message, and took an interesting path to make its point.

I am not unaware that, if I were to watch it for the first time today, it would not be a 10 for me. This is the case for at least 13 of the 16 movies I've given a 10 over the years. It's not just nostalgia, or that I was younger at the time. It's that the more I learn about the process of filmmaking, the more flaws I can see, and I can't simply turn that part of my brain off and ignore them like I used to.

This isn't unique to film, or even entertainment. I painted an interior room for the first time in my life about a year ago, and was unsatisfied with the outcome. There were globs here, splashes onto the trim there, a bit of streaks in the color. Other rooms don't look like this, I thought. I've failed. What I've noticed since then is that other rooms actually do generally look like that, or worse. Even professionally painted ones have minor versions of the flaws my son's room has. One might think that would make me feel better about my work, but it actually makes me feel worse that humanity hasn't come up with a more attractive way to paint rooms.

This may sound horribly pessimistic, but it's more that I'm a perfectionist, and I hold others to the same standard I hold myself. My criterion for a 10 rating in movies is that, if I were shown that version of the film and had final cut, I would not make any changes. As I learn more, there are fewer things that make that cut. The more things I learn about, the more I understand why some people prefer willful ignorance. Learning is definitely valuable, and worth it, but it can sure suck the fun out of things.