When I start watching a movie, I try to finish watching it.
Sometimes, I stop watching a movie because it’s so bad that I can’t justify spending the time — even though we learn a lot about movie making by watching bad movies.
Sometimes, I stop watching a movie because I don’t like it. When a movie is well-made, with great storytelling, I can appreciate that. Even if I don’t like it. But sometimes, I get to a point where I’ve seen enough. It’s up to each of us to choose the media we consume.
Last night, I stopped watching the movie Fly after about an hour.
Fly is a documentary about BASE jumping. It’s not a bad movie. In fact, it’s very well-made! And I actually like it a lot. So, why did I stop watching it?
One reason is because I was starting to get tired, and I still needed to drive from Telluride to Ridgway before I could sleep in my hotel room.
The more significant reason I stopped watching it is because the movie challenged me. It got under my skin.
There’s a part of me that wants to be like these BASE jumpers. They risk their lives with every jump. It’s an extreme sport. You can see how exhilarating they feel after a good jump. They’re living on the edge, and I respect that.
What I don’t respect is how they entice others to do the same thing. Some of the characters we meet lead groups of people on BASE jumping trips. They have people pay them money for training. They explain the dangers of BASE jumping. And they talk about what a thrill it is.
It’s not unusual for one or more of the newbies to die on these trips. The community of people who BASE jump is a bit like a cult. In some ways, it must be similar to the community of people who climb Mount Everest.
I actually know the thrill of jumping out of an airplane with a parachute.
I did this a few times while I was in graduate school. I did this at a time when I did not have a family to support. I knew the risks, and they seemed acceptable to me.
BASE jumping ups the risk factors even more. Especially when squirrel wingsuits are involved. The footage is awe inspiring! I love watching it. And I’m glad the movie shows people dealing with deaths related to BASE jumping.
Still, Fly is a challenging movie to watch.
I highly recommend it, and I doubt that I’ll ever see the ending.
There are some movies I don’t even want to watch at all because of how challenging I expect them to be. For example, I’m not going to watch No Other Land. It’s about the carnage in Gaza. I don’t want to see the extents to which humans routinely go to kill other humans.
Is there something we can learn from watching such movies? Absolutely. I learned a lot from watching Leaving Las Vegas, even though it was difficult. To this day, I’m thankful I watched Nicholas Cage playing a character in a death spiral.
But I don’t want to watch such challenging movies very often.
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