Your Approach Changes Your View

I have seen the movie Jurassic Park twice recently, each time with a different friend. I found it very strange that the first time I watched it, I loved every minute of it, and the second time around, I was griping the entire time. I realize that the main difference between the two experiences was what I was focusing on.

The first time through, I was watching the movie for the first time in years. My friend and I were remarking at how excellent the graphics were, how well they held up over time, how superb the animatronics and puppetry was. We saw all the small details that were thrown in and easily missed as children, along with the great acting (not to mention some of John Williams' best musical composition). At the end of the movie, we agreed that it was vindicated nostalgia.

The second time through, I was paying attention to the stories and the characters, and this is where the problem is. The characters are not deep; they're two-dimensional at best. The whole movie makes the claim that "life finds a way" and that we never had any real control over the dinosaurs, when in fact, every single thing that Ian Malcolm says is completely wrong. By the end of the second viewing, I was so bothered that I couldn't understand why I so enthusiastically enjoyed it last time.

I now understand that your approach changes your view. What are you paying attention to when you read or watch? What matters to you? If it's done well, the story is good in your eyes. But what else was going on? What other qualities could you judge the story by?

My favorite critics/reviewers are the ones who can approach a story from as many angles as they can think of. They give a very full and balanced account of what to expect, and they acknowledge what is good and what is bad. They have their own opinions, of course, but they review so thoroughly that I can make my own opinions based on what they said. The worst critics are the ones that only talk about one aspect of a story and harp on it all the way through. It is such a limited scope that I don't learn about the story, only that one aspect of it.

Try to approach a story from multiple directions at once.  It is not always the easiest thing to do. And sometimes it requires multiple readings/viewings to do that, but you will appreciate the story in a richer way when you do.