How hype can kill interest in a movie and why we should open our minds and decide for ourselves.

I’m just realizing that I’m not a fan of hype. I feel like my cynicism about modern-day cinema (especially when it comes to Disney) stems from Rotten Tomatoes and just hype in general. And nowadays, the quality of movies is all over the place and you’re worried it won’t meet the hype people are expecting.

For example, in one corner, you get some not-so-good stuff that got good reviews like Reacher and Disney/Netflix stuff that just leaves a bad taste in your mouth. And then you get something that’s hyped like it’s Citizen Kane and you think it’s overhyped, like for example, Dead Reckoning Part 1 or Top Gun Maverick, or Barbie. And then you get the movies that have mediocre reviews and you’re just left wondering why people like them and react like they’re good movies otherwise.

But then you watch them. And you surprisingly enjoy them.

I was watching a reaction video of this YouTuber called @ANGELINAA (who’s this funny, chilled out and awesome movie reactor as well as Twitch streamer) reacting to Ted (that Seth Macfarlane Teddy Bear film) and it had me thinking.  I think that I and some people are looking at movies wrong. For example, I was hesitant to watch Dead Reckoning Part 1 because of the massive overhype surrounding Tom Cruise; he’s praised like he’s the Orson Welles in Hollywood. You automatically think that the movie won’t match that hype. But then I watched the movie and it was surprisingly great. Just as good as Fallout. It even has me curious to check out the first Top Gun in the future with an open mind to see what it’s like (Special Ops Lioness turned me off the whole military genre but I’m realising that was more in reaction to the series’ terrible quality and the fact that Taylor Sheridan is getting worse as a writer. From what little I’ve seen of Top Gun and realising how it laid the groundwork for some action movie tropes, it makes me want to check it out).

Take Barbie as another example. There’s backlash against Barbie because people have said it makes fun of men. But it isn’t. What they didn’t pick up is that it’s criticising making fun of men and one gender treating the other side badly and how being forced into these gender roles is not only contradictory, but it’s also makes it literally impossible and actively hurts true gender equality. What makes it special is that it focuses on both genders which showcases Greta Gerwig’s and Noah Baumbach’s maturity in handling the subject matter.

I came because I saw America Ferrera’s monologue and it had me rethinking the backlash. So, I went to see the movie and I surprisingly got emotional at the end of it. It was actually a good movie and even an Oscar worthy film at that.

Nowdays, the quality of movies are all over the place and you’re worried it won’t meet that hype people are expecting, to the point where your mind is closed. But it’s just hype. People are excited to see it and if you take that out of the equation, open your mind and just see it because you want to, you might actually enjoy it and even love it. Or there’s the chance you might not like it but at least it’ll be definite rather than determined by reviews or what other people say.

Alright, said my piece.