Understanding My Passion

You know, the majority of this blog is me talking about movies and TV shows (in case you haven't noticed). I'm going to address this point on a more personal level, to try to get you to understand my frame of mind/obsession a little more.

See, I have a deep passion for stories. Whether it be through television, a book, or just by word of mouth in a casual conversation. I know I've said on more than one occasion that the plot to any movie, TV show, book, etc. is the most important part to me. I connect more deeply than the average person to what I'm reading/watching/hearing. I always try to fully engulf myself and relish each moment (actually most of the time I don't have to try, it just automatically happens). I like to pretend I'm actually sitting in a theater watching for the first time, and I treat it like so. I turn down the lights, I sit comfortably, sometimes I get a snack, I don't get up for bathroom breaks, I turn off my phone, and I keep quiet.

Movie watching is actually a very sacred and important time for me (I'm being completely serious). I actually get almost offended when people are talking over it, or when I'm forced to pause it for reasons other than my own. One of my biggest pet peeves is when I'm watching with someone (especially when they've never seen the show before), but they're more focused on their phone rather than the movie. I honestly just sit there stewing, thinking stuff like "your phone is more important than this right now? You could miss something important. You could miss the good part coming up." Everybody seems to do this.

I've been told, and I can now clearly see, that I am a very sympathetic and empathetic person, often very considerate of other's feelings and am able to get into other people's minds and really understand how they're feeling. Even if I have not actually physically experienced what they're going through, I can feel their pain, their joy, etc. This goes for fictional people as well. I connect to the characters I read about and watch. They become my friend and I feel very deeply for them.

I love to analyze scenarios/people, make up "what-if" scenarios, try to understand characters beyond what is in plain view (read into their backstories, understand their personalities by things they say, ways they speak, actions, etc.) This connects to my writing side, in more ways than one. When I start analyzing like this, sometimes it becomes so abundant that I just have to write it down (which is where many of my blog posts come from). The reason I have a tendency to see these things and make these connections is because of my natural habit as a storyteller. (Not that I'm a particularly gifted one, but…) I love to tell stories, therefore I love stories. Ever since I was a kid, when my dad would make up goofy bedtime stories (ask him about "The Man With No Lips" sometime) or read us Winnie the Pooh, and Fairytales, I just fell in love with storytelling. Even before I knew how to write, I would draw out my own stories on printer paper with my crayons and pencils. The earliest story I have a memory of is one about two spies (male and female), and I think they might've had a pet dog… or was it a cat… anyways they went on many crazy adventures to save the world. I can't remember any specifics, but I know I was VERY creative (I was only like five years old after all).

So, stories are very important to me. It's what everybody remembers. Like I always say, it's the plot that brings people back. While special effects, good writing, good acting, beautiful costumes, attractive actors, etc. are a definite plus (I am not disparaging any of that in any way), it is the plot that always brings me back in the end. If the story sucks, then I don't care about the rest of that stuff, I don't want to watch/read it.