There are four types of movies we watch in our home theater. It is interesting to compare my response and my wife's response to these movies.
Type 1: Good movie, good video and audio.
Type 1: Good movie, good video and audio.
Her response: When the movie starts she notices the video quality. Then she gets immersed in the movie. She feels the pleasure and pain of the characters. She forgets about the theater, forgets that I am sitting next to her. Does not hear the telephone ringing. She laughs, cries. She no longer cares whether it is blu-ray or a regular DVD. She returns to this world when the movie is over.
My response: I am excited that the video and audio are great. I like the movie and enjoy it. But throughout the movie, I look for flashes of technical excellence in video and audio. I notice the shadow details, color accuracy, realistic surround effects. I never get fully immersed in the story. I feel jealous of my wife.
Type 2: Good movie, bad video and audio.
Her response: When the movie starts she complains about the video quality. Then she gets immersed in the movie. She is no longer bothered by the poor video. She feels the pleasure and pain of the characters. She forgets about the theater, forgets that I am sitting next to her. Does not hear the telephone ringing. She laughs, cries. She returns to this world when the movie is over.
My response: I am disappointed about the video and audio. Even though the movie is good, I am unable to enjoy it. Throughout the movie, I see edge enhancement, compression artifacts, moire and all sorts of video distortions. I am upset with the poor audio, incorrect surround effects and other shortcomings in audio.
I feel jealous of my wife. I wonder how she can enjoy this movie.
Type 3 - Bad movie, good video and audio
Type 3 - Bad movie, good video and audio
Her response: She sits through the movie for 10 or 15 minutes. Then she escapes from the theater to watch TV show in her bedroom TV..
My response: I am glad that the video and audio are good. I am not happy about the movie, but because of the technical excellence, I sit through the entire movie.
Type 4 - Bad movie, bad video and audio.
In this case, we both have the same response. We escape from the theater as fast as we can.
Very nice post. Your observations are 100% correct. I think most people who are not home theater nuts will respond just like your wife.
ReplyDeleteHi Nut, good to hear that you sort of agree with wife 50% of the time. Statistically better off than the average population.
ReplyDeleteBTW, is there a time when you enjoy the story rather than bogged down by the imagery?
Actually we respond identically only for 25%.
ReplyDeleteNow to your question, the answer is "No". That indiactes that I am officially a "nut".
Cool. 25% wife-agreement is in line with industry benchmark. Don't over-engineer your solution!
ReplyDelete