I will begin writing so as to build a habit of it. Hope it stays.
I was watching Chris Marker’s Sans Soleil today in the auditorium; the version I was watching was without subtitles. I hadn’t slept well and thus fell asleep for a few minutes here and there, which I generally don’t while watching films – which is not to say I am the most attentive watcher. I actually think those who do watch with commitment are the ones who face the risk of falling asleep. I, on the other hand, easily zone out on my own threads of hypothetical scenarios, often trying to come up with replies trying to win debates with people I internally believe are inferior.
The sound system wasn’t great, and I generally do have problems with non-Indian English accent (almost to the point of watching everything, even Friends, with subtitles no matter what); so zoning out was bound to happen. Yet, there are charms to the film(s) that I have started appreciating in that mode of watching films. The rhythm of the edit, something I used to convince myself, is only a noticeable component of cinema visible only when you are not active in the act of watching films, was something that stood out. It stood out enough to pull me back to the film no matter where I joined it; and the more films I watch without explicit attention, the more I realise that those films that have got it right, will engross you, no matter where you meet it again mentally.
I have remained judgemental of people who doze off during films, but less than those who wilfully zone out (with the phone in hand, or walk out altogether); and the more I meet people who share a love of cinema, and are aware of the very natural act of dozing off, yet retain the will to return to the film whenever they wake up, I realise that dozing off too can be a part of the act of watching. Films will join you whenever they are back again (not entirely different from the idea watching films mid way on TV, and still evoking a response.) A book, even if read from the last chapter, will make sense on some level.
It is the discipline that I have begun to admire that one puts oneself to – of dedicating yourself to the act of watching it. It’s the determination to complete a film (or a series or a book), even if it tests your endurance, and puts you to break your neck with sleep jerks , and let the author(s) and the film itself present itself to you in its entirety, that yields rewards, and often, even if superficial on the surface, the ability to claim finishing that film. It gives you a sense of completion, and the personal authority to pass a judgement on it, even if to yourself only – it could be as shallow as simple thumbs up 👍 / thumbs down 👎 , or as profound as realising it’s the same plot the film and your life are following, or simply the idea for a possible type of cut you could make to your next film; but it opens up many possibilities – the possibility to revisit it, the possibility to add it to your lists – of things done right or wrong, and the possibility to discover the many beautiful elements of cinema (and the people around you).
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On sleeping through movies
hungryrj 
2 replies on “On sleeping through movies”
I doze off on a recurring basis too but that is more because the mind is willing and the flesh is weak. As an aside though, returning to a movie becomes far more easier on a streaming platform as opposed to say watching a film in a cinema hall where if you miss the dialogue or a pivotal movement you either have to pay for another ticket or wait for the film to become available as a clear enough pirated version or become available on a cable channel where you have to endure the pain of watching it with recurring ad breaks of 5 minutes. To crystallise what I am saying, streaming platforms really offer a lot of convenience for fanatical albeit lazy cinephiles like me. Also the first thing I did after reading this article was read up on what Sans Soleil is about, apparently its a documentary/ meditation on the nature of human memory. Tree of life came to my mind for some reason. That is also a marvellous exercise in reconciling the future with the thread of the memories of growing up.
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The idea of streaming, and ability to pause/rewatch takes cinema into a interesting direction (What Laura Mulvey states as Delayed Cinema), watching it in a way it wasn’t initially made to be. I increasingly believe that it is fine to be bored and distracted from films, and it is destructive to cinema itself for a film to be engaging at every point of time. It could be a design of the film itself to distract you – like the Stargate sequence from 2001 – you are supposed to wander off in thought and come back and think.
From a plot/story perspective, it might work to go back to films, but on a broader level, plot/story is not basic or particular to cinema. It can be fulfilling even if it is seen/heard closer to like poetry, like tuning in to Hum Apke Hain Koun, and enjoying it from whatever song is playing at that point of time.
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