Friday, September 23, 2011

It's Just a Movie, Right?

So I have a problem.  It's not a huge, life altering problem.  Honestly, problem is probably too strong a word.  It's more like a quirk...yeah, that's better...I have a quirk!

I have a "quirk" watching movies that are based on true stories because I tend to obsess about learning everything about them after the fact.  Let me start by saying I love movies!  I love being able to get lost in something for an hour or two and live in the "life" of someone  else.  I get lost in a fantasy world for a few hours and when the lights come up I realize how great my life is and I move on.

That doesn't happen when I watch a movie based on a true story (I mean, when the lights come up I still realize I have a pretty kick butt life but I have a hard time "moving on").  When I watch a movie that's "based on a true story" I have to know everything about that story.  Movies get "The Hollywood Effect" and a true story may have a the undertones of truth but tend to be over-dramatized.  I want to know the truth...no I NEED to know the truth.

A few months ago I watched the Lifetime Movie "The Craigslist Killer" - yes I know it came out a year ago but it sat on my DVR List for about 5 months - remember I was planning a wedding and remodeling a house and had limited time.  If you don't remember that please refer to every previous blog I've written...

...anyway, I finally watched this movie and my heart broke for Philip.  I got "Hollywood-ed."  I let the drama get to me.  Those last scenes broke my heart and I forgot he had actually murdered women.  After the movie was over I spent a good few hours wikipedia-ing and googling him.  I didn't feel bad anymore.  I got the real story.  I mean, it breaks my heart how the story ended, but I'm happy he was found guilty and punished.

I'm digressing, however...when something "real" is featured in the plot of a movie I have to know more about it.  I did the same thing when there was a "Jack the Ripper"-esque episode on Criminal Minds.  I went to the library and got books on him and read them all in a few nights.

Now where did this all come from - I usually post about food or remodeling, right?  We just watched "The Social Network" and I'm not sure how I feel about Facebook after that.  Don't get me wrong, I'll still check it every 20 minutes on my phone when I get bored, but Wow!  During the movie I actually started looking things up online because I know there were so many kernels of truth in it (I was in college when it came it and Notre Dame got it pretty early - within the first few months for sure) .  The problem with that movie is that in reality everyone signed non-disclosure agreements so the "real truth" really isn't out there for the general public, or the crazy Alissa's of the world.  So that means I'm not sure if I should be in awe of the creators of Facebook or disgusted.  And I know I am going to spend the next few days trying to figure out everything I can about these people (I mean I've already stopped writing this three times to search the web for something else related to that movie!).

So for now I must run...the Zuckerberg's and Saverin's of the world are calling.  Before I go...

...does anyone else always need to know the "true story" behind the "based on a true story?" 

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