DVD: The Best Way To Watch
Movies are a medium best watched in the form DVD format.
When asked why he liked watching movies on DVD, student Cameron Kromar said, “Because you can pause to leave and rewind if you missed something.” Watching movies at home on DVD is often a better way to truly experience a film. The ability to pause, rewind and stop the film at will gives a viewer no chance to miss any part of the film. Too often at theaters distractions by other viewers, a bathroom break or an artistic choice by the director mean some important detail in a movie is missed, making the film more confusing and less enjoyable. With a DVD, a person can pause to use the restroom or get a snack. That person can also rewind the film to catch some important detail incase it is missed. Also, the ability to play the movie at anytime means a particularly long film can be broken up; while in a theater, this is impossible.
DVD viewing is not without its drawbacks, however. Some say that the experience of a movie can only be truly experienced in theaters. Some also point out that as DVDs are released after the movie stops running, there is a long period in which the viewer will not have seen the movie, but many others will. This creates a period in which the movie can be ruined for the viewer by spoilers, bad reviews or a long period for interest in the film to fade all together. In addition, some point out that the experience of heading out to theaters with friends, regardless of movie, makes the whole experience more fun.
However, there is one benefit to which the theaters have nothing on DVD. When asked why he liked the DVD format so much, student Shane Dohn said, “Because on movies with a big twist, you can watch it again with the twist in mind, and it’s like a whole new movie.” Movies like “The Usual Suspects,” “Reservoir Dogs” and most movies with a twist, can lead to a whole new experience on reviewing. For example, in “Star Wars,” upon learning that Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker’s father, everything Vader did up until that point is cast in a whole new light. Why he spares Princess Leia, why he personally battles and takes Luke alive, everything is explained in a way from a totally different perspective. The whole movie is changed on re-watching, because with the twist in mind, little details that point to the twist stand out. A somewhat ambiguous line by a character becomes a huge hint to the events later in the movie, and with this new perspective, things become a lot clearer during the second viewing. To get this kind of rewatchability, a person would have to pay for the movie again, and their focus would be diverted anyway, by the goings on of the theater and its patrons and staff.
In conclusion, viewing a movie on DVD is the best way to go. Some will say it leaves one prone to spoilers and long wait times. But, one can view it as many times as wished for no extra money, pause, play and rewind as needed, and can watch anytime they wish. With a particularly re-watchable movie like “Reservoir Dogs,” the bit extra paid for the DVD will pay for itself in no time by subsequent reviewings. No details are missed, the viewer has control, and nothing can truly disrupt the viewing at home. The pesky prices and people at theaters are cut out all together as well. With nothing else to block the view, DVD provides a way to view a movie the way it was meant to be viewed, for enjoyment, anytime or anywhere.