Going to the Movies YA Style

Fact: I don't like coffee. I just like saying Coffee Clutch in my best and deepest New York accent. Considering I'm a New Yorker, I'm pretty freaking good at it. So I've got my tea and I hope you have your heated beverage of choice, because it's time to gab the day away.

Can I be honest with you guys for second?

While I'm really happy about all of these YA books getting made into movies, I don't generally like to go see them.

That's me. I'm the woooooorst.

Don't get me wrong. I want to support YA books and the authors and the making of more YA books into movies. I think it's great.

There are just a lot of factors about all of this that make it hard for me to cough up $13-14 to go to the movies (heeeeey NYC prices).

Some of my issues are monetary (you saw that $13-14 business, right?). Others have to do with time - y'know, literally having the time to spare, finding someone else who has that time to spare, figuring when your time to spare matches with that someone else's time to spare. All of this + more re: logistics is very tricky. I'm also kinda lazy and prefer to binge TV in my PJs at home.


And then there are the personal issues. I don't particularly like crowded theaters - I almost never go to the movies at times when other people are going or right when a film comes out. I use movies to unwind, so too many people ruin that. Also, I hate hearing people laugh at the wrong parts, or laugh over all the good jokes. I hate rowdy children and inconsiderate adults. So, really, strangers + Gaby does not = a pleasant trip to the movies.

But if you're gonna pull my teeth about it and say: "Okay, you have curmudgeon-y issues with the world at large, but what about the YA bit?" (Not that I think anyone is pulling my teeth, I'm just taking this somewhere, so go with it.)

To that I say: "Just because it's a YA film doesn't mean I care."

Ugh. I know. Everyone's booing me right now like I'm a judge on So You Think You Can Dance.


I'm serious, though. I read and liked Beautiful Creatures so I saw the movie (it was okay). I didn't read Warm Bodies (still haven't) but I liked the plot, so I went (it was great). I didn't go see The Fault in Our Stars because I'm feeling kinda burnt out from all the hype and I don't want to cry in a theater full of Nerd Fighters (because, please, there will be tears). I did go see If I Stay in theaters and I thought it was GREAT but, as sometimes happens in a theater full of people who are terrible (see above re: my stance on strangers), the people sitting right behind laughed. They laughed at moments when I was crying. I mean, please, remove yourself from life. (Not just my life, all life.)


But yeah, as an avid movie goer (I started going on my own at age 12 and I've been to hundreds since then) I use the same judgement to decide if I'm going to a YA movie as with any other movie. Sure, the YA factor peaks my attention - especially if I've read and loved the book - but if the trailers make the film look bad or if I don't like an actor or whatever else, I'm not gonna throw down the money and time that could be dinner with a friend I haven't seen in a month. And that's just the same way I wouldn't go see the new Dumb and Dumber flick or Let's Be Cops or any other movie I've seen a trailer for in the last couple months that make me groan like someone just punched me in the gut. (I mean, let's talk about that Exodus movie that's coming out soon. Am I really supposed to be Christian Bale, no matter how attractive, is a Jew from the Middle East? On this one occasion alone I will tell you, Mr. Christian "Welshman" Bale, to get the hell off of my Jewish lawn.)


Basically: I love movies. I love YA books. But it's okay if those two loves don't get married and have a YA movie baby that I have to love or I feel like a terrible fangirl. Do I believe that the best way to ensure YA movies keep getting made is to go see them? Yes. Of course. That's also how you ensure movies by a specific director or a specific movie genre keep getting made (RomComs, I miss you so much, I'm sorry I failed you). But I also don't think every movie is created equal - just as I don't think every book is created equal and, as such, I'm saving my money and time and watching another episode of The West Wing instead (I'm really deep into this binge right now, can you guys tell?).


For the record: I don't know where this whole long thing came from. Is it a rant? Is it just commentary? Is it in response to a conversation I had recently with my father? Who knows. WHO. KNOWS. Obviously, don't go see a movie if you don't want to. I just thought I'd put it out here and let you engage as you will (y'know, if you do sometimes feel "obligated" to go see a YA movie or something). Or not. Either way, let me know what you're thinking in the comments below!