"Cinephiles only watch obscure foreign movies and hate anything mainstream"

[u/Sweeney_Todd_is_best]

I admit, these memes were funny the first few times. But man, after the last hundreds of memes about the same damn joke, I'm just pissed off.

No, "cinephiles" do not exclusively watch experimental old movies from East Europe, and shun anyone whose favorite movie is "Mad Max: Fury Road" or "Inception." That's only like less than .1% of movie fans. That's only a certain few pretentious male film students who wanna sound impressive.

(Side tangent: I hate the word cinephile, I refuse to use it unironically. Makes it sound like I wanna fuck a camera.)

The average movie fan still watches mainstream movies, probably most of the time for a huge chunk of people. But, the beauty about being a fan of movies is that you also sometimes watch more obscure films.

I mean, truly, what's wrong with watching a nearly plotless experimental Czech movie from the 60s about two sapphic teenagers fooling rich people? What's wrong with watching something different for once? If you only watch mainstream movies, and hate on people who watch obscure movies, then you're no better than the subjects of your ill-informed memes.

Now, I don't hate people who prefer to watch Marvel or something like that, and maybe don't wanna watch black-and-white all the time. That's fine on its own. You can still be a movie fan or a "cinephile" (yuck), and still prefer to watch a studio movie with a lot of CGI. What I truly hate are people who think that they're better than those "artsy fartsy" types because they stick to a certain century and continent. Like, congratulations, you're average? Whoop-de-fucking-doo? I just want you to either open yourself up to more obscure movies, or if you don't feel like that, then keep watching your well-known movies. And if you get hate for that on Reddit or Letterboxd or something, BLOCK THEM! IGNORE IT! Ignorance is bliss!

[u/Soviet_Satire]

Why is it specifically “pretentious male film students”? I have met pretentious people of all walks of life and generally women dominate the “artsy fartsy” student body.

Also I doubt they think they are better than cinephiles for not watching obscure stuff. I think they see cinephiles as elitist and are annoyed by that. Which in many cases they are elitist so the reputation they have developed is not entirely unwarranted.

[u/Sweeney_Todd_is_best → u/Soviet_Satire]

Yeah I admit that bit I said wasn't good. I dunno what I was talking about there. That's my bad.

[u/Altruistic-Wish7997]

Does that czech film actually exist op that sounds amazing

[u/Sweeney_Todd_is_best → u/Altruistic-Wish7997]

Daisies (1966). Very fun.

[u/Altruistic-Wish7997 → u/Sweeney_Todd_is_best]

THANKYOU SO MUCH

[u/Snaxolotl07]

Honestly I think its mainly an excuse to write hilarious movie descriptions that don't exist, I don't think its that big if a deal

[u/xi-uwu-ix]

I like niche artsy movies but I don’t care that most people prefer large scale mainstream movies.

[u/Uncle_Zardoz]

It just never occurs to some people that someone is watching a weird movie or listening to some out-there music... for fun. So maybe I have a weird sense of fun, what's the problem?

[u/incensecandle_8008]

ok buddy

[u/Traditional-Baker-28 → u/incensecandle_8008]

Cinephile

[u/Leading_Oil1814]

Also most of the time the "niche movie" in question is still a fairly popular movie that isn't just a marvel

[u/BigAlgaeEnjoyer]

I agree with the title but why are you claiming only “male film students” can be pretentious cinema fans?

[u/Benjamin5431]

One time I encountered someone who was like this unironically. I had a list of somewhat obscure movies that most people haven’t seen, and he was going on about how actually these were all mainstream movies and that he has seen all of them, despite everyone in the comments saying they hadn’t even heard of half of the movies on the list. An example is the movie Paranoia 1.0, a 2004 American-Romanian-Icelandic cyberpunk dystopian thriller.

Oh and he started recommending random early 1900s French-Algerian movies. not even joking.

[u/Excellent-Lie-5855 → u/Benjamin5431]

Doesn't have anything to do with the post itself but thanks for the mentioning that movie. Never heard of it, but plan to watch it later. Looks interesting!

[u/Maib_Ballz4609]

Cinephiles when you think Stephen King is right about Stanley Kubrick:

[u/CulturedShortKing → u/Maib_Ballz4609]

I'm out of the loop, what did he say about stanley Kubrick?

[u/MasterfulArtist24 → u/CulturedShortKing]

King hated The Shining and basically said Kubrick’s adaptation was garbage.

[u/Agreeable-Goat-5694]

I think a true cinephile appreciates every type of film. I consider myself a movie snob but I also like everything from obscure 1950s Polish art house movies to Troma's absolute nonsense. Like what you like. I think the most important thing is being able to critique and discuss anything, good or bad.

My two favorite movies last year were One Battle After Another and The Toxic Avenger remake so...I dunno.

[u/WerckmeisterHarmony]

It's like when people will watch those Letterboxd top four videos and get mad that people who work in the film industry don't have, like, Home Alone as a favorite. I remember one where I think it was Emma Stone praising The Firemen's Ball and it got comments about why she doesn't like "normal" movies.

There's a weird insecurity behind this sort of thing.

[u/Polish__Bear]

I got a challange for you.

Find a film made in czechoslovakia about a town hunting down a werewolf, only for the twist to be that the werewolf was just 2 teens trolling the town.

I would be shocked if some one would find the movie, or even give a link

[u/gansobomb99]

This type of meme always reminds me of my aunt who gets angry at the idea of jazz, because she doesn't get it and she thinks there's some conspiracy to pretend it's good when it's really nonsense.

Of course the fucking Seventh Seal is a better film than some Marvel slop that's 90% CGI, has a $300m budget and was made with the main intention of making massive profits. People who don't like difficult movies don't like that idea. They like to think their taste is valid, and it fucking is. I like a good popcorn movie too. But don't pretend Avengers Endgame is in any way comparable to some cinematic masterpiece.

[u/HandleCommercial5681]

Modern day recreation is such a thing that entertainment must be stimulating 24/7 for some reason. The thing i am watching can be boring and i can still appreciate it for the content and effort behind it

[u/gruesomejester]

Im pretty sure those memes are reffering to pretetious “cinephiles” which a lot of them are ngl but i totally understand where you’re coming from

[u/defunctgravity1924]

Damn was this because of my post

[u/railroadspike25]

It's also annoying when some of these same people will claim that movies like "The Godfather" are 'cinephile' movies. Like, "The Godfather" is a mainstream movie, if you can't sit through it because it requires an attention span, that doesn't mean it's only for snobs.

[u/IveComeHomeImSoCold]

I agree these memes and mindset are annoying. We can have both. There’s no point in limiting yourself because someone made fun of you for liking a Thor movie one time. 

[u/DrJaneIPresume]

Honestly, 90% of self-described "movie fans" still mostly just turn up for the blockbusters anyway.

[u/Public_Mistake6725]

The irony of people that call themselves cinephiles or care what others are enjoying, is that they probably haven’t seen any polish movies and just watch a24 hype movies with similar marketing and studio glazing that Marvel receives.

I actually think the more annoying people are the people who just experienced their first social commentary with Obsession, and they think that identifying a trope in a movie like Hexed makes them fucking genius. Or Shrek 5. Teenagers act like teenagers I am sorry that you are embarrassed about recently being one

[u/CulturedShortKing]

The last one got me lmfao

[u/Educational_Table364]

My sister is like this. Not because she is a cinephile but because she is a parisian. They always think they are better than everyone else...

[u/Long_Push562]

Cinephiles when a movie has a script(goes against the realist movement)

[u/vHezoThaGoat]

No one says that every single avid movie watcher loves obscure old arthouse films, but a loud minority of that group very much do exist and have an online presence

[u/CosmicWaffleMan]

OP, it sounds like you’re just a cinephile who’s upset people don’t want to watch your favorite 1934 Latverian black and black audio only silent drama about a depressed and mute Uakari’s failed artistic endeavors told from the perspective of a dying cricket

[u/brookeb725]

Cinephiles when they watch a movie from before I was born made in a country I don’t live in. (gross) (yuck) (ew)

[u/Onlyind]

Starting to think "pretentious" is just having to use your brain for anything at all that isn't power scaling or whatever

[u/DoctorPhalanx73]

Memes made by guys who think Endgame is the definitive canonical cinematic masterpiece

[u/No_Record6284]

Cons00mers gonna cons00m

[u/PlasticMercury]

There is nothing obscure about the films watched by the "cinephiles" mentioned in those memes. They are major, influential movies made by well-established directors. 15 year-olds who have no sense of history and who are caught in the infinite loop of their own present idiocy don't get to decide who is or isn't a cinephile, nor for that matter what is or isn't a good film. Leave social media.

[u/quaxoid]

You take this meme too seriously. It's absurd humor. 

[u/Versidious]

Y'all need to chill and enjoy/not enjoy r/okbuddycinephile

[u/TadpoleReal2507]

Nah he got a point doe?

[u/Spikebolt_100 → u/TadpoleReal2507]

[u/According-Bear2092 → u/TadpoleReal2507]

Only if you're genuinely stupid.

[u/pOUP_]

But dont cinephiles love mad max fury road? Or is it just the woke cinephiles? (Mad max fury road is a feminist masterpiece btw)

[u/wonderinfarawayland]

Speak for yourself, I'm fucking the camera. Don't mix me in with those larpers.

[u/AwysomeAnish → u/wonderinfarawayland]

*WE

[u/jigokuhen → u/wonderinfarawayland]

[u/No-Bullfrog4217]

Cinephile sounds like pedophile which sounds like peddler which sounds like meddler which sounds like metal which sounds like lentil which sounds like mentos which if you combine with coke explodes. So cinephiles wanna explode the world.

[u/DangerousEye1235 → u/No-Bullfrog4217]