How I Watch Movies with My Grandparents
It's way more complicated than you'd think.
Intro
Over the course of the pandemic, I found myself spending more and more time with my family. This included my grandparents. Since I had much free time on my hands, I chose to use it to spend it with them the way I love the most. Watching movies. I don’t exactly remember what the first movie we saw in the pandemic was, but the earliest I remember was going on franchise marathons. Winnie the Pooh, The Muppets, Diary of a Wimpy Kid; all franchises that I enjoyed as a kid (and still enjoy).
Eventually, I chose to put every movie I recalled watching with them in a Letterboxd list, and I kept on doing it. The list is (as of writing, on the 27th of June) 115 movies long. This post won’t really be about the memories I’ve had when watching a movie with them (even though I would gladly write that); instead, I’m showing my process of watching a movie with them.
What should I watch now?
As I said, I have seen over 100 movies with my grandparents. For me to watch a movie with them, I usually have a few criteria that I try to stick to:
It has to be something I have already seen.
It has to be something I like/am interested in.
It has to be dubbed in Spanish (as my grandparents don’t speak English).
This list is fairly simple to apply, as most of the movies that I watch are parts of a franchise (Star Wars, Marvel, etc.); however, whenever something isn’t a part of a franchise, how do I narrow that down? Well, it usually comes down to me browsing endlessly on Letterboxd or the first streaming service that comes to mind. I also have a list of movies that I would like to get around to with them, which helps a lot whenever I am totally stumped.
Great, now where and when do I watch it?
If I find a movie to watch on a streaming service, then chances are I watch the movie in said streaming service. If I find a movie to watch in general that I haven’t seen in a while, I make sure to look for it wherever I can. If I find it available on a streaming service, I stick to that; if I don’t, I resort to other methods (if you know what I mean). I also make sure to look around my personal physical collection for any DVD or Blu-Ray that may be of the movie.
As for when I watch it, I have every day except Sunday to my disposal. I watch movies on schooldays whenever I have fully cleared up my schedule or whenever there’s a day off. I try to stick to Friday and Saturday for watching movies, as it makes it easier for me and my grandparents. I usually begin watching a movie at 4 or 5 PM and a movie usually ends at 7 or 8 PM (as most times there can be complications with watching something in one sitting).
How does my movie watching experience change?
Whenever I watch a movie with my grandparents, I always try to keep a close eye on both the movie itself and my grandparents. I can get easily distracted, especially if it’s something I have already seen, but there is never one movie I watch that I don’t lose track of the plot unfolding or the laughs and reactions my grandparents have. Whenever I think that a reaction of theirs would be good to remember or fun, I try to record it to the best of my ability. Mainly so I can keep that little moment as a memory for my future self.
Outro
That’s really all I have to say. My grandparents have given me some of my most memorable movie experiences in recent time, and I am glad to have them with me. I wrote this post mainly so I can offer how watching movies with them is different than, say, watching a movie alone or with friends. It’s really a blessing to have your loved ones around you and to get to share to them your favorite stories and films. I strongly recommend you do the same if you have them around.