Have you ever watched a movie on your phone in the lavatory of the plane though? The enclosed claustrophobic space really helps create a great surround sound simulation. Terminator 2 sounded amazing.

Here's my thing - if I've either seen a movie before or am watching something that doesn't implicitly require a big-screen experience, I'll watch it on my phone. Because honestly, what's more immersive than sitting on a plane or a bus and having nothing interesting to look at but what you're watching? I realize it's a small screen, but I think I can watch something on my phone without my brain melting and becoming a total philistine, incapable of appreciating cinema ever again.

Yeah, there are times when I am perfectly willing to sacrifice purity of viewing experience for having something to watch- though usually I opt for TV shows in those circs.

This is a really good point. The magic is still there so it's not like you'll up one day and lose interest in DVDs. Sometimes the aural experience of the soundtrack is enough. A lot of actors have great voices and sometimes I'd rather hear that than a song or an audiobook. Half the fun of Woody Allen movies for me is the recitation of his dialogue. Don't tell me you wouldn't have fun sitting on a bus while Woody's narration in Manhattan rolls through your head. You might even get a good idea and write yourself a note or think of watching a Woody Allen movie later in the day. The sound of foreign language is often relaxing in itself. It may not sound like music when you're watching it, but with eyes shut foreign language dialogue can be a relaxing sound. Sound may not be perfect on all of these gadgets, but if you're familiar with the movie it may work just as well.

Sleep (on the plane)? Read? Music? Work? Meditate? Screw around on the Criterion Forum? Isn't there something to be said for doing something right, or not doing it at all? I wouldn't expect that argument to carry weight with Joe Walmart, but I'm a little surprised that the board regulars don't all privilege the movie-watching experience as religiously as I do.

Lastly: Don't do it for me. Do it for David.

So sitting in front of your TV, with a pause button and a rewind button and furniture and decorations and a telephone that could ring or a door that might need to be answered is a Zen movie watching experience? Please.

I've found a bigger determining factor than the size of the screen is actually whether or not I've eaten. After a good meal even something like Slave Girls when watched on my laptop becomes enjoyable. While I don't think phones are big enough to get the fine details of a movie (television sets barely are) the size isn't the only or even the most major factor to consider. That said watching on anything smaller than an ipad is ludicrous.

There's also a huge difference between a laptop- which in my case means a higher resolution screen than any TV I have, and more than big enough for an immersive viewing experience when my head's a foot or two away from the screen- and an iPhone. Watching a movie on an iPhone is kind of ridiculous.

I only read books in public that I want pretty girls to comment on so we can fall in love and have babies

I'm still trying to figure out how to call someone on my droid.

More so than watching it in a theater full of people who don't know how to behave in public and missing two minutes because I have to piss, yes, but that's a separate discussion. I don't quite get how any of those things are injurious to watching a movie except the door (rarely a problem since I usually watch at night) and the phone (more likely to hear that in a theater than my house), and I didn't say anything about Zen, I just said I had higher standards than a two-inch LED screen.

That's why traveling's a great time for me to read a book or catch up on some magazines. I'll save the film viewing for when I get home. I don't even have a smart phone, but if I did, I'd still try to read, though mindless websurfing would be tempting. I find reading a magazine so immensely pleasurable when I'm on a train or in a waiting room and it's enforced (somewhat).

Meanwhile: Errol Morris's Tabloid appears to be back from its mysterious Netflix hiatus.

That's what happens when you go from being a business partner to a competitor. I understand their reasons for getting into it, but Netflix would have been better off steering clear of original programming.

Netflix hates Milestone, Part 2 (crossposted from the Milestone thread).

Just more material to add to this

I think the file name for that JPEG was supposed to be "yepwereasocietyofprivilegedshitswhoneedeverythingimmediately.jpg"

I agree with you in principle but in practice arrogance like this makes me want to go pirate a Warner Bros. movie just to spite them.

This is one of the many reasons why I prefer watching films on the PC.

Anyone know how to record Netflix streaming in anamorphic?

edit: I am not trying to "steal" movies, only make DVD's of films that aren't out on DVD.

Motivations aside, it's completely illegal, so not really fair game for discussion here.

Is it OK if someone PM's me?

If by PC you mean computer, I certainly wasn't advocating watching movies on one of those. Piracy is one thing, but let's not have utter anarchy here.