How long did it take you to realise you were watching a dud?

[Prog5000]

So you’re sitting down to watch a film, how far in or at what moment on screen made you think “I’m watching a bad film” or “this movie is going to disappoint?”

For me it was when the dwarfs started throwing around and juggling with cgi plates in the hobbit.My expectations sank.

[stvn1974]

When the first group of chicks started yapping on and on and on and on in Death Proof. The second group of chicks are still yapping on and on and on and on and on.

[Batman1980]

I can usually tell 20 minutes in if a film is good or bad.

[Damon1281]

When the opening screen said "Tubi Original"

[Zivouhr]

Originally Posted by stvn1974

When the first group of chicks started yapping on and on and on and on in Death Proof. The second group of chicks are still yapping on and on and on and on and on.

I saw that in theaters, and thought Planet Terror was much better of the double feature of Death Proof and then Planet Terror. I know Tarantino loves small talk table dialog, but it didn't progress the story at all and had nothing to do with Kurt Russell as the driver of his trap car.

In that case, just shorten it to a few lines to give the audience the idea, and then move forward to the next scene. But it kept going. I haven't seen it since the theater. I heard since then, Tarantino said Death Proof was not his best work.

Dialog should most times, progress the story in some way or create some kind of tension or conflict to be resolved towards advancing the story. And if a scene can be cut without affecting the story at all, cut it, or at least trim it down to the bare minimum.

[OutOfBoose]

I give every movie I watch about 15-20 minutes to get me interested. If a movie fails to do that, I just turn it off.

[John1701D]

[stvn1974]

[Samus Aran]

"Somehow Palpatine returned."

Returning in a trailer was cool, but two movies with zero setup to bringing him back (because there was no plan to bring him back) is another thing all together.

[dancerslegs]

I can usually tell within the first minute or so. Definitely not always, though. I have been surprised on several occasions.

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by dancerslegs

I can usually tell within the first minute or so. Definitely not always, though. I have been surprised on several occasions.

It takes more than a minute to get a real feel for films because the first scene is usually just a set-up so it doesn't give you enough information to tell if the film is good or bad.

[Shogun MacArthur]

Originally Posted by Prog5000

For me it was when the dwarfs started throwing around and juggling with cgi plates in the hobbit.My expectations sank.

Dang, that was one of my favorite parts of the movie. It was one of the moments that did a great job of capturing the feeling of the original book.

[Prog5000]

Originally Posted by Shogun MacArthur

Dang, that was one of my favorite parts of the movie. It was one of the moments that did a great job of capturing the feeling of the original book.

It was the bad cgi and disregard for basic physics that lost me, it’s the least of the film’s problems but I knew something wasn’t right from that moment & the remainder of the film, for me, was a boring mess.

[Lee J. Cook]

I'm usually very annoyed by Poor Visual Effects. Like in your example, when poorly executed CGI or special effects become distracting or unrealistic, it can detract from the immersion in the film and indicate lower production quality.

[s2mikey]

Originally Posted by Batman1980

I can usually tell 20 minutes in if a film is good or bad.

Thats about right. Maybe a half hour in some cases. People argue sometimes that "the second half gets much better or you gotta wait for blah blah blah". No, I don’t and if the first half sucks then I’d never sit through it again anyways so therefore, I’m OUT.

Originally Posted by OutOfBoose

I give every movie I watch about 15-20 minutes to get me interested. If a movie fails to do that, I just turn it off.

Yep. It’s called the stop button on your remote. My time has value and if your show or film sucks I’m not wasting time on finishing it. You had your chance.

Originally Posted by Samus Aran

"Somehow Palpatine returned."

Returning in a trailer was cool, but two movies with zero setup to bringing him back (because there was no plan to bring him back) is another thing all together.

100% this. Once I realized that Palpatine wasn’t just a force ghost or spirit but rather they fudged his actual physical survival….I really did almost walk out the theater. My brother convinced me to stay but I felt ill and violated watching this movie.

Originally Posted by dancerslegs

I can usually tell within the first minute or so. Definitely not always, though. I have been surprised on several occasions.

Wow. A minute? That’s barely enough time for opening credits on older films. Geesh. I’m all for a quick hook but this is extreme!

[BluGalaxy]

Yeah i say about 20mins is a good length of time to know when a movie is good or not.

[Damon1281]

I would have to admit that Late Night with the Devil was on the edge of falling into dudsville for the first half hour before I started appreciating it. I'm glad I stuck it out.

[AreaFive]

It was already obvious that its tone and cohesion was significantly off even before this point but the "your mom" "joke" at the beginning of The Last Jedi did it for me.

In a similar manner, the stage IV cancer "joke" at the start of Thor, Love, and Thunder let me know that I was in for a significantly lesser quality experience than its predecessor.

[Steedeel]

Many films can start off slow but end up great, so I don’t subscribe to sussing a film after 5 minutes (or even 30 minutes for that matter)

[Moviefan2k4]

Originally Posted by Batman1980

I can usually tell 20 minutes in if a film is good or bad.

It takes you a full 20 minutes? You have much more patience than me. My judgment for most films these days is usually based on a trailer, and if I do attend a screening, I have no problem walking out if I'm not impressed very early on.