i think about this a lot specifically where film is concerned because that's the medium that most resonates with me but i think it could apply to any type of art. consider those "top four favorites" letterboxd videos - every time someone lists a bunch of old or foreign movies, tons of the comments accuse that person of being sooo pretentious, and then whoever picks legally blonde or something gets lauded for being "so real" and "actually honest with their answer". like hello?? you're following letterboxd on social media, watching a video of accomplished filmmakers and artists passionate about their field list their favorite movies, and turn on them when they pick the night of the hunter instead of star wars?? i used to regularly listen to students in film classes with me complain about all the old and "weird" movies we had to watch. i have met tons of people who want nothing more than to make movies or otherwise pursue art yet regularly write things off as too weird, too long, too old, too hard to understand.
what is the point of engaging with art then if you refuse to try and understand it when it's hard, don't look back to the older influences of modern art you enjoy, don't want to step outside of what you know and find comfort in? even if someone's watching all these movies with the goal of having big letterboxd numbers or falsely looking knowledgable about film, at least they're thoroughly engaging with the medium instead of watching nothing but american classics and writing off the rest.
