In general, people decide whether a movie is worth the ticket price by learning what they can through trailers and basic descriptions - thus, my dilemma.
Tuesday night, I covered the premiere of the horror film "Orphan," and while I do enjoy a good scare, this particular film wasn't really grabbing my attention. However, while waiting for the celebrity arrivals to star, something sparked my interest - the movie poster had five short words: "Can you keep a secret?" This got several of us on the red carpet wondering what the secret might be, until I was so intrigued, I considered catching the movie on opening night this Friday.
Soon, the arrivals started, and knowing how they might respond, I teasingly asked the cast and director if they could reveal the big secret of the movie - just to me. Of course, their answers were a unanimous "No!" That is, until one cast member surprised me: "I didn't know the secret was supposed to be kept a secret, because I just told a few networks something I wasn't supposed to, until someone kicked me in the shins and told me to stop!" While this person didn't let me in on what the others had learned, my follow-up question yielded another slip-up, of which the actor seemed unaware.
In the end, word spread - this was a media event, after all - and I learned the secret. Sadly, I think it's quite a good twist - good enough that I wished I didn't know what it was, so I could watch the movie and be surprised. Now that I know, I'm not as interested.
What are your thoughts? Does knowing "Orphan" has a secret make you want to see it more? And can a movie twist be so good that it's worth watching even if you already know it?