"You have to get the audience invested even if you're doing something that they think is dumb, it's kind of what these movies are all about"
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Berry is naming the invisible job description of blockbuster acting: persuading people to care about a premise they might already be rolling their eyes at. The line isn’t an apology for “dumb” movies so much as a diagnosis of how they function. Big, noisy, high-concept films don’t win you over with plausibility; they win you over with emotional buy-in. If the audience believes the character believes, the whole contraption holds. If not, even the best VFX reads like expensive dead air.
The word “invested” is doing heavy lifting. It frames attention as a transaction: viewers are spending time, money, and social currency, and the performer has to make that spend feel justified. Berry’s subtext is pragmatic, almost defensive in a way that’s familiar to actors who’ve worked in franchise machinery: don’t confuse the silliness of the setup with the seriousness of the craft. The audience can laugh at the concept and still be moved by the stakes, but only if someone on-screen commits hard enough to anchor the spectacle.
There’s also a quiet class politics in “they think is dumb.” It nods to the cultural gatekeeping that separates “serious” cinema from pop entertainment, as if intelligence is measured by how little fun you’re allowed to have. Berry flips the hierarchy: the challenge isn’t making a tasteful film; it’s making an untasteful one land. These movies are “all about” the conversion moment - turning skepticism into participation. The real special effect is sincerity.
The word “invested” is doing heavy lifting. It frames attention as a transaction: viewers are spending time, money, and social currency, and the performer has to make that spend feel justified. Berry’s subtext is pragmatic, almost defensive in a way that’s familiar to actors who’ve worked in franchise machinery: don’t confuse the silliness of the setup with the seriousness of the craft. The audience can laugh at the concept and still be moved by the stakes, but only if someone on-screen commits hard enough to anchor the spectacle.
There’s also a quiet class politics in “they think is dumb.” It nods to the cultural gatekeeping that separates “serious” cinema from pop entertainment, as if intelligence is measured by how little fun you’re allowed to have. Berry flips the hierarchy: the challenge isn’t making a tasteful film; it’s making an untasteful one land. These movies are “all about” the conversion moment - turning skepticism into participation. The real special effect is sincerity.
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| Topic | Movie |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
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