As many of you know from reading this blog and listening to our new MomsLA podcast, I just got cable TV, which has been a revelation, and which is especially nice for my son who is suddenly a Sports Fan, but before that we had Netflix and we still do.
We started a Saturday night family tradition of having homemade pizza and watching a movie together when the Economy was in the slow-downs, since it was so much more affordable than going out.
My husband is a great cook, and Trader Joe’s makes pizza dough for $1.29. Way back when we would get a DVD from the movie store – remember those? Or of course Netflix would deliver, and then once Streaming started, we didn’t even need to wait for a disc. It’s a bargain at twice the price and we’ve been doing it for years.
Since the point of the evening is to spend time together, we’ve always tried to choose movies that would appeal to all of us, and that means we’ve pretty much stayed in the Comedy Genre. My youngest son has never really liked serious fare, although we have high hopes for someday, so if I want us all sitting on the couch together, Bring on the Comedies.
And the more sophomoric, the better.
My sons are 12 and 15, and, as much as might wish they had a taste for the occasional highbrow film, what they truly love are the basest of comedies. I have a line I won’t cross (ahem: Family Guy), but short of that, I will sit through fart jokes and pratfalls because nothing is better than hearing my kids laugh.
Laughing is a very physical act, and I actually love to watch them laugh, too. They will fall all over each other – and on my husband and me – when something really gets them. And the comments that fly back and forth when something raunchy has been said – oooooo did you hear that??? OMG I can’t believe it!!!
It actually makes watching a movie into an Interactive experience for us.
So last Saturday night we streamed The Interview, starring Seth Rogen and James Franco and we had a ball. The movie is much funnier than I thought it would be, although I can certainly see why someone would want to ban it…
We had of course followed all the news reports of the movie being pulled from theaters amid threats of violence, and the Sony hacking scandal, and then knew it would get a limited release after all. I was one of those who secretly considered the possibility that all the hullabaloo was created to either build buzz for a movie that wasn’t getting enough press already or to help scuttle a film that everyone thought was going to be a stinker.
Whether all of that contributed to my kids’ wanting to see the movie, I can only speculate. (Just kidding; Of Course It Contributed!) But either way a desire was born, and last weekend: a wish fulfilled. My 12 year old asked and we pressed play.
My family had a wonderful time laughing and eating carbs together and I have two overgrown schoolboys – and Netflix – to thank.
Sarah Auerswald is the co-Founder of MomsLA.com. This post is part of the ongoing partnership between MomsLA and the Netflix #StreamTeam.