[Sad Professor]

Yeah, it's definitely not as simple as "film came out 5/10/20 years ago, therefore spoilers are fair game". But if you are talking about a film like TESB or even something more recent like TDK, films which everyone and their mother has seen - and if they haven't, shame on them - then I think spoiler tags are a waste of time. I would probably still spoiler tag something like The Usual Suspects though, simply because that's a film that hangs almost entirely on a single plot twist and knowing it in advance really would ruin the film.

However, most films are more about the story than the plot so knowing the ending doesn't really matter. I find it bizarre when I hear people say they aren't going to bother watching a film now that they know the ending. Why do we watch certain films over and over again? It certainly isn't for the plot because we already know what's going to happen; it's for the story and the characters.

[noisenotmusic]

Whenever I see someone complaining about spoilers in a speciic thread about a film I wonder what they're doing in a thread about a film they haven't seen in the first place. Say Citizen Kane were to be released next week and there was a thread discussing it, once its out people should expect the fact that a thread dedicated to discussing it will have spoilers. I can see how if it's a general "Last Movie Watched" thread or something then you might complain though.

[Nervous Wreck]

The way things are currently done is all good. Everyone uses spoiler tags until a note of "Spoilers from post ___ onwards" is added to the thread.

What is really annoying is when someone openly posts spoilers about a movie not related to the thread itself. There's no way of knowing that someone's gonna do it and it's fucking annoying.

[Skinfull]

I think everyone is in agreement that specific film threads should be viewed with caution, but open ended multi-movie threads should be tagged often, and with a lick of common sense.

The question of whether to "spoil" older movies then brings in the question of popularity. The Usual Suspects, Signs, Star Wars are all movies that have been parodied to death, some people will have had movies spoiled from parodies and not realise until they see the original. But more under the radar movies, no matter how old should always be handled with kid gloves.

[Simian!]

How much hassle is it to put spoiler tags in? Spoiler: There's a fúcking shortcut in everyone's editor to do it!

[Skinfull]

Originally Posted by Sticky Romance

How much hassle is it to put spoiler tags in? Spoiler: There's a fúcking shortcut in everyone's editor to do it!

Its not the hassle of adding spoiler tags. Its the distruption to the flow of the conversation. Having to stop and highlight every other post gets annoying, maybe thats just me, but I prefer to read and scroll!

[krudler]

its common sense really, i know or knew plenty of spoiler for old films I hadnt watched yet, didnt stop me from enjoying them one bit, I knew who Rosebud was, how Gone With The Wind or Casablanca ended etc etc as they're famous scenes from famous movies.

must have been a bitch for people seeing Platoon the first time since the fate of a character is ruined on the poster

[MagicMarker]

Originally Posted by Skinfull

Its not the hassle of adding spoiler tags. Its the distruption to the flow of the conversation. Having to stop and highlight every other post gets annoying, maybe thats just me, but I prefer to read and scroll!

Ctrl-A

Originally Posted by krudler

must have been a bitch for people seeing Platoon the first time since the fate of a character is ruined on the poster

Someone on their knees looking up at the sky hardly gives much away. Plus you can't even see who it is.

[Technocentral]

Ok to reveal the spoiler in D.W Griffith's "Birth Of A Nation" (1916) yet? Spoiler: It's a load of racist claptrap

[Technocentral]

Originally Posted by krudler

its common sense really, i know or knew plenty of spoiler for old films I hadnt watched yet, didnt stop me from enjoying them one bit, I knew who Rosebud was, how Gone With The Wind or Casablanca ended etc etc as they're famous scenes from famous movies.

must have been a bitch for people seeing Platoon the first time since the fate of a character is ruined on the poster

Same here, in fact so many films are predictable its more a matter of how its done than the revelation itself, I read up about a lot of older movies before watching them and it doesn't spoil them at all. Btw Trying making some spoiler from the last 20 mins. of 2001!

[krudler]

I'd wager the Simpsons has spoiled more movies for me than I care to remember, "wait a minute, statue of liberty? that was OUR planet! you maniacs! you blew it up!"

also the dvd cover kinda ruins it:

[Nervous Wreck]

Originally Posted by krudler

I'd wager the Simpsons has spoiled more movies for me than I care to remember, "wait a minute, statue of liberty? that was OUR planet! you maniacs! you blew it up!"

Agreed.

[johnny_ultimate]

"You liked Rashomon!"
"That's not how I remember it"

Probably the most brilliant, multi-layered joke about Japanese cinema to ever make it onto mainstream television.

[pickarooney]

I only get one layer...

[johnny_ultimate]

Originally Posted by pickarooney

I only get one layer...

As a kid, I always thought it was a funny, throwaway line.

Then on a later rewatch having seen the film I realised it was a meta-joke about the film itself, and it made me chuckle heartily in a whole new way. And that's why the Simpsons is awesome.