Poltergeist, Zeitgeist
There’s a beautiful ease in just being there, without the hard work and intentionality of getting there. It’s like magic. A song pops into your head and you want to hear it right that second, Spotify will oblige. Searching for the nearest Starbucks? There’s an app for that.
Instantaneousness is the expectation. Oddly, this was brought into sharp focus when I had a thought two days ago on our family vacation to watch the movie “Poltergeist.” I remembered it as a quirky/terrifying movie, nuanced, with memorable performances and lines that still haunt me. “They’re baaaaack,” from pre-school demon hostage Carol Ann. “This house is clean,” from the diminutive exorcist, equal parts squeaky-voice and efficient authority. I was excited to share the film with my kids.
As often happens with things nostalgic, it was not how I remembered it. The almost glacial unfolding of the plot, the lame, dated special effects. So much character-development, worldbuilding, and exposition. Even I found myself getting itchy for things to get going.
Strange. Back in 1982, the movie was paced perfectly.
It’s not just a matter of outdated style, like bustles and fedoras. It’s a matter of our 21st century brains being wired differently by technology. As soon as we come up with it, it’s asked and answered. Unquenched curiosity and speculation were common states that now, we have a hard time abiding.
I am sad about this. I realize how much satisfaction lies in patience and figuring it out. And while the world is so conveniently and immediately at our fingertips, I miss the slow unfolding, that prickly suspension in the unknown, the feeling of expectation not yet met, but resolutely in progress.