I am a chronic rewatcher. I love watching films and TV over and over, never stopping to think it might be a waste of time. Some find this baffling – how boring to rewatch something you’ve already seen. You know how it ends!
Recently I started to wonder what the pull to rewatch a favourite show says about me – and others in the habit. Are we simply lovers of routine, hardwired to want to know what to expect, and eager to avoid disappointment when we sit down in front of the TV? For those who see no sense in it, do they thrive off spontaneity or being kept guessing?
I did a straw poll on this topic and found that rewatching is most often due to a need for comfort that even non-rewatchers indulge in sometimes. There is something about knowing what you’re getting – be it laugh-out-loud gags, a step back in time or some adrenaline – that has an addictive quality.
When I was younger, the epitome of this personality trait was my propensity to rewatch Mamma Mia!.
It came out when I was 11. I remember going to the cinema three times to see it, enchanted by the glittering Grecian sea, ABBA songs and Meryl Streep. It was the go-to on long road trips and many a night at home. I watched it so much that if I had trouble falling asleep, I would see how far I could get reciting it line by line from the opening sequence, instead of counting sheep.
TV too has a special kind of rewatchability because it is contained in an episode – perfect for when you just need an hour of something to wash over you – and you get to know the characters so well that revisiting them is like coming home.
If you’re feeling fragile, ready to cry at a moment’s notice, this is your cue to watch a sad movie, and just get it over and done with.
Or there is the pull of nostalgia – like the time my best friend (firmly in the non-rewatch camp) announced she wanted to rewatch Ratatouille to sink into the childhood delight of an animated rat who has a talent for cooking French food. Truly worth it.
But on the flip side, part of the fun of being a film buff is finding new favourites – you cannot have one without the other. There is always a new release at the cinema and TV shows are rarely without a second season to look forward to. Rewatcher or not, you have to make time, because the triumph in finding new favourites and telling everyone about them is one of the most satisfying things you can do.
Gone are the DVD shop days or DVDs-by-mail. As a devoted DVD collector (you just never know when you may not have wifi), I have carried my own stack from home to home, to dorm rooms and to my own flat as a high priority – my favourites are always within reach. Sadly, the opportunities to get a haul from closing video stores or op shops have dwindled in recent years.
Streaming services now mean you could watch something new every day of the week if you wanted to. But sometimes, when decision fatigue is rife, the abundance of choice can be overwhelming.
It is such a conscious choice to choose to return to something you’ve already seen. I could have watched a lot of different shows during the time I’ve spent rewatching episodes of The Good Wife, and in fairness, watching Groundhog Day every day for a year may be a step too far (the film is – if you’ve never seen it – very rewatchable, but this experiment seems a bit extreme).
But every year, in the lead-up to Christmas, I insist we rewatch a “Christmas movie” as a family. Many will know the feeling of not being able to flick past Die Hard when it comes on. Even if you know John McClane conquers all, surely there’s no harm in seeing him be a hero in a bloodied singlet with a gun taped to his back one more time. It may be time to swap out Love Actually, but choosing a favourite means there is no room for disappointment on Christmas Eve.
Best of all, there are no glances across the sofa that say: we’re going to have to turn this off before the credits roll. With good films, you know you’ll watch them to the end – and next year you’ll do it all over again.
