I recently saw a video online of a young man on the spectrum, who had taught himself how to play the piano, before he played an original and beautiful composition called ‘Reflections’. In his opening speech, he said, “Different does not mean wrong. Different minds see different worlds.” I know he was speaking about himself and other neurodivergent individuals, how they react to the world, as well as how the world reacts to them. But what I found interesting in that statement is that it made me thing about us as movie fans, and our opinions on, well… movies.

It really shows that no matter what you see and feel about a film, it doesn’t mean someone else is guaranteed to see it the same way. And that’s okay. Neither one is wrong. Just… different.

We all bring something different to the discussion, such as our past, our upbringing, our experiences… everything. Which means we’re bound to see and understand things differently, even if in the slightest of ways. If we can have that understanding going into a conversation, then not only do we have the opportunity to learn about someone else’s point of view, how they see it, and how it affects them, we also have the chance to possibly learn something new about the film being discussed. Maybe a ‘different’ way of thinking about it, whether we’re talking about a movie as a whole, or even just a specific scene.

It really is a win-win.

While because of our past, our viewing experience might be similar to others, it also may be quite different. That is the beauty of film, and even more so, the discussion of it with other open-minded people that are willing to listen and think as much as speak.