Movies On Repeat

How many times have you watched your favourite movie? Once or twice? If it’s really good, maybe even a few times. For example, I have watched movies like Gladiator, Remember the Titans, While you were Sleeping, and a Christmas Story more times than I care to admit.

For a lot of autistic people, rewatching treasured movies and TV shows actually serves several important purposes.

First, in a world that generally feels very chaotic and unpredictable to me, a familiar movie is a comfort. I know exactly what’s going to happen, and I often feel connected to the characters on a deep level. There are no surprises in a movie I have already seen.

Routine and structure are vital for me in my daily life and my movie-watching experience is often no exception. Rewatching a movie for the fifth time might be extremely boring to a neurotypical person, but it can feel extremely calming and reassuring to me.

Another issue for many autistic people is auditory processing challenges. In other words, I struggle to process verbal language during real-life conversations. Someone will say something to me, and it sounds like garbled mumbles, so I ask them to repeat. Halfway through them trying a second time, I will jump in and answer their question because my brain has had the chance to catch up to what was said.

When I’m watching a new movie, it is therefore often exhausting to process all the conversations between the characters, especially if there is a lot of background noise in the scene. Subtitles are necessary, but it can still be an energetically draining experience to watch a new movie, even if it’s interesting and enjoyable.

In those moments where I’m already tired, it’s so much easier to watch an old familiar movie or TV show than attempt to understand a new one. I can zone out and be on my phone at the same time if I’m watching something I’ve already seen.

Finally, for me, rewatching favourite movies and TV shows isn’t boring at all. If I really enjoyed it the first time, I know that watching it again will help me further understand all the details that I might have missed the first time when everything felt overwhelming. I love unpacking the layers of a movie or TV show, and I can only do that through several viewings.

Next time you ask your autistic parent, sibling, friend or partner what movie they want to watch, don’t be surprised if it’s something they’ve already seen. Don’t make fun of them or say “That one, again?!” Grab a snack and enjoy a great movie that they can probably quote. Next time, it might just be your turn to choose the movie.