stats! stats! stats!
on letterboxd, Spotify Wrapped, and the desire to turn hobbies into stats.
I won’t lie to you, letterboxd has completely influenced how I consume movies. I’ve always been a lifelong film fan but since signing up for letterboxd four years ago, I am a film fan. I log fervently on a near daily basis. I feel equally as excited logging my sixth (?) recent viewing of Tootsie (1982), or my billionth viewing of my childhood favorite film, 101 Dalmatians (1996), as I did the first time. I find myself thinking of the inevitably cheeky review I could make after I finish watching my movie throughout the viewing with a stupid grin plastered on my face.
One might argue that would be a distraction. I’m honestly not sure where I land on this argument, and I think that is why I’m writing this piece. I’m trying to figure out why I (and everyone else!) enjoy logging our hobbies and indulging in the oft- year-end stats, whether it be on letterboxd or on Spotify Wrapped.
I know I have experienced the so-called “dark side” of turning my hobbies into statistics. In 2022, I became a huge reader after discovering TikTok’s book community BookTok. Spending time on BookTok not only turned me into a veracious reader, but I was also introduced to Goodreads (MUCH later than anyone else LOL), and I went to town with logging my books.
That same year I was diagnosed with a disorder which largely kept me homebound for the majority of the year, so I dove into reading and immersing myself into online book communities. I read like wildfire; I would often have three books (one fiction, one non, and an audiobook!) going at the same time so my Goodreads profile looked liked a tornado. I started to become self-conscious about what my Goodreads followers would think about how much I read and logged. I started to wait a few days to start logging books so my feed wouldn’t look so messy.
Why do we become self-conscious, or have any negative feelings about logging stats? Having any strong feeling would imply that we have a strong connection to it. Why do we care so much about logging stats? In a world so ruled by technology and a strong loneliness epidemic growing over time, do we feel the need to prove to other users that we’re making use of the social media apps that have arguably been thought to give us a false sense of connection?
Or is it not that serious?
Does the thought of sharing our faves just scratch a specific part of our brains? Do I have some sort of idea in the back of my head that I am going to subconsciously influence my 30 letterboxd followers to watch my new favorite movies (this one and this one) the more times I watch and log them?
The unveiling of Spotify Wrapped brought a record scratch to social media feeds this week. Every year of the past decade or so, the yearly list of tracks listened to by Spotify users makes a strong impact on the internet and pop culture; There was even a Spotify Wrapped-inspired sketch on SNL last night!
I’m genuinely not sure why I felt extremely irritated every year for nearly a decade with my Spotify Wrapped because my all-time favorite band (Elvis Costello & The Attractions) made the top spot. My friend made a joke about me hosting a press conference when Ms. Taylor Alison Swift finally knocked Costello and co. out of the top slot. Why did it make me so irritable after the rumor began swirling that Spotify stops collecting data after Halloween? I feel personally victimized by the algorithm for not cataloguing the humongous ‘90’s R&B phase I’ve been going through for the last month. I was also incredibly sad thinking about how I wouldn’t be part of the mayhem the year I briefly flirted with an Apple Music subscription (I’m sorry Neil and Joni, I luv you both big time!!!).
I recently became a “pro” member of letterboxd, which allows me access to a beavy of stats about my viewing habits I did not have before. When I’m through reading my Substacks and pinning stuff on Pinterest for the night and don’t want to shut my laptop yet, I’m probably drooling over some stats. Can you believe I have watch 137 films revolving around “laugh out loud relationship entanglements???”
The more I consume these stats and get those happy endorphins, the more confused I am about the reason why. I went 20-something years watching movies without my phone being close by. I felt the same (and probably more!) amount of delight having fun consuming film without da boxd. Knowing I know how much letterboxd has influenced me to delve deeper into film and has had such a positive impact on my life and scrolling habits, I know I’d be de-va-stated if it were to ever disappear.
I’m really interested to hear what you think! Let me know!
All these apps that work like logs have made hobbies feel like a responsibility. It's supposed to be casual and relaxing! You're not even getting paid or anything!
yes, exactly! I hate how it can feel like yet another form of social media to keep up with.