How to talk about movies that you haven't seen - Volume I: Citizen Kane

We've all been there. In the middle of a discussion about a very famous and important movie that you should have seen, but you haven't.

Let's face it. We lead busy lives. Watching a movie takes a lot of time. And, often, watching a classic movie takes a lot of brain power. There's a lot of pressure, too, watching a movie that's generally beloved and respected. Sometimes it's better to watch a lightweight movie. Or an episode of a television series.

Or five episodes of a television series. Mmm, Bunheads.

But that puts us in the awkward position, when people we're talking to start discussing, say, The Godfather, of having not seen the movie.

And thus we have two choices. We can either tell the truth, say we haven't seen The Godfather, and spend the rest of the discussion alternatively being berated for not having seen SUCH A CLASSIC MOVIE!!! and being told to go and watch said movie AT ONCE. Or...we can lie. Pretend we've seen The Godfather. Use the accumulated knowledge floating around in popular culture, and a zillion references from The Simpsons, to flub our way through the conversation. Peppered with vague comments like, "Oh, yeah, it's such a classic!", of course.

And this is where I come in.