A young man on the appeal of Top Gun: "Big bad plane, big bad motorcycle, and big bad Kelly McGillis".

Tom Stempel has spent more than fifty years sitting in the dark, watching movies and his fellow filmgoers, listening to their comments and reactions. His new book provides a unique perspective on half a century of American cinema from the audience's point of view.

Going beyond comments of professional reviewers, Stempel concentrates on the opinions of ordinary people. Avoiding statistical summary, he presents the results of a survey on movies and moviegoing in the respondents' own words -- words that surprise, amuse, and irritate. What brings them together is Stempel's own observations from a lifetime of watching films and audiences. He also analyzes box office results to identify which movies people actually went to see, not just those the critics thought were good films.

Stempel explores the impact of major films, the ways in which cable TV and VCRs have transformed moviegoing, and abilities of movie trailers to build audience anticipation. He traces shifting trends in genre and taste, examining and questioning the power films have in American society.