The Forum Is Dead

[Alisa]

The forum is dead.

As everyone can see, the forum is dead. I think this is mostly caused by lack of free communicating. That can be divided into two categories:

1: Spoilery talk

2: Freedom of speech

1. It's essential to talk about the movie after you've seen it. That's when you've formed an opinion about it and actually have something to say about it. In this forum that's the moment when you have to shut up and keep it to yourself. All because of 50 most recent posts? I recently joined a forum that doesn't have a 50 most recent posts option, and they've been keeping it up for years and years... Why can't we put up a bright note saying the 50 most recent posts contains spoilers? There could still be threads for those who haven't seen them?

2. This shouldn't be a community where anyone who says they don't like the direction Cillian's chest hair are pointing are crucified. People should be allowed to differ with Cillian's opinions and other forum member's opinions as long as they don't throw death threats or other seriously insulting things at each other. Meaningful discussion always have many sides. If some people are so sensitive they can't take it, then why do they hang out in places where's supposed to be discussion. Can someone explain it to me?

Anyway, I'm not interested in being in a place where we discuss the shade of his eye color or the the placing of his freckles 24/7. He's an actor. Not a model.

I Noticed there's new members. I wish you would post. Some new blood. New opinions.Speak your mind, please...

[bunnie24]

I do miss how this forum used to be so active. :/

[ashleyrose09]

I think that this forum gets dead when Cillian has not had a new movie out in theaters for awhile. One where he plays a fairly major character. Cillian has been doing a lot of work lately but he hasn't had any movies out this year so I feel like that gives us a lot less to talk about. All we can do is just wait and speculate and that can get old after awhile. I know Peaky Blinders is showing on British TV in September but who knows when the rest of us will get to see it. Also I think when the forum was blocked from having new users for awhile made any new people tired of waiting so maybe they don't even realize they can post now? I don't know but I think I've seen it deader than this.

[Alisa]

You do have a point there Ashleyrose. I'm just frustrated because i know when the upcoming films finally do come out, there's not much that can be said about them without spoiling. Maybe that doesn't have much to do with people not wanting to stay here. Maybe I just make it such a big issue because it bothers me so much. I don't know how other members feel about it.

To your question about Peaky Blinders, It's coming out on DVD October 21st in UK. Some items Amazon ships abroad, some they don't. That's why it's good to have a friend who has a British boyfriend. ;D

www.amazon.co.uk/Peaky-Blinders-Series-1-DVD/dp/B00EONJM4Y/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1377593444&sr=8-3&keywords=peaky+blinders

[thehyacinthgirl]

I can come up with a couple of reasons why the forum (as well as the apparent fandom) is so dead, one being that Cillian himself doesn't drum up any interest so it's hard for us fans to do the same. How many times must we hear that something is 'brilliant' and 'exciting' - especially if these adjectives are delivered in monotone? How many times must we see him deflect questions or give lacklustre responses to said questiosn? It's got to the point now where I can script his interviews before he even gives them and more often than not they're word for word replicas of ones he's given before. Even if they're new they're rarely delivered with any enthusiasm at all.

Another reason is that there are 'certain factions' (not naming names, mostly on Tumblr, you all know who I mean) who demand credit and claim ownership of just about everything that is posted, which is absurd to me because how can someone own a picture that is readily available online and wasn't actually taken by them?. It's easier to just not bother. One person in particular seems to think it her life's mission to rag on people who post 'her' stuff when it isn't hers at all and it's just not worth the effort.

It's a sad state of affairs when a man's own fandom turns on itself and becomes aggressive and possessive at its worst, not to mention apathetic. Just MHO, obviously.

As for spoilers - there is always the option of posting a 'contains spoilers' thread or taking it to PM. I sincerely doubt 'spoilers' are the problem here since he hasn't made anything new and decent in years.

[Pisces]

I think you are all correct.

As Hyacinth said, this is a fandom-wide issue, rather than forum-related. Fans have deserted, or gone underground, for varying reasons, and the end result is what you see here currently.

First off, fans are bored, as Ashleyrose pointed out. People want to be interested and discuss, but there isn't anything to talk about. Hasn't been for quite some time. Most of us have lives, and we aren't the sort to make Cillian our lives 24/7, so if there isn't something of particular note to delve into, we don't show up. There is only so much that can be said about movies that haven't come out yet, because we know very little about them.

Also, as Alisa mentioned, there has been a climate of intolerance in the entire fandom. Not only on this forum but anyplace Cillian is a topic of discussion. I have to add that I have seen persecution fly in all directions, not only at people who express negative opinions. It comes from all sides. You can't say Cillian is short, and you better not say he's got pretty eyes; either of these stances will possibly make you a target online. Again, this sort of attacking behavior is not at all restricted to this forum, although it has happened here for sure; I have seen people attacked on Facebook or Tumblr for their opinions about Cillian as well. It's a pretty widespread problem, and the end result is that fans simply keep their heads down and don't say much anywhere. Unless you are REALLY into being a fan, in which case you seem almost required to label yourself as a 'fangirl' or 'hater', and provide proof of it. Most fans aren't like that though; your average fan who isn't over-invested has both positive and negative opinions about Cillian and doesn't want to swear allegiance to any particular faction.

I've just looked at the most recent fifty posts here, and out of them, only one mentions Cillian's looks ('cheekbones overload!'). In fact, every post - other than this new thread - is carefully neutral, which evidences just how cautious people are in what they say. No one wants to be vilified here or elsewhere for their opinion about an actor.

Sum it all up by saying that Cillian fans are largely turned off or bored. It's a perfect storm of Cillian not having produced anything for a long time, his getting older (sorry, but it will likely get deader and deader here because of that - that's the harsh reality of it), and the fandom climate being unwelcoming at every turn. Not to mention that fans have so widely embraced FB, Twitter, Tumblr, and prefer to communicate via hashtags rather than well thought-out threads like you see on forums. A lot of formerly devoted fans have simply moved on.

[bunnie24]

I would say something, but it's pretty much been summed up already.

[thehyacinthgirl]

It is what it is. He's getting older and his opportunities are going to be fewer and more far between because he hasn't kept the ball rolling all that well, in all honesty. Gone are the days when Cillian will be pursued for his looks, that's the cold, harsh truth of it for me, at least. He's hardly showcased his talent in his more recent flicks either.

I'm not entirely shallow. I've 'stuck around' for people who have somewhat lost their looks or changed their looks because I have fallen in love with their talent but the fact is, I've been less than impressed with ANY of Cillian's recent work. Red Lights was a shambles, an absolute mess with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Broken much the same, a film that achieved limited release and provided a rather nondescript character from Cillian, one which required precious little effort and was, in effect, an extension of Martin from Retreat (another nothing movie). I refuse to get excited about a ten second cameo in a Batman flick and I can't say In Time was anything other than ridiculous. Then there's his own lethargy (could he be any more dull in his interviews? Seriously?) and the behaviour of his fandom (which is either pummelled into silence or laced with negativity and sarcasm - hardly a 'beautiful' community). For me, at least, these things have all compounded. You have an actor who is excruciatingly talented who is wasting himself with nondescript roles in films that flop, who refuses to 'sell' himself in any interview he chooses to participate in and whose looks might just have taken a nosedive due to the natural progression of age (time was he was labelled handsome all the time, in pretty much all reviews of his work. Don't think I've read it in a long time). All that combined is going to send a lot of people into radio silence.

The thing that is sad is that he's brought a lot of this on himself. I'm not going to 'bash' him here. I just wanted to put across a 'side' which might go a little way in explaining why some of us are not that talkative any more. Because he gives us nothing to talk about and, even if we do talk, we're routinely criticised for it on Twitter, on Tumblr, wherever. That's how ugly this fandom has become.

[ashleyrose09]

Wow, hearing about it more in depth I'm thinking why are those people, these fans as they call themselves, being so hateful to others? What happened? I really haven't seen much hate where I've been but I don't search around as much anymore. But I am on Facebook and Tumblr now also. I just don't get where all the viciousness would come from. Unless they are just all around negative people. That's sad though, but I don't feel Cillian has much control over who likes him or not. That's just really weird though. Well maybe things will get better for the fandom. I myself feel like Cillian is doing well career wise even though not everything he does people will like. I think it might be because more people know him now from Inception and The Dark Knight that he's inching closer to a more celebrity type status rather then just some cool, unknown Irish actor. Maybe his career choices have shifted. Some actors retire and I hope Cillian never does but I would not be extremely surprised if he did by the time he really gets into middle age, or at least considers it. Why did I bring that up? It's not like I want that to happen just saying. I would respect his choices because I respect him very much as an actor but I love what he is doing right now.

[Pisces]

Aug 28, 2013 16:36:24 GMT -5 ashleyrose09 said:

Wow, hearing about it more in depth I'm thinking why are those people, these fans as they call themselves, being so hateful to others?

Probably best explained that there are some fans who become too personally invested in Cillian and his career, to the point where some react too strongly to things he does or things other fans do that are in opposition to their own feelings. Once someone is that deeply involved, they take personally things that they read online, even though it may not have anything to do with themselves, and they immediately lash out. I'm not talking about mere debate here, or a good, rousing discussion with alternating viewpoints; I'm referring to disruption merely for disruption's sake. It's one thing to say that Cillian's recent film choices haven't been to ones taste; another thing altogether to say that he must have sucked a c*ck to get the part. I like a good joke as well as anyone else, but come on.

It's weird because even though there are always over-invested fans in any any fandom, the Cillian fandom seems to have far more than its share. In any case, if one has not been a 'regular' within the fandom, they may not have seen some of the aggressive and ugly behavior. But the fans who were frequent participants are well aware of it, and it's been a driving force in many of them disappearing.

That's not the only reason fans have slowly dwindled, of course. For many - myself included - they just ain't that into him anymore.

[thehyacinthgirl]

“Doing well” is a relative term when you look at how ‘well’ Tom Hardy is doing, for example, considering they were both in the same film AND the fact that Cillian was far more well-known whent they both starred in it.

Hardy rode the Inception wave. Cillian didn’t. He has a role on a TV show, what is widely expected to be an extended cameo in a Johnny Depp film and is playing second fiddle to Chris Hemsworth in a Ron Howard movie that hasn’t even started shooting yet. I don’t really see that as a progressive career on the back of a resounding success. I just see it as treading water on the back of a series of flops.

The reception for his latest films has got to have hit him hard, his fandom too. What on Earth is there to talk about? I could sit here and pull Red Lights apart for days on end – but not in a good way. If an actor is doing well and their films are being well received then it’s nice to get a discussion going but how are we meant to discuss something that was widely received as an implausible mess? There’s only so much belief that can be suspended. There’s only so much denial that can be applied.

He doesn’t exactly give us a lot to discuss ahead of releases either. I recently read an article where he sarcastically put down the person interviewing him rather than giving a straight answer. He’s thirty-seven years old, not seventeen.

I know this will be an unpopular opinion but, considering I have been a fan of his since 2002 it’s pretty sad that I can feel this way about him after sticking around for a decade. I thought seeing Misterman would solidify him in my little fangirl heart. If anything, it’s just clued me in to how much talent he has and how little he’s implementing it. And watching interviews with him just made me realise how impersonable he can be.

So, there you have it. Perhaps a contributing factor, who knows? It is for me, at least. I know if I were a new fan I wouldn’t be inclined to discuss a man who avoids all discussion, deflects questions and can’t even raise basic enthusiasm for his own projects (other than the pre-requisite 'brilliant script' talk we've all heard before - that he actually stated this about Red Lights is just bizarre!). Then there is the fact that his ‘superfans’ on Tumblr are ready to ‘seek legal action’ (I kid you not) if anyone dares post a gif they might have posted first without 'crediting' them (seriously?) is just another side of crazy that makes us sane people run a mile. There has been some of that on this forum already. I couldn't believe it when I read it then. I can't believe it now.

The 'fandom' has become lethargic, toxic and full of crazy people who want to 'own' a man who gives nothing away. It's no wonder everyone has gone into hiding.

[ashleyrose09]

I think the whole thing about people getting 'credit' for there work on the internet is getting pretty rampant everywhere. For some reason people seem to be going crazy about saying 'this is mine and you can't use it without my permission' which I can understand to a degree but if you post your artwork online shouldn't you be glad if it gets out there? I don't know but I have seen similar stuff like that on Facebook where people think that just posting something means that it's supposed to be totally private. I get why that would turn fans off.

[thehyacinthgirl]

I can't understand it at all. Unless somebody physically used a camera to take that photograph then it doesn't belong to them. Even if they scanned it, it's not their image. It's just a copy of someone else's. Do you see people crediting the writer, director and cameraman for the footage used in the gifs that people create, or indeed crediting the photographer for the photos they post and claim as their own? The ownership thing is ridiculous and hypocritical and ugly. Now, if it's artwork that is hand drawn, fair enough, but if it's just a photograph you've ran through an Instagram filter or turned into an icon? That photo isn't yours. You have no rights to that image whatsoever. Certain Tumblr users (again, you all know who, won't name names as it only causes WW3 with this person) seem to think it gives them some God-given right to the images, though, and vehemently argue the toss about the tiniest 'indiscretion'. It's bizarre behaviour from some rather unstable people, I have to say. And it's such people, amongst other things, who have sullied this fandom.

Another thing I have been thinking of recently is Misterman. The timing of that play in London was ridiculous. It was put on after the Olivier Awards cutoff date, therefore it could not be considered. It could, however, have been considered in this year's Oliviers. it wasn't. The likely reason for that is because 12 months had passed since the play had 'aired' - and nobody gave it a second thought. He could've used that play to actually be nominated for something worthwhile, putting him in the public eye if only momentarily and drumming up some interest. As it was, it showed too late for last years consideration and too early for this years. I'm not saying he would've won. I saw the performance of the guy who did and it blew Cillian's out of the water, as did James McAvoy's Macbeth. But just to be considered, y;'know? It would've brought interest. it would've been a talking point. For those who haven't seen Misterman, who did not enjoy Red LIghts and missed the incredibly limited release of Broken, there hasn't been an awful lot to discuss lately because nothing he's done has been accessible.

[Alisa]

Pisces: I didn't mean to say it like I thought all talk about his looks was unnecessary, pointless and shallow. To a certain point it's fun. I just meant I'm frustrated when all those restrictions with spoilers and negative opinions make it pretty much the only acceptable topic. And I wasn't talking about a recent situation. During the time I've been here I've felt like people have more to say about his pictures than his films. I don't think that's because people are in any way shallow or focused on his looks. It might be because people have already discussed the film through with their friends, but because the friends don't like him as much as the fans do, they come here to continue the stuff but leave the essential out, because it's already said somewhere else. I don't know. Some people might think that since this is a fan forum, you're only supposed to use complimenting adjectives and such. And I stubbornly want to explain some of the apathy with the no spoilers policy. Like you said: "There is only so much that can be said about movies that haven't come out yet", There is only so much that can be said about movies that have come out.

I agree with most of what you said, and I too do think some of his most recent films have been disappointments, In Time and Red Lights being the worst of them, but I'm only glad he's getting older.That gives him less opportunities to get roles because of his looks. He has to try harder to get them, and I'm hoping he gets offered roles with more interesting personalities(I don't know how else to put it with my English skills ). Some of my favourite actors are over 70. The age isn't a problem for me, but I can see you probably mean he doesn't attract young people so much any more?

@hyacinth Girl: I don't put so much value on interviews, and I understand his reluctance to do those. I think he should be judged mostly by his work. Whether it's good or bad. I've been a fan of a band for 11 years, and they haven't given a single interview during their career. They're doing fine. I know his latest films haven't been that good(well, I kind of liked Broken, but it wasn't great), but why don't people talk about that? You said you could pull Red Lights apart. I'd like to read that. I'm in no way valid to criticize you for not doing so, since I haven't commented on the Red Lights-thread after seeing it myself. I just don't think I can do so without spoilers. It's forbidden to start a "No Spoilers"-thread because of the 50 most recent posts option.

You're right to bring up the stupid and childish ownership thing. Like many people in this thread said before me, I understand it if you have drawn, painted or digitally formed it, It's yours and you can claim ownership. I haven't been to tumblr much, but I noticed It's not what it was created for. Or what do I know what it was created for. Maybe the creators only made it for money, but I'd like to think they made it so everyone would have a chance to have a blog about something that matters to them. Today it seems to be a place where people argue about who posted what first and who gets credit for it and who gets thrown to the bonfire for reposting, not reblogging. Very few people seem to care about sharing these days. The point seems to be who posted it. LIke it's some sort of a superpower to know what to type to google and it makes one a superhero to post it to tumblr. If I find something, I surely won't bother to see if someone has posted it to tumblr first. Of course i make sure the source isn't tumblr, In here, so far, it seems to be about sharing, not getting credit. That's good.

[Pisces]

Sept 1, 2013 14:55:36 GMT -5 Alisa said:

It's forbidden to start a "No Spoilers"-thread because of the 50 most recent posts option.

It's not forbidden. Never has been. Go ahead and create any spoiler thread you wish. Just because some people utilize the Recent Fifty Posts option does not mean they have to; they do so at their own risk. The only way to truly avoid seeing spoilers of any kind is to avoid the internet altogether.

I might not have been clear when I mentioned Cillian getting older. I didn't mean to imply it was a bad thing that he's aging; my intention was to explain why the forum has been quieter, which was the topic of this thread. It's just a fact that a lot of Cillian's fans followed him because they enjoyed his work AND because they found him attractive. As he gets older, that will happen less and less. Less fans means less people online who want to talk about him, which means a deader forum. It is what it is.

But I still think the number one problem is that Cillian had such a huge gap of time where no movies of his came out at all. And some of the ones that did come out didn't reach all countries, or were limited release. Or people saw a movie and didn't like it, which tends to disappoint fans. Disappointed people are not excited people, and excited people are the ones who typically flock to the internet to discuss something they're interested in. That's just human nature.

He took a year off to do a play. The vast majority of his fans never saw it. In that time, there was just nothing to talk about for those fans. It's not as if they could wait for the play to come out on DVD, lol. A lot of people became interested in other artists and began following them, and once you get out of the habit of checking in on an actor you used to follow, you start to sort of forget about them. I don't mean to be cruel but that's what I experienced. There is no reason for fans who haven't seen anything new from Cillian to go to extra effort to find things to talk about on a forum just to keep it going. It's the artist's responsibility to work and produce something of interest. That is what will get people talking again.

Anyway, at least this thread has some of us talking.