PrepTest 145, Section 4, Question 4
Film director: It's inaccurate to say that filmgoers(53 more words not shown)
Which one of the following,(10 more words not shown)
- AThe film director's(5 more words not shown)
- BFilmgoers seldom see(7 more words not shown)
- CThe total number(14 more words not shown)
- DEach of the(14 more words not shown)
- EMost filmgoers are(8 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
What if the people who like this kind of film go to two movies that weekend? The director's explanation is that several films are competing for the same relatively small audience. I can see the problem if someone chooses a competing film and that choice uses up the person's moviegoing time. But if enthusiasts see several films, competition needn't keep them away from this one.
What we’re looking for
The director also rejects a different explanation: the negative reviews. We don't have to decide that the film was good or bad. We need support for the specific story about a limited audience being divided among competing films during opening weekend. So I'd look for evidence that going to one of those other films really does make a person less likely to see the director's film that same weekend.
Working the answers
- A
If the film received no positive reviews, the review-based explanation remains a serious possibility. A doesn't support the claim that competition, rather than the reviews, explains the small opening audience. It gives us more reason to consider the explanation the director dismisses.
- BCorrect
People seldom see more than one movie in a weekend. Now a viewer's choice of a competing film is likely to use up that person's movie outing. With several films appealing to the same small group, the audience available for this film can shrink. B supports the mechanism the director needs.
- C
A large total moviegoing audience doesn't tell us how many people wanted this particular kind of film. Most of the additional viewers might have wanted something entirely different. C doesn't explain how the director's limited target audience was divided.
- D
Positive reviews for the competing films could make them appealing, but D doesn't establish how choosing them affects attendance at this film. It also keeps reviews in the explanation, rather than isolating the director's claim about competition for limited viewers. B more directly supplies the missing constraint: people usually make only one movie choice that weekend.
- E
Liking several kinds of film doesn't tell us how many films someone actually sees or which one they choose. A person could enjoy both comedies and horror movies while going to only one movie, several movies, or none. This broad fact about taste doesn't support the proposed explanation of the opening weekend.
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