The worst part was waiting around. Sometimes you are ready at 9 a.m. and you don't start until the afternoon. Occupying your time while you wait is the hardest part of the movie.
My favorite sci-fi always uses its hook to amplify some bigger theme or idea - some emotional thrust.
And opposite the bench, the dock, divided by a partition, with the women to the left and the men to the right, as it is on the stairs or the block in polite society.

