Blog Post Two
Films have a special power over us. The ways they impact our
everyday lives are insurmountable. With images of government power, romance and
regular people, cinema has a way of connecting to us that is far deeper than any
other art form. Cinema is a mirror to us, a mirror to our society. It is also a
thinking tool, one that creates images that send you into spells of thought for
hours after. It has created an aura. An aura of celebrity, of power and money.
An aura of romance, of love and affection. An aura of greed and anger, of evil
and deceit.
Film is a very important and prominent part of our society
today. It has made lasting impacts on our thoughts and actions, as well as our
economy. These impacts, positive or negative, create conversations among all humans. Michelle C. Pautz said that “[Cinema is] one of the most accessible forms of
art out there. People of most walks of life experience movies, from the working
class to the super-rich, and it provides a common experience for society…”. Not
often can we find a piece of art that floats among all social rankings, all economic
statuses and all languages.
This accessibility allows for more conversations to spark,
more reflection and of course, more films to be made. The lasting effects of
cinema can be seen in so many areas, in which I’ll be discussing.
The first impact on society through film is the economy.
Obviously, it costs money to go see a movie. It costs money to buy a DVD or
purchase it on your streaming service. This, in turn, flows money in and out of
Hollywood’s pockets. But this isn’t the only way films affect the economy. Films
also implement products from every day that in turn elicit sales. This is referred
to as “product placement”. If your favorite actor is drinking a Coca Cola in a
scene, you may in turn pick up a Coca Cola beverage to be just like your
favorite actor. Movies also show you the power of said products. A Ford truck
might help carry drugs across state lines (for example, The Mule) or a Chevelle
Malibu may get you out of a sticky situation (for example, Drive). Whether you realize it or not, these appearances create certain ideas that follow you home, and eventually on your shopping trip. And even as you go to the movies, you give into
purchases! It was found that theater profits are 85% food and drink. The
popcorn bucket and Milk Duds you buy prior to your screening is just more cash
in the pot.
Films also create merchandise that lead to economic bustle.
Action figures from the Marvel Universe can be found all over, as can posters
and memorabilia of movies. These often turn out to be collectables years later and
can accumulate quite a bit of value. The rush and craze over items like this
keep films and their effects relevant and important. People cease to forget a
film when they have ten bobbleheads from it lined up on their counter.
Jobs are another thing films provide to help the economy. Nearly
0.1% of the United States is employed by the Film and Television industry. That
doesn’t seem like very much, but compared to other jobs, that’s quite a bit.
Actors, directors, set designers, lighting crew, even assistants to the
assistants are needed in order to create a movie. And where there’s jobs, there’s
money. (Not necessarily a lot, but it’s there!)
Now that we’ve established the economic value of cinema, one
of the most prominent and lasting effects film has on society is its effect on
people.
Thoughts are one of the most important effects. How many times have you
watched a movie and then found yourself lying in bed for several hours after,
contemplating the similarities or differences in your own life? Maybe you feel
for the antihero or think about the time you could have recycled a paper cup
but chose to throw it in the garbage. These things feel small, the pang in your
heart for someone less than satisfactory or the careless act of waste, but they
add up. Films are able to depict this adding up, these small mis happenings or
moments in life that lead to something bigger. And as they do this, they get us
to think.
Even the simplest movies of time make you think. Take for instance a
romantic comedy. Sure, you may roll your eyes at that. I know I do! But after
you watch one, you think about your love life, the romance you may have or may
have not experienced. You long for a love like the one at the end of the film.
You despise the person who took your ex away from you even more. This genre of
film is the culprit for many expectations within in a relationship due to what
you see on the screen. You may expect your boyfriend to sneak in through your
window, fall madly in love with you, write you long love letters that your dad
finds in a shoebox under your bed… but, that may not be your reality. And
then you question, “why isn’t my life like the movies?”. Movies
create an alternate reality that we may start to believe IS the reality. The
nerdy guy gets the girl, or the hot guy shows up at your sister’s wedding and
REMEMBERS YOUR BIRTHDAY.
This goes the same for the environment of a certain place or time in which a
person may experience. For instance, high school. Many films depict high school
in unrealistic ways. Examples of this can be found in: Mean Girls, Breakfast
Club, Heathers, Bring It On, Easy A…etc. These movies have a way of shaping
these four years of people’s lives into a blood hungry fight for the most
popular group. While often, people do stick to a group of friends throughout,
there is also room to explore and have friends who may not share the same
“social ranking” as you. For most films, this is UNHEARD of. And if
it is in the movie, it is a HUGE DEAL. Something you wouldn’t find often. These
ideals of how a certain area of society works truly affects the way people
receive their own environment.
These thoughts can also be connected to knowledge. Quite often, movies are
based on real life situations that are brought to the screen. Films often work
to shed light on moments in history that people may or may not have experienced,
but with stronger details and a sense of what it truly was like to be in. Movies
like All the President’s Men, Contact and Full Metal jacket use history at
their cores to create an accurate representation of these historical events.
Knowledge can also be hypothetical. Cinema can create an idea of a reality
that may soon exist. In A Day After Tomorrow, we see the strong influence of
climate change on the Earth that cause a series of natural disaster and severe
weather to occur. While it may not necessarily be the truth, it can implement an
idea of what is to come.
“The cinema is an invention without any future.”
― Louis Lumière
An interesting aspect of film can be found in the transfer of ideas through “narrative transportation”. This is the explanation for why people may feel a certain connection to characters or storylines in film that leave them feeling overwhelmed. This transfer of idea from the screen to person can be through cathartic responses, empathy towards characters, and inspiration.
Inspiration can stem in all directions, some of which being really positive. If a character in a movie is an admirable, upstanding person, people are sometimes drawn to that, and want to emulate. They may watch them gain riches, find love or happiness and seek ways to do just that for themselves. Human beings (usually) relate to other human beings and want to find commonalities between them.
I think we all do this now and again. Whether that be relate to an actor or a character in a movie; wishing to be more like them. it’s what the consumption of film does to us. It shows us different situations in which we can grow (or sometimes decay) and ways to achieve that. Even if it may not be exactly feasible.
Thoughts can also come about in negative ways. Films, a lot of times, involve violence. Over the years, people have turned to film as their influence to crime and attack on other humans. Sometimes, people subconsciously choose to mimic a character they see in a film. In 2012, this was the case with James Holmes; a man whose obsession with Batman and potential upset about the defilement of his favorite comic led him to injure 70 and kill 12 at a midnight screening of the “Dark Knight”.
Violence in films can also lead to general crime rates rise. In 1971, the year “A Clockwork Orange” came out, the crime rate in America apparently rose. Some say it was because of the free reality the psychopaths in the film lived in, where they felt less inclined to hinder their desire to partake in criminal activity.
“Is it better for a man to have chosen evil than to have good imposed upon him?”
― Anthony Burgess, A Clockwork Orange
Another way cinema can make us think is through each film’s definition of truth. When watching a film, many of us don’t realize that we’re experiencing that filmmaker’s definition of truth. The person who writes and/or directs a film chooses what lense we will view the story through. We may not realize it at the moment of viewing, but what we are often seeing is an opinion piece. Subtle moments and dialogue can commentate on a plethora of things.
What we sometimes don’t realize, is that there are important pieces left out of films. Filmmakers choose to keep the focus on a specific area to make a point; and where the camera isn’t, there is another story to be told. This is often the case with documentary pieces, which often create their structure in the editing process after all the shots have been made.
Moving on from thoughts and views, cinema is a way for people to connect. As stated before, film is an art form that touches almost every life. People come together to sit in a dark room, to laugh or to cry, sometimes both, with strangers. It is a mystical, magical thing that brings people together in the strangest of ways.
Human beings connect on the love for characters, hate on the endings, create from the storylines. Movies inspire other art, sometimes other films, and encourage others to share conversation. Sometimes the conversation is about the movie itself. Sometimes the conversation is started by the movie and moves on to reality. Sometimes it’s a mix of both. The most important thing is that movies get us to talk.
Cinema has also brought on a lot of “cult” ideas. Examples of these movies are Rocky Horror, Napolean Dynamite, Fight Club, Monty Python, Dazed and Confused, The Room… you name it, and there’s a whole group of people who follow it. Whether the movie plays in a secluded theater or brings on live showings, people attend to bond over the love for the film.
Movies can also bond people across the world. International film is a huge part of film expansion and allows us to experience different cultures, even if we can’t take a trip across the pond. Being able to experience someone’s life who lives on a different content allows you to have a more full and layered world view. International film opens a door to experience another person’s life, that may be extremely different than yours; those differences starting at number one with language. The barrier of subtitles does not hinder the experience of another’s life in the slightest. In the words of Bong Joon Ho:
Once you overcome the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films’
– Bong Joon Ho
And it’s true! Yes, it is a little distracting at first, but you suddenly find yourself slipping out of the reading and into the film. I swear, I watched Parasite in English, that’s how fluid the reading and viewing became.
All in all, the effects of cinema on society is astounding. From the implementing of ideas to economic gains (and losses), the movies truly make an impact on every square inch of our lives.
Emily's Film Blog 