Impact of Movie Culture

This week’s article ‘Media Concentration and Culture: The Movie and Music Industries’ states that most of our news about the movie industry comes from celebrity gossip columns and film reviews. Although this may be true, I do believe that what has become really important is to be able to realize how these movies are affecting each of us individually. Sure Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie adopted their 10th kid-- but what is crucial to analyze is how Brad Pitt’s character in the last film you watched made you feel. When you sit back and think about your favorite movie, what emotions stir up inside of you? It is a rather difficult task to try to describe the strong sentiments aroused by viewing your most appreciated film.
There is no doubt that movies have become an integral part of our lives and culture. As we look back at previous decades, we are able to recognize the improvements in movie making and how the delivery to the audience has changed. Although movies are one popular culture among many, they may hold a greater symbolic meaning than the rest. For instance a person’s favorite movie can say more about themselves then their favorite sports team, food, song or even TV show.
The Change of Scale theory that was reviewed in class deals with the change in the way of doing things. It is the message of any medium or technology and the change of scale or pace or pattern that is introduced into human affairs. The Change of Scale when dealing with movie culture introduces us to the development of presenting storied dramas. Although movies are just over one hundred years old, Ancient epics, Classical dramas, Morality plays, Renaissance comedies and Tragedies have all become established genres. Traditional performing arts were well known for its delivery of moral lessons throughout its presentations. Although many movies still carry a moral message (some good, some bad) movies in today’s society tend to emphasize the effects of movie making (sights and sounds) at the expense of content. Due to the large focus on extra effects, we are losing the importance of understanding the moral lessons that are being conveyed across the screen.
The way in which we view movies has changed dramatically as well. Projectors, surround sound, the big screen etc. I know that personally, I am a lot more affected by a film when I go to see it in theatres. First off, I just paid $11.00 to get in (so it’s crucial I pay attention to get my money’s worth) and secondly, the surround sound and large screen make it almost impossible to miss a beat. We also mentioned in class that movies and books are a part of ‘Hot’ media where as TV and telephones are considered ‘Cool’ media. With Hot media, our minds become inundated with informational content. Without any real form of consent, these producers are filling our heads with whatever information they like.
Although most movie news is attributed to celebrity gossip columns and film reviews, it is crucial that each of us recognize the impact of these messages specifically on ourselves. Have you ever realized yourself taking movie dialogue and using it as your own? It’s something that happens subconsciously-- we take in the information we watch and transform it into our own lives. The impact of film on our society is extremely powerful and will only continue to grow stronger. With new technologies and the constant flow of new movie releases, it is important to draw the line as to what we let influence our opinions and attitudes. It is up to each individual to decipher their own views on what they believe is good or bad and to decide what they will or will not let affect them.

Jessica Cockburn