Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Is film is the opium of the people?

After reading "The Current Cinema", I immediately thought of a quote my film teacher loved to share when I took his class in high school:

"Theaters are the new church of the masses- where people sit huddled in the dark listening to people in the light tell them what it is to be human."
--1930's Film Critic

Are we "looking for 'truth'- for some signs of emotion, some evidence of what keeps people together"? Do we "[go] to the movies looking for feelings that will help synthesize [our] experience," as the article suggests?

Why do we love going to the movies?
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4 comments:

  1. RamsFebruary 17, 2011 at 4:10 PM

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  2. Velena HernandezFebruary 17, 2011 at 4:26 PM

    We go to the movies to let us know that there is a possibility of our dreams and hopes coming true. For the most part, people want to feel connected to others; either friends or a significant other, and I believe that people are always hoping to find an easy fix to their problems. We hope that by going to movies we will know that we are not alone, and that there are solutions to our problems. They may make us sad at times, but they give us hope and insight we are looking for, because if you look for something hard enough, it will appear.

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  3. AshleyFebruary 17, 2011 at 8:32 PM

    I think the community aspect of going to the movies is vital to the whole experience. You are sitting in a crowded room waiting for a story to unravel before your eyes. The reactions of the audience are usually percievable throughout the film. People laugh together, cry together. It's a comfort to share these experiences with fellow human beings. That's part of the magic of the movies.

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  4. Mykenzie MattheisFebruary 18, 2011 at 12:02 AM

    I also believe that the community aspect of going to the movies is important to the experience. I agree with Ashley about the perceived emotions of the audience. For example I once went and saw the movie "Up". And when I was with a group who loved the movie I loved it as well, I was obsessed. Then I dragged another group of friends to see the movie, they weren't as impressed, and it inhibited my experience with the movie as well. I also feel as though movies I see that can relate back to my life are that much more powerful for me, it could be a mediocre movie, but if it is relevant to my life, I typically love it

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