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Movies and Their Impact on Society “I’m going to make a name for myself. If I fail, you will never hear of me again”- Edward James Muggeridge. True to his words he succeeded in making a name for himself and he created the first movie or “motion picture”. Now if you do not understand or know what a movie is I will enlighten you as best I can. Movies are a rollercoaster ride that transcends people into a whole different world fresh out of somebody’s imagination as seen through the genres of horror, drama, and science fiction.
The movie business has allowed us to break through our burden of everyday life. Although some movies have created big burdens to carry both physical and emotional like that of he famous actor Christopher reeves who became paralyzed while filming the movie superman in 2004. Movies allow us to break our burden of work and stress because when you have put the kids to bed, done the dishes, cleaned the house and have finished your taxes you can finally relax sit down and watch an entertaining movie. Why can we do this?
We can do this because the movie business takes the risks to make a movie so people like you and I can enjoy and benefit from. In order to understand the significant influence movies have had on our society you must first take some time to define it. To define the background of the movie business is some what like asking what came first the chicken or the egg. The first movie or “motion picture” ever created was that of a horse galloping for 16 frames. What makes up a movie? A movie is basically a bunch of pictures projected at a fast rate, which is why some people refer to it as a “motion picture”. The 16 frame motion picture was made by Edward James muggerridge who later changed his last name to Muybridge to use the Saxon spelling”(Franklin institute). “In early June of 1878, Muybridge made his first successful serial photographs of fast motion at Stanford’s California stock farm. The photographs were of a horse running and another horse trotting; they were developed on the spot so as not to be accused of doctoring the images” (Franklin institute). Edward made this motion picture to scientifically answer a popularly debated question during this age.
People were debating if all four legs of a horse are ever off the ground at the same time. Edwards’s motion picture answered this question and it opened the door to the worlds leading form of entertainment. “At the movie high tide in the 1946, before television invaded us, 80 million people a week went to movies. It was the community habit” (Jack Valenti). However when the television came around, people going to the movies dropped noticeably. The most popular movie genre during that time were “R” rated movies typically about war and were deemed horror.
Some movies we watch today can affect society in many, many ways like violent and horror movies. These movies make people lose their grip on reality and develop mental health issues. In these “R” rated movies there would always be propaganda and not the good propaganda either. War movies usually had big physically fit men as sergeants and they would sometimes if not always be smoking cigarettes when depicted in these movies. When tobacco companies realized the rise in there product sells they were happy because they had found the biggest form of advertisement.
No later had movie produces put more smoking actors in there films that the audience asked for more. The producers and directors gave them more by putting the use of drugs into there movies to make them more enjoyable or laughable or “cool” no matter the reason they were corrupting and manipulating the youth without even knowing it, or did they? Horror movies are among the most disturbing and unrealistic movies out there. Why people are drawn to these movies is questionable and confusing.
I believe that people are drawn to these movies because it gives us a rush gets us pumped and our adrenaline flowing. “Horror movies originate from fictional work that portrays the dark side of life with the primary aim of frightening and terrifying its audience. By presenting horrifying images, of several incorporating sub-genres and repeated themes, such as vampires and werewolves, demonic possessions, evil children, cannibals and zombies, alien invasion and mind control, film makers create a world where the worst nightmares become true” (Sarah).
These factors are what drive us to watch these movies because of the intense rush and out of curiosity. Horror movies like these may sometimes have such an impact on someone that they act out and loose there grip on reality. These are what adult audiences experience now imagine what a child or minor would feel, but this also has an effect on how the person was raised so it all falls into place. Drug movies often place audiences in uncomfortable positions because they might have had personal experiences with drugs or other illegal substances.
These movies have a higher impact rate on the youth because to them it’s all about being the life of the party. Drug movies do teach the young audiences too like the movie “Blow” which shows the life story of George yung who started out into the drug business but it ultimately caught him in the long run. These movies have a low impact rate on adults because they have already experimented or know the truth about these substances but the young don’t because they are innocent and need to mature. “One dwells on science fiction” (Ozzy), because it is not a genre but a setting.
It is a setting because science fiction movies are thought up to overcome normal laws of physics and this is why so many people are drawn to science fiction. Some people are so drawn to it that they will wait all night in line just to get into the movie “Star wars” and they even dress up as the characters. The impact of science fiction is powerful because science fiction movies pretty much make anything possible like flying, or controlling fire which are talents everyone in the world would love to master because we all love to be admired and adored and having these powers would make us feel adored.
When you watch any movie you sometimes leave the realm of reality and begin to think if it’s possible to fly like that or to control fire but the truth is that we can’t. Although movies like these with strong impacts can be devastating because one might be so into the movie that they try to fly or try to control fire and end up hurting themselves and others. One must always be careful and be aware of not to mix reality with fiction. Movies have been around now for more than century and have and will continue to impact us and future generations.
From when it was born in 1878 to one of its key turning points in 1970 where the IMAX wide-screen format premiered in the Fuji Pavilion EXPO ’70in Osaka, Japan to present day visual masterpieces like beowulf the film industry has come a long way in a short century. I’m certain that we will continue to make awesome movies each time clearer sound, picture and detail until one day we might be able to “jump” into a movie via a holographic helmet that will sit you right in the middle of the movie or join in. Who knows it’s just an idea but that’s how the film industry came to be, because of an IDEA.