Cinema Vitæ

Intermission (ĭn’tər-mĭsh’ən) n. = A respite or recess

One of the most anticipated elements of those old double features was the intermission between the showings. The snack bar still looms large in my mind (and on my waistline). A cold cola, a popcorn refresher, perhaps a sweet treat to wash it all down.

This is intermission time for my blog. An opportunity to stretch my legs and gain a new perspective.

Since I spend the bulk of my time on this blog reviewing specific films, I’d like to take a recess from this activity to ponder film more broadly. I find it easy to get caught up in the trees ignoring the larger cinematic landscape. If individual films are capable of initiating strong reactions from viewers (positive or negative), what can we say of film in general? How is watching movies changing our culture? Changing me?

Fact: People love film (over 1 billion movie tickets were sold in 2007).

Fact: People will continue to consume films as long as they are made.

Fact: Films (like all stories) mold the way we understand ourselves, others, and the world in general.

It is this final fact that I want to make the focus of my next three blog posts. Some may doubt the level of film’s influence in patterning our worldview, but most would agree that the things we engage with our eyes (whether film, television, the internet, video games, books, etc.) do provide some meaning to help us understand ourselves and the world around us. We are more than mere creatures . . . a bundle of biological material destined to live out a life according to our genetic pedigree. No, we step-out into the world — interacting, engaging, learning, reacting, and all the while forming opinions of ourself, our neighbor, other cultures, and the divine. We may like or dislike a given film (or simply find some movies unengaging), but we can’t escape the small, subtle, often unconscious personal “truths” we gather from our film watching. While two people viewing the same movie may arrive at different “truths” about themselves or a certain class of people or a particular experience, we cannot deny that one way or another we are impacted.

So, welcome to my snack bar . . . may I offer you some Jujubees?