Movies! For some, it is mere entertainment, like taking a break during a day off and for some, it is an art where they look at a movie like a painting that talks & moves. Discussions on how movies influence people’s life has never resulted in one outcome, because there cannot be any.
Movies are a fictional representation of real-life and vice versa. However, viewers do get influenced by fictional characters. We have had many stories of people jumping and hopping around the buildings influenced by the Superhero characters, Superman and Spider-Man.
As a kid and some years of adulthood, movies for me were just entertainment.
A day out with friends or family time at home, I did not look at a social message or how movies can impact one’s life. I have watched all kinds of movies: filled with blood & murder, where hero mistreats heroine and the heroine still falls for him, where hero & heroine run around a tree singing duets, with wildlife, Art movies, with a social message, thriller, with ghosts.
I did not know if the movies would have an impact on me back then. It was just a movie where I adored a hero and wanted to dress up like the heroine. The only immediate impact I had was with the horror ones, having sleepless nights; otherwise, everything else was merely a movie that is meant to be watched when there is time in abundance.
Now, when I look back, movies did have a major influence on me. All the male chauvinist movies I watched, I assumed that was normal. I dreamt of living a life and imagining my future husband to be the one like in the movie. I dreamt of being a slave under his dominance. It took me many years to realize how toxic it was. Again, it was a different set of movies that opened me up to a realization of how badly I was consumed by the movies as a kid.
We did a poll on social media to find out how movies have influenced and these are some of the inputs we received.
Bharath Kashyap shared a similar experience as mine, he says, it was a negative influence as a child as he was exposed only to regional movies. Now, it has been a positive influence once his horizons expanded.
Annie Jacob says, lots of movies that encouraged misogyny and comedies that were purely discriminated had given an idea of how society is. It took many years for her to change her perception. On the other hand, she says there are other movies like Agnisakshi, a Malayalam movie based on a novel, made her realize the other side of it too.
When we took a poll the common genre of movies that influenced many were the movies related to travel.
Sowmya S Talanki says Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara triggered the adrenaline rush in her, the unexplored side of her which she was never aware of.
Indira R M says these movies influenced her to travel often: Charlie, Yana, Life Jothe Ondu Selfie.
Shailesh Gopi says Charlie, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara influenced him to travel, Wake up Sid inspired him to follow his dreams.
Manjunath R S says few movies have instigated to do social work, Forrest Gump made him feel more humble as he was influenced by the special kid character played by Tom Hanks.
Vishnu Sivan, a hardcore movie buff says he has 100’s of movies to list but when asked to come down to mention very few that had a major influence on him, he penned down to these three:
- The Cove made him realize that any medium which can be in print or film if used effectively, can make a huge impact on society.
- Peaceable Kingdom made him a vegetarian for a little over 7 months before elapsing.
- Religulous taught him how to use humor while blaspheming or mocking things which others find it sacred.
An anonymous reader says the movies had both positive and negative influences. In a movie like Dear Zindagi, the character of Alia Bhat reminded her a lot of her childhood, she realized the reason for her emotional dependence but she did not really get a solution from the movie.
Sindhu Joseph says the influence has mostly been positive. In English, Malayalam, and Kannada and these are few that had a major influence. Shawshank Redemption spoke to her in the lines of the famous proverb “Where there is a will, there is a way”; Schindler’s List, although there was so much grief to take in, that small act of kindness from Schindler made a huge difference, Sandhesham – a Malayalam movie showed that the change has to be within you and your family, only then you can bring the change to the world.
These discussions always leave one wondering if movies influence’s real life or not, because it works both ways. Lots of factors are to be considered too. For example, the movie Charlie that has influenced so many including myself may not be the same for another person. A few years ago I was having a discussion about this movie with a fellow traveler and she said, she did not like the movie, it was more like the Heroine stalking the hero. The perceptions of each individual are different based on their past experiences and the environment they grow up in.