It is worth noting that movies are an essential part of human life. The reason lies in the fact that while watching movies people try to escape from reality and rest. Therefore, movies gain more popularity nowadays.
It is a well-known fact that there are different genres of movies and their choice depends directly on a person. Considering romantic movies, I am convinced that they will always be topical, especially for women. In such films, one can see almost all aspects of love and hatred, true devotion and insidious betrayal.
One such movies are The Way We Were directed by Sidney Pollack. The film depicts a love story between two young people who are struggling to find their place in society. They are completely different, but since opposites attract each other, the same happened in the mentioned movie. The main characters are Katie Morosky and Hubbell Gardiner. In their romance, one can observe a typical plot of romantic stories – the relations between two people who are completely different and almost have nothing in common. Katie participates actively in political life, and although she is Jewish, she pleads for justice and common truth. Hubbell is interested in sport, tries himself as a writer and nourishes hopes for trouble-free future. They fall in love and get married. Unfortunately, life swiftly changes, and they seem to lose everything they had before getting married. The outcome of the story is dramatic. When Katie gets pregnant, she finds out that Hubbell betrays her. After this occasion they divorce, Katie gives birth to a child and starts a new relationship with another man. Hubbell is busy with his new occupation as a writer and lives with his new woman (Pollack).
Regarding the idea that intrigued me most is the concept of changeability. In this film, we witness the changeability of feelings, character, world perception and the changeability of life in general. This story proves that there is nothing stable in life, and one cannot predict what will happen in the future. People also change, and one person of tomorrow is just the opposite of that man of today. Every day some slight changes are introduced in life, and people have no power to change it.
From this example, I learned that everything is not steady. Therefore, it is important to appreciate every second of our life and understand that we are unable to live any moments once again. Moreover, we need to be very attentive in order not to miss any important occasion.
In fact, the concept of changeability also relates to popular culture. For example, referring to the film industry, one can also see the results of some variations. New genres and trends in the world of cinema appear almost every day. Moreover, it relates to other styles of art.
Though the concept of changeability is not the central one in this movie, it attracts my attention most of all. Moreover, it confirms my vision of popular culture as very unstable and easy to alter.
Another sphere of the depiction of the feelings is romantic comedies. In these stories, people’s dramatic love experiences are shown from different sides, namely from the comical one. According to D. Denby, the main aim of the mentioned films and stories is to represent a battle between the sexes. It is always fun to watch a conflict of a woman who is witty as a man. Actually, Denby chooses such heroines in order to show that women are equal to men, and they have the same or even more rights and possibilities.
What impresses me most about this genre is the ability to convey even the most difficult situation by the means of humor. It is an extremely important ability to laugh at oneself as well as at their own deeds and actions. Not every person has enough courage to admit his weakness or awkwardness. It especially relates to men who mostly praise their dignity. However, people have to understand that it is easier to live when they percept life not so tragically and can find something positive in every situation, which might occur in their life. Laughing cures people, because through the burst of laughter they release all the negative emotions. Any person smiles while watching movies where women, who are supposed to be very tender and sensitive, become almost equal to men.
It is good that art gives us the opportunity to smile. Moreover, it is a real art to make people laugh. If people heartily laugh at romantic comedies, there is something peculiar. I think it is the feeling of alleviation and release of all their concerns. They just sit and enjoy watching a movie.
To sum it up, the concept of ability to laugh is the part of my perception of the popular culture. The artists in the different spheres of art always create something to laugh at. It does not mean that they do something unprofessionally; it means that their talent can find expression in different directions. Nowadays, we live in a world which has a lot of drawbacks. Every day people face a number of problems that are very difficult to solve. And when art presents them the reason to laugh, it releases their thoughts. Consequently, they can rest and forget about their problems and troubles.
It is worth noting that the only genre that is as popular as romantic stories is a horror movie. People were always eager to discover and investigate something supernatural and unusual. Reviewing the early folklore tradition, one can find vampires and werewolves (Helder). According to Kyle Bishop, zombies did not originate from folklore tradition, they are more American characters.
Nowadays, people are even more interested in suchlike movies. It is interesting even for teenagers to watch these films with dead men walking and other horrifying elements. Now zombies are entering not only cinemas’ screens, but also books, games, and toys. Such love and adoration for these movies can be explained by the conditions of life in the modern world. People are violent, rude, and unfaithful. Moreover, a lot of different accidents occur every day. All these occasions create such an apocalyptic mood. In the case of apocalypses, the evil spreads very quickly and it can master anyone among one’s friends or relatives. Exactly this situation is represented in horror movies. Though people like films that show zombies, they possess irresistible fear for these scary creatures. There are even some guides on how to survive and what to do in case of a zombie invasion. Sometimes it is very horrifying when people believe in zombies so firmly that they are really afraid of their coming. On the one hand, it is funny to think that something like this might happen, but it is dangerous if people become so hypnotized that they cannot control themselves. Indeed, I can say that horror films, movies about zombies, in particular, are not the right things to adore. If one has an unstable psychic, such films can cause them much harm. I consider that it is not a good idea almost to worship suchlike movies and product them in such a great amount.
Considering the idea which impresses me most about these films, it is the notion of fear against some inexplicable phenomenon. Today, people are very strong, and they can overcome many troubles, while fear seems to be an exception. When people are afraid of something, they almost lose control; they become unable to resolve the situation they face. In fact, every person has his particular kind of fear. Some people are afraid of darkness, some have fear against highness. And when they watch horror movies with zombies, their fears come to life; therefore, they are so afraid. Unfortunately, there is no advice on how to overcome fear, and the only thing one can do is accept it and try to suppress his anxiety.
People are so powerful nowadays; they have some weaknesses which are very often stronger than them. Actually, the main thing which I learned from this reading is to be aware that people are not almighty, and there are situations, which are more forceful. Moreover, for the same reason, popular culture appeals so often to the notion of fear. People hope that they can fight with their fears and, finally, if they are strong enough, they can overcome this feeling.
In conclusion, I can say that a movie is the sphere of art, which will always be appraised. The reason is that when people are watching a movie, it helps them to release their emotions, which negatively influence their life. Though, there are always people who approve the respective movie genre and those who always find some drawbacks. Tastes differ, but before starting to express a negative attitude towards some kind of movie, one should remember that there is a great piece of someone’s work behind this film, no matter how bad or good it seems, and people have to respect it.
What I have learned from these instances of movie genres, the main point is the variability of popular culture and its appeal to our feelings and emotions. In fact, not only cinematography is aimed to awake some kind of feelings in people, but also other kinds of art. For example, while listening to music or looking at a picture, people also feel something.
Moreover, the most interesting for people are the following aspects of their life, such as humor, relationships between sexes, as well as something supernatural and horrifying. These are three main streams to work with in the popular culture.
To sum it up, the most important in popular culture is the fact that almost all kinds of modern art concentrate on three most extreme feelings: joy (when we laugh), love or hatred, and horror. The only thing that artists have to do is to find the right sphere of feeling to appeal to and choose the appropriate material for further displaying.
