The Moral responsibility of movie audience as stakeholders

Awareness about what? Movies are mainly for entertainment, some of them also provoke you to think. I would shun movies with a "message" as I think it is better that people form their own opinions.

I watched Titanic 10 times (and cried), did the movie have a message? Guess not but Leonardo di Caprio was so cute

 

I watch movies to unwind and feel relaxed after stressful work week. I love watching all varieties of movies including mass entertainers.

I feel that it is not necessary for all movies to be heavy and spread social awareness/good public messages only. As long as they are not sending wrong messages (like a guy insulting a woman and him being portrayed as a hero), I am okay.

I also watched Happy New Year which was a no brainer with cheap tactics and felt relaxed after watching senseless movie with no story which emptied my mind of all worries of real life. I agree that it glorified thieving as being valid which was the big -ve of this movie. But still enjoyed it.

 

Hi Cool10
I fully support the right of producers to make any film.
About happy new year, I think the sheer tastelessness of the the film annoyed me. How low does one have to be to think anyone will find epileptic fits funny?! Or indeed anyone being so awed by someone speaking English that they are willing to accept any verbal abuse from them.
And it insulted viewers intelligence- how about the password for the safe for eg.
I was really annoyed by the film, but that does not mean that a film like that should not be made. Which is where my comment about people voting with their feet came in

 

There is industry expression "Corporate social responsibility" (CSR) which gained currency in recent times via digital promotions and advertising. There are several digital ads online but I'm providing a link: here. Don't worry about the language, the imagery depicts everything you need to know. To summarize: a female cancer survivor is apprehensive to return to work having lost her tresses but once she enters the office, her colleagues not only make her feel at ease but also hail her beautiful with traditional "nazar na lage" (let no one cast evil-eye) gesture by placing a black dot on her temple. The ad was developed by Linen Lintas, Delhi for Dabur Vatika hair oil. Why should a hair oil brand make an ad on bald women? This is where CSR comes into picture. You can read more about it here


Now let's walk to the motion picture floor. Avast! Would you mind stopping by the clay studio for few minutes. Have you heard about Adam Elliot, yes that Australian claymation director. Try to watch : Harvie Krumpet (his movies are interwoven with social messages and this one deals with Alzheimer's disease). The movie bagged "Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film" in 2004. Okay, now let's continue, mind the camera mounted on dolly coming this way ..


I've not provided any links for culturally and aesthetically preserved movies by motion picture association because I'm sure you are aware of lot of trend-setting and trailblazing works. I think when OP favoured "balance" she meant integration of resources available to big production houses to sponsor social-awareness movies. Today there are more independent film-makers in the West and inspite of India ranking very high on the box-office smash hits and revenues, there are very few auteurs who can create culturally significant and substantive movies. I think OP's attempt was a nudge to say that it is incumbent on us to appreciate good films but not cri de coeur to put kibosh on entertainment factor in movies. Movies could feature entertainment, propaganda, conservation or any quality that is appealing for the masses but it is the potential and reach of the movies that perhaps OP wanted to convey that can be engaged for rural development and social equalizer.

Glad that you liked L Caprio in Titanic but the movie was of epic stature on several accounts with ostensible and not-so-subtle historical references and trivia. Have you ever wondered who those hugging old couple in the flooding cabin were: here

 

Kaka Muttai, Madras are some Tamil movies with sociopolitical themes & both were a hit in all the A B C D centers, meaning they were well received by both educated audiences also by the other mass as both films reflected some aspects of their life / lifestyle which they could relate to! There was no lack of entertainment in both films, I believe a good screenplay is what has made them interesting, both being of docu-drama genres. On the contrast, even with big budget, star casts & a hit director, the Tamil movie I failed in all the A B C D centers. This shows even the mass audiences cannot tolerate such nonsense movies despite its entertainment value! Also indicates their changing mentality, does it not?

I do Agree that creatives have a moral responsibility to give the public sensible cinemas with a message & create awareness, at the least not make movies about violence / revenge subjects or boost caste egos which is very common in Tamil cinemas till this day... But change is happening, there is more support these days from audience for low commercial & mid budget creations, but for the day to come, the star effect on fans should die which will happen eventually after series of flops from their heros just because they underestimated their own fan bases!!

Sorry if I have blabbered something away from the topic!

 

All Movies - whether they are old or new - with scenes of Smoking / Drinking / Gambling / Murder should be totally banned for exhibition & display.

 

That is why there are age limits to the movies. Films for children/young people should not contain these kind of scenese. But smoking/drinking/gambling/murder etc are part of life and can be part of a movie depending on the plot. Movies are not supposed to be some kind of moral propaganda - they are entertainment and a form of art.