Cinema & Our Youth

It is not uncommon in today’s society, especially among the adolescent youth, to come together through attractions to the same kind of movie viewing. This causes us to act and talk like what we see on the big screen, to impress those around us. It has come to the point where people have heavily based their lifestyle off of what they see and hear in today’s media, particularly the movies. And with the nonexistent standards of today’s movie-production companies, Americans are being unintentionally taught to do and be people that we shouldn’t be, nor even want to. Today’s popular movies are increasingly filled with intense violence and sexual content, and as the youth of today are exposed to this content, it is molding their developing minds and playing a significant role in how they talk, think, and act.

When heavily exposed to movies of explicit content, the way we think is greatly influenced by what we view. Scenes of intense violence and blood desensitize us to suffering and inhibit our ability to desire peace and safety for those around us, thus limiting our availability of the Spirit. Constant viewing of sexual and pornographic material causes horribly damaging addictions, and renders us unable to see the beauties of life and have a healthy social life. These are just a few of the hooks that movie producers put in their productions, because they know how attractive and addicting they are, and that they are always guaranteed to make a profit, even at the expense of the dignity and self-respect of millions of consumers.

Since movies have a potential to control how we think, needless to say this influence can grow to control how we act. Movies of violent content can drive us to fight of adrenalin satisfaction, and in some cases it has even led people to inflict harm on the innocent, many times resulting in death. According to www.zurinstitute.com, “The 14-year-old killer in the Paducah, Kentucky, school shooting had never fired a real pistol in his life. Nevertheless he fired eight shots, five of them head shots, the other three upper torso shots, killing 8 children. Where did he get the skill and will to kill? Most likely from violent video games and media violence, pared with a lack of adult guidance.” Video games like Doom are used by the U.S. Marine Corps to train soldiers to kill quickly and effectively. We give these video games to children. What did people think was going to happen?!

The movie industries’ desire to entertain the world in new ways, (grislier, sleazier, more explicit ways) is only desensitizing younger generations and eroding American morals. Just as a cigarette distributor makes money off his physically dying consumers, producers of these kinds of movies are making millions off of a spiritually dying nation. In order to better raise the younger generations, decent movies are still around, and they should be more publicly emphasized. The filth must stop.