Movies are able to inspire us but they also steal our souls and our initiative. Many movies simply amuse and entertain us with stupidity, romance, comedy, and sex. Others we live vicariously through as the characters are courageous in the face of impossible circumstances. I wonder, though, if we as people are not simply placated by seeing life lived through movies and TV instead of being confronted with it personally. Do we neglect to take action in the face of daily battles because we are trained to expect important battles to look and feel like a movie--complete with condensed and accelerated events and a compelling and inspiring musical score? Would we be more apt to address important issues if we spent more time studying values, principles, history, and God's word so that we detected and discerned important opportunities when they appear insignificant? When nothing is asked of us to "experience" courage, love, etc because the characters in the movies do the work, then we are inexperienced and unpracticed therefore unprepared or equipped to be the kinds of people such characters inspire us to be when real life circumstances confront us.
I equate such movies to being like pornography for the soul. Pornography is all the stimulation of sex brought on by an image without any of the responsibility of actually being in relationship with a real person. Nothing is asked of you to get turned on, it's completely selfish, and you can have it any time you want. But, it's false to believe that the ability to feel like a man when viewing pornography makes you one when real life confronts you. You get the satisfaction physically and emotionally, but someone else is doing the work so you come away with atrophied life and relationship muscles and an illusion.
