The Balance Between Disaster Movies and Hope Movies
The software problems experienced worldwide for a few days and the ‘blue screen’ of computers caused people to remember disaster movies. Disaster movies are usually based on past, future or fantasy scenarios and appeal to a wide audience. However, this situation has created a question mark in the industry. Why are hopeful movies lagging behind disaster movies? While the movie lists have been filled with disaster movies recently, hopeful movies seem to have taken a backseat. When looking at box office data, it is seen that the most watched movies, other than animated movies, are usually based on struggle, disaster and apocalyptic scenarios. The highest-grossing movies of all time include “Avatar” ($2.9 billion), “Avengers: Endgame” ($2.8 billion), Titanic ($2.3 billion) and “Star Wars: Episode 7” ($2 billion). Although animated movies are generally aimed at children, they also appeal to young audiences.
The Fine Line Between Fantasy and Reality
The popularity of fantasy productions can be seen as a reflection of people’s desire to get away from reality. Today, people feel the need to escape from reality by escaping into fantasy worlds. For this reason, fantasy films are popular as productions that feed the imagination and offer predictions. However, this situation causes hope films to remain in the background. While classic storytelling and happy endings are generally preferred in films, we can encounter situations where evil is aestheticized instead of clearly distinguishing good and evil. Among the criticisms are that in some films, bad characters are presented in a more attractive way and evil is romanticized.
Human Imperfection and Hopeful Films
Hopeful films are not just public service announcements, but also productions that acknowledge human imperfection and mistakes. Such films offer a realistic perspective on the existence of evil and the difficulties that people may face. However, aestheticizing only the bad and exaggerating the negative can lead the audience to an inadequate way of thinking. Hopeful films should emphasize the goodness and solidarity within people, showing that there are not only enemies and that humanity is strong.
