Why We Still Need the Movies

Going to the movies used to be something everyone could do.

When I was just four years old, my parents took me to the ABC Minors. It was a weekly Saturday morning programme for children, and for me it opened a door that never really closed.

There were cartoons like Tom and Jerry. Films such as Jason and the Argonauts. Comedy from Laurel and Hardy. And, of course, the legendary Charlie Chaplin.

That was where the magic began.

The movies grab us. They shape us. They sit quietly inside our memories and return years later when we least expect them. A line, a scene, a song, a character, a feeling. Cinema has a way of becoming part of our lives.

It also builds community. Sitting in a cinema with strangers, laughing at the same joke, gasping at the same twist or being moved by the same moment, is still one of the great shared experiences.

And behind every film are the people who make that possible.

Filmmakers, writers, performers, crews and creatives toil for their art. First, they hope the work will simply survive commercially. They want it to wash its face, cover its costs and find an audience. But beyond that, every filmmaker must surely hope for something more.

To make something that matters.

To create a film that touches hearts, grabs minds and becomes part of the culture.

Braveheart comes to mind. Whatever your view of its historical accuracy, it reached people. It stirred something. It gave us emotion, scale, sacrifice and that unforgettable cry:

Freedom.

That is what cinema can do when it lands.

Of course, not every film needs to be epic. Some of the films that stay with us most are smaller, funnier or more personal.

One of my favourites is Groundhog Day. On the surface, it is a brilliant comedy. Underneath, it is something much more powerful. It is about being stuck, repeating the same mistakes, living the same day and slowly realising that the only way out is to change yourself.

That can turn a boring or low period of life into a get-up-and-go moment. Don’t sit back. Don’t wait for the world to change. Start with yourself.

Then there is There’s Something About Mary, a clever and very funny look at the ridiculous lengths men will go to in pursuit of the attention of a desirable partner. It is outrageous, sharp and full of memorable moments. And somewhere in the middle of all that chaos is a question many of us have probably asked at some point:

Is she really going out with him?

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is another film I could watch again and again. Who has not thought about Ferris when they have wanted to disappear from the daily toil and do something completely different? It captures that wonderful fantasy of stepping out of routine, breaking the rules just enough and remembering that life should occasionally be lived rather than simply managed.

And then there is The Holiday.

Yes, I know it has Cameron Diaz again. But it also has Jack Black, Jude Law and the wonderful Kate Winslet. For me, it is possibly one of the best-cast films of its type, and it is superbly performed.

Yes, it has become a Christmas film. But the heart and soul of it is not just Christmas. It is the highs and lows of relationships. It is loneliness, hope, risk, friendship, heartbreak and the strange bravery of starting again.

That is why films matter.

They entertain us, yes. But the best ones also remind us who we are, who we have been and who we might still become.

They make us laugh when we need it. They give us courage when we are low. They let us escape, but they also bring us back with a little more understanding than before.

So to the filmmakers, performers, writers, crews and creatives: keep going.

Pick up your tools. Clear your minds. Tell the stories only you can tell.

You are amazing.

And we need you to continue to be.