Movies have both changed both dramatically and very little in the time since 1965. This is because it is part of human nature to not only want to tell and see not only meaningful stories, but also to see things that will make them jump from their seats and stare in wonder, questioning their very reality at the moment and simply making people feel happy and excited. Movies have not only always been used as a medium for education and thought but also for simple entertainment and happiness, to let people take their minds off of their current situation and to simply enjoy the moment. Because of the technologies introduced since 1965 it is now arguably much easier for movies to be made that ignore a meaningful story and focus on simply trying to wow the audience with technological effects. However despite it being easier to use technology as a distraction, some movies attempt to embrace change in order to enhance their message to the viewers, and to create a film that would not have otherwise not worked. The movies that I will be comparing are Transformers, The Seventh Seal, Jaws, and Slumdog Millionaire. These movies are all very different yet at the heart of them they all very much have the same goal, to engage the viewer into the film, yet at the same time they all use very different methods and technologies in order to achieve this goal.

The first film that I wish to talk about is The Seventh Seal. The Seventh Seal was a film made in 1957 by Ingmar Bergman. This is the oldest film on my list, and therefore had the least impressive technology to work with when it was released. In The Seventh Seal a soldier returns from war only to encounter the very form of death of the beach in which he lands. This movie contains many deep messages about both religion and death. Reviewers noted that The Seventh Seal was an important film in the overall process of Bergman integrating these messages into more of his films. Not only did Bergman examine some of the hardest questions mankind faces, he also includes messages about the cold war going on at the time across the world. In the movie he uses the black plague as an analogy for the cold war. Wiping out much of Europe, the black plague had terrified people who really had no way to defend themselves against this looming danger, it was a threat that people were currently terrified about and yet had no real power over, forcing the world into fear. Bergman shows that even in those moment of peril and despair, happiness and relaxation is an important part of life. In the film a group of traveling performers is used to show this, providing more lighthearted scenes to the film. These performers are wearing brightly colored costumes, a deep contrast to the dark death figure. Despite the deep questions that Bergman was facing, he thought that it was important to still see the lighter side of humanity, and he though that entertainment was an important part of living.

The next film that I would like to discuss is Jaws. Jaws was a movie created in 1975 by Steven Spielberg. Jaws was truly the first summer blockbuster, beating The Godfather’s record in the box office in a stunning 78 days. This was a massive success for Steven Spielberg and it started his career as a creator of massive blockbusters, including Raiders Of the Lost Ark created in 1981 and talked about by Melisa Ensign. Jaws created a massive summer surge of viewers and people flocked to the movie theatre to see the horror thriller that everybody was talking about. Jaws did use new technology to varying degrees of success. The filming suffered several failures of the mechanical sharks and other technological aspects, forcing the movie to change from a more up front horror movie, like Texas Chainsaw Massacre a movie that Dallas Moree points out is not only a true story, but used many angles of the killer and victims to create the movie feel. Jaws was forced to pivot to become a movie that constantly has the shark in the darkness, with the audience on the edge of their seats waiting for it to appear next and attack.  Despite the switch of tactics the movie was a great success, and has stood the passage of time, with reviewers even looking back and noting how well the suspense of actually not seeing the threat worked for the film. Jaws used other aspects such as a now  classic tune that people will all instantly associate with a shark attack. Despite the fact that Jaws focused more on thrilling the audience than getting a deep message across, people have still found inspiration in Jaws and it gathered generally good reviews. Jaws pushed many wrong messages about sharks, and yet it also helped create generations who are excited to learn more about sharks, and the entire premise of the movie has now been discredited due to the continuing knowledge on these animals that the movie accidentally created. Jaws shows that the impact that films can have, even unintentionally on the world is truly tremendous. This is why some filmmakers try hard to show a message to the world in their films.

This transitions to the third film, Slumdog Millionaire. Slumdog Millionaire was a movie made in 2008 by Danny Boyle. Slumdog Millionaire is a movie centering around a game show contestant. This man from the lower caste was able to surpass everybody else in the game, and the single question on everybody’s minds is why. Danny Boyle used a mix of new technology and old school techniques to create the movie, and it in largely worked. Slumdog Millionaire was the first film that used Digital Cinematography to win an Oscar for best cinematography. This was a massive moment in Digital Cinematography and it really catapulted the technology as it was then widely seen as an “accepted” method of creating a mainstream film eligible for awards and public admiration. The technology used in Slumdog Millionaire was all chosen very deliberately to enhance the message of the film and to get it across clearer to the audience. In a post done by Tristen Gerkensmeyer another movie that uses technology to enhance a message is discussed Avatar. Instead of using technology to create entire moments of a film like what was done in Avatar, Danny Boyle tried to subtly introduce it, with CGI questions appearing when they are being asked on the televised “show”, to the digital cameras chosen for specific tasks and duties. Slumdog Millionaire attempted to show not only the wonders of India, but also some of the horrors of it. From police brutality to the extremely flawed caste systems that still lingers in Indian culture. Slumdog Millionaire was a film that was designed to make people really think, and it did. From reviewers who praised how the film approached areas of India that others had avoided, to people who thought the entire film was a bit too critical of certain parts of India. Danny Boyle not only wanted to create a beautiful and unique film, he wanted to create something that people would debate and think about.

Finally I would like to speak a little about the film Transformers. Transformers was a movie released in 2007 and created by Micheal Bay. The point of Transformers is very much in contrast with the other films, particularly Slumdog Millionaire. Transformers was a film that was created with a single goal in mind, to entertain an audience. In the movie a species of robots is fighting a war on earth, when a human boy accidentally gets put into the middle of their battle. To actually produce an engaging movie with all the things that do not actually exist, Transformers used many new Cgi technologies, to actually engage the audience and make them believe that robots are having a full on fight right in front of their eyes. This movie focused heavily on creating scenes that make the audience shocked that this is actually happening, focusing heavily on things such as full on CGI scene with robots fighting one another. Doing this was a tremendous economic success for the movie, with not only it becoming a tremendous blockbuster, but it was able to launch a highly successively franchise. Despite these reviewers did not usually like it, noting that it was too long, and the effects did not make up for the lack of story. Transformers shows that a movie does not have to push a deep and meaningful message to get audiences excited, in fact it proves that a movie can be very lacking in some aspects to reviewers and audiences, it can still end up being a tremendous success due to other factors.

All the creators of these four films, Slumdog, Transformers, Jaws, and The Seventh Seal took a very different method to filming and creating the actual film, and they all ended up being very different, but they also share some similar aspects. Despite the massive economic and technical changes in film that have occurred over the years since The Seventh Seal has been released these films all share something, they have been made to entertain and engage the viewer. I believe that these movies prove that not only have methods of creation have changed over the years, but that film creators still want to reach an audience in some way, wether that is to entertain, teach, or both. I think that all of these other films would impress Ingram Bergman, the creator of my arguably most deep films, The Seventh Seal. As even the most arguably ridiculous of the movies, Transformers, wishes to entertain and make a crowd happy, a point he held dearly. Movies have always played a role in teaching people and making them question, but at the same time, art has always been used and should be used to entertain people and make life a little easier, I believe that this two important principles have stayed the same in film throughout the years.