Romantic Comedies are of the Devil?

Part of Cinemagogue’s vision is exposing the truth that we let film, like a video pulpit, preach through narrative and influence how we think, feel, and act. It’s always fascinating when academia comes along and says what we’ve been exploring for some time. In BBC News, a report on a study in Edinburgh is corroborating a long held Cinemagogue truism, specifically targeting “Rom-Coms”:

“We now have some emerging evidence that suggests popular media play a role in perpetuating these ideas in people’s minds.”

Really? No. I can’t believe it… are they suggesting entertainment is not mindless escapism? With a wink, I would humbly suggest they are on to something.

Their focus on Rom-Coms (romantic comedies) examines the fact that “students watching the romantic film were later found to be more likely to believe in fate and destiny. A further study found that fans of romantic comedies had a stronger belief in predestined love.”

The full article is here, and you can even participate in an ongoing online study. This is the same island that gave us Hugh Grant, right? I guess this could count as the first step in a long road to repentance…

Seriously though, the notion of this notable influence on our disposition should drive us to reexamine our need for mindful – not mindless – entertainment and exploring what truth MIGHT lie even in these fluffy fairy-tales. The article also asserts that “the problem is that while most of us know that the idea of a perfect relationship is unrealistic, some of us are still more influenced by media portrayals than we realise.”

I believe that the perfect DOES exist… just not in marriage, and not in human relationships. Are these stories completely without merit, or do they hint at a higher relationship we’re seeking to satiate with lesser things?