Films vs. Movies

I think that there are plenty of "movies" out there..... but to make a "film" takes a degree of passion and artistic integrity.

This thread is designed to help define that difference and to help establish what pieces would be considered "movies" and what would be considered "films".

"Clockwork Orange" I feel is a film.

"Dude, Where's My Car" ....movie

but what is it that made me come to this decision....I'm not sure..maybe you guys can help

 

Film - It doesn't just tell a story, it teaches a lesson. A film conveys themes to the viewer that actually have a real, profound impact on them. Although most comedies wouldn't qualify for this category, I would probably place some satires here, too.

Movie - A movie is there purely for entertainment. 'Dude, Where's My Car?' is a good example of this. The story appears to be woven around cheap laughs. They can be entertaining, but they are often forgetable and lack the 'timeless' quality of films.

 

I disagree.

According to the dictionary, all films are movies and all movies are films. The connotation has come to be there and I'll be honest. I actually use "films" when I'm talking about really great stuff, like Casablanca or Ben-Hur. However, I also use it when referring to great comedies that are head and shoulders above the rest. By that I mean, actually funny. For example, Duck Soup, Dumb and Dumber and Auntie Mame are films.

Dude, Where's My Car? is a movie. It's cheap, tasteless, won't survive, and fails miserably on most of it's counts. That's a movie, in my opinion. Plan 9 From Outer Space is a movie. Theodore Rex is a movie.

I personally think all films that are classics should be called "films."

And there you go. It's totally relative. A film to one person is a movie to someone else. What I think is classic, you might not.

 

I see what you are getting at but in the UK most people refer to movies as films.

 

i agree with Patches.

but there might be some movies/films with both characteristics. what are those called?

 

Patches is correct. Two different meanings.

 

Dude, Where's My Car? is a movie. It's cheap, tasteless, won't survive, and fails miserably on most of it's counts

Believe it or not, Dude has a huge cult following, almost like an Evil Dead 2. They're even making a sequel.

Now, a movie that has been built up over time like Evil Dead, or even Star Wars, are loved by many. Would you high falutin types consider these films or movies?

 

Star Wars is a film because I consider it great. Evil Dead I consider a great film.

I know about Dude's cult following. I'm not sure why I said that to be honest. I just don't consider it a great film.

I'm not overly hung up on message or depth. Like I say, I consider Dumb and Dumber a film. It's all about how good I think it is. Why don't you all just start listening to whatm I say and we'll all be all right.

 

B'omarr, you read my mind. Stop that!

I think defining what is a "film" and what is a "movie" is entirely personal. While we might consider Casablanca a "film" right along with "Star Wars", other people hate "Star Wars" and think "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" is a classic piece of American Cinema.

Who's to say which is which?

 

So can a movie become a film?

 

No, because I either like or I don't.

I suppose if you watch a movie and aren't crazy about but then get roped into watching it again and you love it. Then, maybe.

I did that with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, actually. First time through, I was like, what the heck is this? Second time through, I laughed until I cried, knowing what to expect I guess. That one tracked from a movie to a film, in my opinion.

 

I call every film, a movie. Every now and then, I think I'll subconsciously call it a film when I feel that the director or writer didn't compromise the movie to win over a mainsteam crowd.

 

This needs to be broadened as most people in the UK call movies "films".

 

Here's a fly in the ointment. Many Australians say they are going to the "pictures" rather than to a movie or a film.

Colloquialism I think.

 

Hmm, I think I'm with Rogue1-and-a-half here. If we're going to have this discussion, it might be better to have some clearer terminology.

As for the discussion itself--you're getting into the classic argument of "high" art vs. "low" art. Which is dangerous. For many of us here in this forum, SW would fall into the former category, but for most other people in this world, it would fall in the latter category. Just goes to show how arbitrary the line can be. I also think it's particularly dangerous to say something is "just a movie" because it's just entertainment. I don't think there's anything wrong with a movie being "just entertainment"--and "preachy" movies often irritate the heck out of me.

What do I consider a good movie? Something well-made (in terms of craft--visual, score, script) and something that engages my mind (whether as "just entertainment", through an intellectual issue, through a great romance, through a heart-rending tragedy). Yeah, that's pretty vague. But it's very difficult to say that all "lesson" movies are superior to all "entertaining" movies--because that's simply not true and because what one person considers a "lesson" movie may be another person's "just entertaining" movie. I try to consider movies on a case-by-case basis, not in groups.

Anyway, I'll stop rambling now...

 

All great opinions. Here's mine:

Movie: A movie does exactly what the title says. A movie Moves you. For Example, The Patriot, Black Hawk Down, Angela's Ashes, The Godfather, these are all movies that make you think or move you. Most Histoical, Romance, or Real Life movies are in my mind MOVIES.

Film: A film is simply an idea or a previously thought up idea put a film. Examples are Star Wars, The Sum of all Fears, Scooby-Doo, Dude, Where's my brain.
A Film is a comedy, A movie taken from a book, sci-fi, or even a musical.

 

Uruk-hai, I'd agree. Here in the UK we go to the "pictures" to watch a film. There is no differentiation between the word "movie" or "film" - they mean the same thing.

 

I can't really say I can (or want to) differentiate between "films" or "movies". Personally, I think it's just semantics and nit-picking.

 

My cousin, a film student, yells at me when I call videos films. They are videos, or tapes. The picture that you see in the theatre (unless on a digital projector) is a film. Just thought I'd mention it...

 

The Italian Job is a great film whether you see it at the Pictures or on video.

I wouldn't say "Oh, the Italian Job is a great video!"

 

This is totally a person to person thing, it varies.

Kinda like how some people think Tom Cruise is an actor and other think he is a Movie Star ( *cough* -he-can't-act--and-needs-to-come-out-of-the-clost *cough* )

~~~Aanix

 

I think there is only a distinction between films and movies because elitists want to put their intelligence and tastes in film above those of "the masses". I see this more commonly among college students than in any other group. There's this "I took Film 101, therefore I'm smarter than you" mentality that sickens me.

 

This must be an American thing?

 

I probably is just us Americans. Despite what you may believe from my earlier definition, I call everything a "movie". I merely defined the connotation that DUSHONI was referring to and that I often see.

However, the definition still does work. I admit to liking a lot of "movies". I even liked Dude, Where's My Car? when I first saw it. But this does not make it a timeless and classic piece of cinema. The Star Wars movies are a bit tougher to tell, though. They are probably destined to be classics several years down the road, which would make them fall into the first category.

I hope that made sense

 

But what is a fillum?