Neil Gabler's Life A Movie: How Entertainment Conquered Reality

Neil Gabler’s book Life a Movie: How Entertainment Conquered Reality presents entertainment as a negative piece of our ever-changing society. Using words like “mindless” and “subversive” to describe the industry as a whole, Gabler makes his strong opposition of entertainment apparent. The title of his book suggests his opinion that life itself was starting to become entertainment of its own, as some people were severely impacted by movies that were considered immoral by many. A wide range of people still make a similar argument today, some even believing our entertainment is getting more morally damaging day by day. Although some have attacked the entertainment industry for ruining society including Neil Gabler in his book Life a Movie, …show more content…
Some see popular music especially in the rap genre as completely disgusting and vulgar. The reality is that music is an art form and a way for people talented enough to write music to express their thoughts and stories in a poetic and lyrical fashion. Growing up living in low income situations and in poor neighborhoods can indeed impact the way one speaks and conveys their message. Another aspect to look at is that society has become more accepting of these types of music over the past few decades. More people than ever have access to music at the click of a button or a tap of a screen. As music becomes more easily accessible, more genres of music are explored by listeners. Although this may seem like a bad thing for some, others see this as an innovation. Music does more good than it does harm. By listening to music, one can relate to the artist’s message and explore their emotions in unexplainable …show more content…
Some believe that movies with strong language and violence are extremely harmful to society as a whole. While films with mature content should not be viewed by younger children, many of these movies are both emotionally compelling and beautifully crafted. A perfect example of this kind of movie is Pulp Fiction directed by Quentin Tarantino. Like Tarantino’s other works, this film is violent and at times disturbing. Many people see right through films of this nature as they are just “mindless” on the surface. But the development of the character Samuel L. Jackson portrays is one of importance. As a hitman, Jules’ job is to essentially kill other people for pay. But in one scene, his mission goes wrong leading to his target emptying a revolver in his direction. None of the bullets kill him or his partner. This event makes him ponder over the bible passage he had been reciting over for years just before killing one of his targets and eventually leads him to change for the better. While this explanation of Jules’ transformation is just scratching the surface, it is apparent that the character’s story is one that is meant to spark a conversation about morality and the value of life. There are many other examples of controversial films, most of them having the reoccurring theme of morality. Visual media can positively affect an individual’s