It's been a running joke with my mom of her talking about how much she hated growing up watching 70s movies. Basically every 70s movie, it's the most depressing ending possible, and then bam, the TV goes to the star spangled banner and then static, left alone to feel miserable.
Now I don't get depressed with movies so I've always half joked with her about it because I enjoy watching old movies that she couldn't be paid to watch, including depressing ones. And while the 70s is a decade I haven't seen as many movies proportionally to the 80s and 90s, I've seen enough to see ones with that standard 1970s ending where you think things will be ok and then the main character dies or whatever.
See this Family Guy clip for reference: Hilarious clip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyGPlo8Rc5E
But let me tell you, I have seen a lot of movies, a lot of horror movies, weird cult movies, and everything in between, and Magic (1978) starring Anthony Hopkins is by far the most depressing movie I ever seen. I actually felt the way my mom describes when it was over, because I was too tired to watch anything else so I was just left with my thoughts.
It's not the ending, if it was the ending, it would be among all the other 70s movies, it's just the concept and how it's done in general. I don't want to say too much, that's why I'm being vague, but watch it and tell me I'm wrong. It's got to be one of the most tragic feeling films I've seen.
If you've seen the movie, let me know if you agree or if I was just being influenced by unknown depressing feelings, because it could be that, but I feel like my sense that this was beyond the normal level of depressing was genuine and not my mood.
So in conclusion the movie is a 10/10. If your Prozac is working too well, it's a good way to bring you back down a bit.
In all seriousness I did enjoy the movie, just wanted to hammer on the main point.
I don't think that art or entertainment has to always be "positive".
Think of like 1920s, you go to a carnival. Some things are cool to watch there because of the talent and danger involved, like trapeze artists.
Others are dazzling because the performer creates an imaginative atmosphere with his control of the crowd as a magician, with smoke and lights creating an otherworldly feeling for his magic act.
Some things are appealing for the bizarre and the novelty, like freak shows; these are your conjoined twins, your bearded ladies, etc. It's a "Wow isn't that weird" reaction.
It's not meant to be subversive. Sometimes showing what's weird or unusual is interesting. I agree that a moral society should limit and prohibit the profane and things that truly subvert God and the Bible and are blasphemous, but I think novelty has probably always had a place in entertainment and art.
I wouldn't be accused of being liberal by anyone, but the most "liberal" side of me is the side that enjoys film. I'm a "film connoisseur" so I am very forgiving of artistic license in film particularly films of the past which weren't woke, but had their own moral issues that were different. However if I were "king of America" I wouldn't permit most of the same films I myself have enjoyed because an individual can enjoy a film, if they have the discernment to know what is subversive or demoralizing and dismiss it and see it for what it is, but on the general populace, art and entertainment does influence people on the large scale. It's like that line in Men in Black. A person is smart, but people are stupid.
However there is a limit to the swayability to the propaganda and subversiveness in film. You see today that people are abandoning movies, TV and games because of all the woke crap being shoved in, and they're not even good in the first place.
Jurassic Park would be an example of more dangerous propaganda in a way. It's feminism was there, but not as offensively egregious as feminist pushing narratives would be later on. It was 2 or 3 lines, just enough to squeeze in the feminist ideas, but not enough to distract from the spectacle of entertainment or draw too much attention to the feminist crap. Then you have the evolution lie and the "millions of years" lie which is intertwined deeply in the film narrative by nature, but they're careful not to be "preachy" about it, so people sit there absorbing lies against the Bible in the entertainment.
Now I like Jurassic Park. It's a fun movie, but that would be an example where if you're watching it with your children, point out the lies in the movie.
Yours was a very thoughtful analysis and very much appreciated.