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“Pause the film.”

That’s something people barely say anymore.

Not because films are getting worse, but because nobody really watches them properly now.

We live in a generation where people watch Interstellar while scrolling on TikTok. People skip scenes because they’re “too slow”. Some people even watch films on double speed.

Double speed.

Imagine watching something that took years to create while barely paying attention to it.

Cinema used to feel magical. Now it just feels like content.

Years ago, going to the cinema felt like an event. People got excited for months before a film released. Audiences sat in silence and focused completely on the screen.

Now compare that to today.

Notifications go off every few minutes. People talk during important scenes. Some viewers are more focused on recording the film than actually experiencing it.

And honestly, I’ve noticed this myself. Sometimes I’ll watch a film I was excited for, but after ten minutes I automatically check my phone without even thinking. Then suddenly I’ve missed an important scene because I got distracted by random videos I won’t even remember tomorrow.

But when I actually watch a film properly — especially in the cinema — it reminds me why films are so powerful in the first place.

And I think social media is a huge reason for this change.

Apps like TikTok train people to expect entertainment instantly. Every video is fast and attention-grabbing, so when audiences watch slower films, they lose patience quickly.

But some of the best scenes in cinema are quiet.

The ending of La La Land.
The final scene of The Truman Show.

These scenes are memorable because audiences are supposed to sit with the emotion instead of constantly searching for the next thing.

But now people can’t even watch a two-hour film without checking their phones.

And because audiences are changing, films are changing too.

That’s also why so many modern films feel predictable. Studios are so focused on keeping audiences entertained that they stop taking creative risks. Instead of creating new ideas, they rely on sequels, remakes and familiar storylines because they know audiences will already recognise them. But the films people remember most are usually the ones that feel different.

Films like Get Out and Parasite became successful because they felt different and actually had something meaningful to say.

I also think streaming has changed the value of films. Years ago, people had to wait for films to release in cinemas or buy them physically. Films felt important because you could not access everything instantly.

Now thousands of films are available within seconds. People scroll through endless options, watch something for twenty minutes, then move onto something else if they get bored.

Films have become disposable.

Think about how many movies trend online for a week and then completely disappear from conversation. Audiences are constantly searching for the “next thing” instead of appreciating what

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