Blurring the lines between Film and TV

Wind the clocks back 10 years ago and there was a very distinct difference between TV and movies.

Movies was the outgoing, dressed up, glamour type, while TV was the stay at home in your pjs, comfortable and easy going type. Night and day. That’s not to say that one is better than the other. They both played a role in society and that was ok.

But somewhere in the past few years or so the lines started to blur. Two things can be attributed to this. One: We watch movies the exact same way we watch TV. i.e. on TV. Or even a computer screen. We opt to watch DVDs or download them online instead of going to the cinema. It’s much more convenient, cheaper and immediate.

The second reason for the Film and TV blur is that we are in the golden age of television. Shows have such high production value and such rich story lines that you’d be forgiven for thinking you saw it in the cinema. Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead. You get the idea.

The lines are so blurred that there is actual synergy between the two. Some TV shows get movies, like The Simpsons, Entourage and Sex and the City, but the same can be said for the reverse. Movies such as Fargo, From Dusk Till Dawn, and Limitless, are just some of the television shows in recent years whose origins come from the big screen.

Is this a bad thing? No. Of course not.

The movies we love get bigger storylines because, for example instead of a single two hour movie we get thirteen one hour episodes.

The TV shows we love get another chance to delight us by having, for example an episode that is double or even three times its usual length, without commercial breaks.

TV and film used to operate in different circles but now they are best friends. And that’s perfectly fine.

What are your thoughts on this?