There is an ongoing debate over whether films should carry entertaining or educational content. I believe that they have to contain educational messages at they have a huge appeal among people.
On the one hand, many people perceive films as a form of entertainment. It derives from the 1910s, when the first silent films began to appear in the US. Because they were silent and directed in one, easy to understand genre – comedy – people massively found it appealing. During that period, almost one third of American families went to the cinema at least three times a week. Such a tradition of family gatherings slowly embedded into society and became one of the main leisure activities. Even today, people go to the cinema for long awaited premieres, such as The Odyssey, in order to spend quality time with their close ones. This way, films developed a reputation of entertainment as many associate them with cinemas.
However, films have gone a lot further than a mere status of amusement. If a hundred years ago they started off as a major entertainment, films today display global social, environmental, or even political problems. For example, the film Interstellar proved particularly appealing for a wide range of audiences. Not only did it spark an interest in aerospace engineering, but also raised awareness of climate change. This, I believe, alternates social consciousness for a better good and, therefore, has to be implemented to serve in a purposeful way.
Therefore, films, as one of the drivers of social change, cannot be regarded as to only entertainment. As people find appeal in the cinematography, it is crucially important that it brings educational value.