That we love to cry in the movies is corroborated by box office hits such as "Titanic", "Gone with the Wind", "Someone Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" or the most recent "The Impossible". According to a study led by Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick, from the University of Ohio, and published in the journal Communication Research , tragic films that cause us sadness simultaneously enhance a reflection on our own lives and make us evoke the closest relationships, increasing the sense of well-being.
In their experiments with more than 360 subjects, Knobloch-Westerwick and her colleagues found that "the sadder the plot, the more viewers' satisfaction with their own life and happiness levels increased when they left the room." Scientists link it to recent psychological studies suggesting that negative moods invite people "to think more critically about their own situation, and to appreciate more what they have." "Celluloid dramas make us think of loved ones and that makes us feel immediately happy," emphasizes Knobloch-Westerwick.
