It's true that you don't have to tell a story in your film. Your movie can just be filled with exciting elements, photographed in cool ways, with a popular soundtrack. A film really is anything that people are willing to pay money to watch. Though you needn't tell a story with your movie, doing so does pay off.

Stories are something that never gets old. People still read the Bible and already know how it ends. Even if you are just in movies for purely financial reasons, there is a really good reason to tell a story with your movie; so people keep wanting to watch it when the excitement dies.

Stars Fade

There's a pervasive notion that including a star or many stars in a movie will make certain that people will watch it. This is true for the short term. People generally will flock to see anything with the new It Girl or Mr. Now. The problem is that these people that are so important right now might be forgotten in a few short years. So your movie that relies on stars may not shine as bright when these stars burn out.

Styles Change

Filling your movie with cutting edge clothing, brand new automobiles, and hot interior design is a way to keep people watching a movie; but it won't be exciting once all this stuff is available at Walmart. A movie that was once eye candy will someday be lumped in with all the banal stuff you can get at any corner store.

Technology Evolves

Every so often a technology arises a producer thinks is so powerful it can carry a movie on its own. Most technology is not as groundbreaking as sync-sound, so most movies will not be as well-remembered as "The Jazz Singer". Most technology that comes along is a slight improvement on what already exists and will soon be taken over by a yet-to-be-invented technology. Nothing to base a movie's success on wholly.

Current Events Change

A movie that dramatizes recent news events may be very appealing at the time it's released. Seeing a story you have only read about is indeed a compelling concept. As the news cycle continues and things are forgotten or deemed not as important as once thought, these movies that base their existence solely on being timely will find nobody cares anymore.

Exploitation Values Lose Luster

Naked body parts and fantastic scenes of violence might just get a lot of people to see the movie today. Once the rest of the world copies everything you did in that movie (maybe doing it better), you will find your movie is no longer coveted. Nobody wants to see the original just because it was the original, they will only watch it if it's compelling. Exploitation values like sex and violence lose their luster while a story keeps it.

Genres Die

There's a blind edict from many producers that a film need fit squarely in a genre to be able to find an audience. The problem is when the genre dies and that's all the movie had going for it. A boring western might have been tolerated when westerns were hot, but now it's just plain boring. A western with a story will continue to find an audience long after the genre has died.

Instead of gambling with a movie that hopes to capture the feeling of the moment, tell a story with your movie. Films with stories won't be disposable pieces of culture, but lasting contributions to society. Even if they aren't of the highest literary value, they will at least keep finding an audience as years go by.