When you meditate, you are in control. Your mind is active. When you watch movies, your mind is stimulated passively. Besides, you experience dynamic action while your body is still. But you are not initiating this action. When you dream, for example, I'm sure it is totally different, cause your brain creates everything. The same if you were to imagine yourself in a high-speed car chase or gun fight - your neural pathways would fire in a similar was as if you were actually doing it. But the movie imposes this action upon you, while you remain passive. At least, this is how I understand it.
In any case, when I meditate, I am totally aware of everything and ready to go. If a ninja blasted through my window and attacked me, I would proceed to fight him without a thought, and I would be at top efficiency.
But when I watch a movie, I don't feel able even to answer my phone. If a friend calls me, I prefer not to answer right away: I stop the movie, have a glass of water and move around the house a little bit just to get back in an active mode, and then I call him back.
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