Another analogue of the Film vs. HD argument was the CD vs. Vinyl debate that was (and still is) going on. Vinyl is great, it offers so much more flexibility than CDs do (as far a DJing goes, that is) and in order to get an approximation of what can be done with vinyl while using the CD format would require equipment costing at least twice as much. Conversely, vinyl is a bulky format requiring something like ten to twenty times the weight for the same content. So, in the end it all comes down to practicality. As much as I love playing vinyl, I'd rather take a CD wallet with about fifty CDs in to the venue I play at rather than break my back with a truckload of vinyl to accomplish the same task.
Back to Film vs. HD; It's a "horses for courses" situation, i.e. what is more suitable to accomplish the task, given budget, time constraints, availability of skills and equipment etc.
I find that film has a certain "Je Ne Sais Quois" (sp?), it's a black art in itself and I for one can't wait to get my hands dirty, filming with good 'ol cellulose. :)