Geocentric Motion Viewed From Outer Space

This movie shows the relative motion of the Sun and the planets Mercury, Venus and Mars, when Earth is considered to be the center of the Solar System (Geocentric Model of the Solar System). The duration of the movie is one Earth year (one circumnavigation of the Sun around the Earth), or just one year.Notice how Mercury goes retrograde (makes a loop in its orbit) three times over the course of the year.The movie shows what the planets' motions must be, if true, as viewed from outer space. It seems clear that these motions are absurd, and without scientific foundation. Why then did the Geocentric Model of the Solar System persist for so long?