Books in the Film and History series

This book explores how the Hollywood studios used sophisticated strategies of propaganda to ideologically unite the country during WWII. Through such films as Casablanca, They Were Expendable, and others, the studios appealed to the public's sense of nationalism, demonized the enemy, and stressed that wartime sacrifices would result in triumph.

Featuring ordinary people, celebrities, game shows, hidden cameras, everyday situations, and humorous or dramatic situations, reality TV is one of the fastest growing and important popular culture trends of the past decade, with roots reaching back to the days of radio. The Tube Has Spoken provides an analysis of the growing phenomenon of reality TV, its evolution as a genre, and how it has been shaped by cultural history. This collection of essays looks at a wide spectrum of shows airing from the 1950s to the present, addressing some of the most popular programs including Alan Funt's Candid Camera, Big Brother, Wife Swap, Kid Nation, and The Biggest Loser. It offers both a multidisciplinary approach and a cross-cultural perspective, considering Australian, Canadian, British, and American programs. In addition, the book explores how popular culture shapes modern western values; for example, both An American Family and its British counterpart, The Family, showcase the decline of the nuclear family in response to materialistic pressures and the modern ethos of individualism. This collection highlights how reality TV has altered the tastes and values of audiences in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. It analyzes how reality TV programs reflect the tensions between the individual and the community, the transformative power of technology, the creation of the celebrity, and the breakdown of public and private spheres.

In Smart Chicks on Screen: Representing Women's Intellect in Film and Television, Laura Mattoon D'Amore brings together a collection of essays that examine the disparate portrayals of beauty and brains in film and television. This text will be of interest to scholars of film and television, communications, and women's studies, to name a few.

The Western film continues to be reexamined by scholars, and this collection offers engaging essays on a variety of films and television shows that represent the genre. Essays in this volume consider star/celebrity studies, the representation of race, overviews of Western subgenres, and international Westerns. In all, this collection provides a diverse selection of chapters that represent current thinking on this enduring genre.

In this book, World War II veterans compare their wartime experiences-as soldiers, pilots, "code talkers," and prisoners of war-to on-screen portrayals of the war in Hollywood films. In addition, two women-real life "Rosie the Riveters"-compare depictions of women and the home front at wartime with their experiences.

The past three decades have seen the rise of a transnational European cinema, not only in terms of production, but also in terms of a growing focus on multi-ethnic themes within the European context. The collapse of the Iron Curtain and the subsequent (and on-going) enlargement of the European Union have played a major role in this shift from national to trans-European filmmaking. Its most obvious on-screen manifestation is the increased visibility of immigrant groups from former communist countries, ranging from Krzysztof Kies¿lowski's Blanc (1994) and Pawel Pawlikowski's Last Resort (2000) to Hans-Christian Schmid's Lichter (2003), Ken Loach's It is a Free World (2007) and Bobby Paunescu's Francesca (2009).Through its focus on cinematic representations of post-1989 migration from the former Eastern Bloc to Western Europe, When East and West Meet seeks to examine what these films reveal about the cultures producing and consuming these migration narratives and to what extent these images function as a site for new (trans)regional, (trans)national and European identities. When East Meets West explicitly crosses the boundaries of national cinemas and sets out to uncover an array of common tropes and narrative devices that characterize the influences and portrayals of immigration from the former Eastern Bloc.

This book looks at how the Warner Bros. studio used edgy, stylistic, and brutally honest films to construct a view of America from 1927-1941. Author Chris Yogerst looks at how the Warner Bros. films during this period represented important cultural and social changes-from the coming of sound in film, the Great Depression, the rise of crime, and the increased concern about fascism leading up to World War II.

A man of many film firsts, James Stuart Blackton promoted motion pictures as a mass commercial medium by creating the first true movie studio, adopting the star system, pioneering film animation, and publishing Motion Picture Magazine, one of the first film periodicals. As much of a seminal figure to the film industry as Thomas Edison and D.W. Griffith, James Stuart Blackton nonetheless remains unknown to most film enthusiasts and even many cinema scholars. In Buccaneer: James Stuart Blackton and the Birth of American Movies Donald Dewey recounts the drama, intrigue, and romance of this motion picture trailblazer. A gifted director, producer, and founder of Vitagraph studios, BlacktonΓÇÖs personal escapades were nearly as dramatic as his contributions to the medium he helped establish. Decades ahead of his time, Blackton also played a critical role in propagating war-time sentiment during both the Spanish-American War and World War I and was an influence on such key historical figures as Theodore Roosevelt.A fascinating look into the life of a truly distinguished filmmaker, Buccaneer narrates the volatile world of the early motion picture industry, as influenced by a man whose own story rivaled anything on screen. A must read for film lovers, this book will also prove to be invaluable to readers with an interest in American history.

Film moves audiences like no other medium; both documentaries and feature films are especially remarkable for their ability to influence viewers. Best-selling author James Brady remarked that he joined the Marines to fight in Korea after seeing a John Wayne film, demonstrating how a motion picture can change the course of a human life -- in this case, launching the career of a major historian and novelist. In Why We Fought: America's Wars in Film and History, editors Peter C. Rollins and John E. O'Connor explore the complexities of war films, describing the ways in which such productions interpret history and illuminate American values, politics, and culture. This comprehensive volume covers representations of war in film from the American Revolution in the 18th century to today's global War on Terror. The contributors examine iconic battle films such as The Big Parade (1925), All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), From Here to Eternity (1953), and Platoon (1986), considering them as historical artifacts. The authors explain how film shapes our cultural understanding of military conflicts, analyzing how war is depicted on television programs, through news media outlets, and in fictional and factual texts. With several essays examining the events of September 11, 2001, and their aftermath, the book has a timely relevance concerning the country's current military conflicts. Jeff Chown examines controversial documentary films about the Iraq War, while Stacy Takacs considers Jessica Lynch and American gender issues in a post-9/11 world, and James Kendrick explores the political messages and aesthetic implications of United 93. From filmmakers who reshaped our understanding of the history of the Alamo, to Ken Burns's popular series on the Civil War, to the uses of film and media in understanding the Vietnam conflict, Why We Fought offers a balanced outlook -- one of the book's editors was a combat officer in the United States Marines, the other an antiwar activist -- on the conflicts that have become touchstones of American history. As Air Force veteran and film scholar Robert Fyne notes in the foreword, American war films mirror a nation's past and offer tangible evidence of the ways millions of Americans have become devoted, as was General MacArthur, to "e;Duty, honor, and country."e; Why We Fought chronicles how, for more than half a century, war films have shaped our nation's consciousness.

A discussion of Laurel and Hardy films in a way that is both critical and appreciative, Bliss explores how complex the comedic duo's films are in terms of acting, structure, and storyline, also pointing out how the films qualify as comedies in the classic sense even though they subvert the genre's traditional tendency for stories to end well.

This book argues that the US is a great colonial power and that this is clearly evident in network television's treatment of minorities and colonized peoples. This book argues that televised representations of Native Americans fit neatly into what would be called 'colonial discourse.'

In 1952, Elia Kazan testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) investigating alleged communist infiltration of the entertainment industry. The cloud of this cooperation, which assured that the filmmaker would avoid the blacklist, plagued Kazan throughout the remainder of his life and career. This book presents a close analysis of Kazan's cinema following his testimony, examining the political themes they conveyed, in order to gain a better understanding of the filmmaker's consciousness.The films covered in this volume include Viva Zapata (1952), On the Waterfront (1954), East of Eden (1954), Baby Doll (1956), A Face in the Crowd (1957), Splendor in the Grass (1961), America, America (1963), and The Last Tycoon (1976).

This is the first volume specifically devoted to non-fiction propaganda film distributed in France during the "Dark Years" of the German Occupation. This book shows how the Nazis pursued an aggressive series of measures designed to monopolize the French market and foster agitation against Americans, Jews, Communists, and others. The author provides a concise overview of Vichy and German film policies and then illustrates how ideological priorities and political negotiations played out in the content of both topical documentaries and weekly newsreels.

The Hollywood Trust: Trade Associations and the Rise of the Studio System offers a rare look at the Hollywood trade organizations that rose during the early years of cinema. This book offers a detailed account of three successive trade organizations from 1915 to 1928: the Motion Picture Board of Trade, the National Association of the Motion Picture Industry (NAMPI), and the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA). The book shows how trade organizations acted as the forum for internal and external conflicts as well as the facilitators for cooperative action on censorship, public relations, government regulation, film distribution, and other issues.

Responsible for some of the greatest films of the 20th centuryΓÇöThe Grapes of Wrath, How Green Was My Valley, and The Quiet Man among othersΓÇöJohn Ford was best known for motion pictures that defined the American West and the face of wartime military. A Hollywood celebrity, Ford lived his life against the background that Twentieth Century-Fox fashioned for him. As he did, the facts of his life merged withΓÇöand became inseparable fromΓÇöhis multifaceted legend, fostered by HollywoodΓÇÖs studio culture and his own imagination.In The Westerns and War Films of John Ford Sue Matheson offers an engaging look at one of AmericaΓÇÖs greatest directors and the two genres of films that solidified his reputation.Drawing on previously unreleased material, this volume explores the man, the filmmaker, the veteran, and the legendΓÇöand the ways in which all of those roles shaped FordΓÇÖs view of America, national character, and his creative output. Among the films discussed here in depth are FordΓÇÖs early productions, such as The Iron Horse and Drums along the Mohawk, his military films, such as Submarine Patrol, The Battle of Midway, and They Were Expendable, and his Westerns, including Fort Apache, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, The Searchers, and Cheyenne Autumn. Ford imbued many of his creations with a point of view that represented his ideals, and the films discussed here illustrate their directorΓÇÖs distinct vision of American life on the frontier and in service of the country. That visionΓÇöFordΓÇÖs idealization of the American CharacterΓÇöwould, in turn, shape the worldview of several generations. The Westerns and War Films of John Ford will appeal to critics and scholars, but also to any fan of this iconic filmmakerΓÇÖs work.

2015 marks the 70th anniversary of the WWII's end and the beginning of the general public's awareness of Holocaust atrocities. This book offers an important look at Hollywood's ongoing representations of the Holocaust aimed at a general readership not usually addressed by volumes on this subject. This book is a study of the portrayal of the Holocaust in Hollywood films from the World War II era to the present. It includes chapters on thirty films, arranged chronologically, beginning in 1940 with Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator and concluding with Quentin Tarantino's 2009 film InglouriousBasterds. The book's introduction provides an initial discussion of Hollywood Holocaust movies and their enormous influence on public perceptions of the Shoah; what standards should be adopted to judge such movies; and whether Hollywood, given its commercial focus, is capable of depicting the Holocaust accurately. The book also considers whether comedy can be an effective method of portraying the Holocaust and examines the American public's ongoing fascination with the Holocaust and other related issues.

For nearly 25 years, Pauline Kael (1919-2001) was one of America's most respected, controversial, and talked-about film reviewer, yet her film criticism for The New Yorker has never been systematically discussed or analyzed. This collection of essays on Pauline Kael investigates the range, scope, and influence of Kael's film criticism over the years (1968-81) that she wrote for The New Yorker.

This collection addresses the relative scarcity of work relating to food-film studies, showcasing innovative viewpoints about a popular, yet understudied, subject in film. The volume asks provocative questions about food and its relationship with work, urban life, sexual orientation, the family, race, morality, and a wide range of "appetites."

This volume examines various representation of John F. Kennedy on film, from fictionalized accounts of his wartime exploits-PT-109 (1963)-to his presidency, his assassination, and his legacy. With a focus on docudramas, the book looks at how such films keep the myth of Kennedy and Camelot alive.

This volume compares films from the late Cold War era with films of the same genre, or of similar themes, from the post-Cold War era, paying particular attention to shifts in narrative that reflect changes in American culture, attitudes, and ideas. It explains how the absence of the Cold War has changed the way we understand and interpret film.

This collection of essays addresses important questions about the relationship between fact and fiction: When does history become myth, and when does myth become legend? Does a romanticized view of history distort the reality it is trying to convey, or in capturing the "spirit" of history, does it teach history in ways that mere fact cannot? What is the impact of motion pictures on our understandings of history and on historical memory? And what of the lives of the individuals it portrays? These essays introduce arguments about how storytelling within a film can help the viewer understand a historical situation better, and even empathize with historical figures in a new way.