The 1950’s were a very crucial time period that had an abundant amount of different situations going on, one being the growing conflict between parents and their adolescent children. For example, parents were beginning to get divide from their children and losing connection with them, allowing for the children to enter a rebellious state. Another growing conflict that was occurring during this era was the tensions between different races. For instances, during this time there was a lot of different civil right movements that had began to take action, which helped build momentum towards equality and desegregation for different races. In the following paper two different movies, Blackboard Jungle & Rebel Without a Cause, will be critiqued and the similarities and differences between …show more content…
For Blackboard Jungle the teens seemed to be part of the lower class, whereas in Rebel Without a Cause the students were portrayed to be part of the middle class. This was to emphasis that the rebellion of adolescent teens and adults was not only contained to those of lower class, but to all socioeconomic classes. Another difference was that Blackboard Jungle also involved the conflict of race, for instance there was one scene where racial slurs were used between students. There was also a difference between soundtracks for the two movies, in Rebel Without a Cause there was always music playing in the background. The music in Rebel Without a Cause seemed to be more dramatic and suspenseful, which in my opinion always kept the audience on edge and gave off a negative feeling. However, for Blackboard there was not any background music throughout the film, which may have taken away from the suspenseful feeling. There was though a song the played in the beginning of the film, Rock Around The Clock, which gave off a positive feeling because of its up paced
Movies and entertainment outlets speak volumes about the current state of a nation’s culture. Cinematic creations in the United States allow small voices to be heard and controversial issues to be addressed. However, a repetitive and monumental issue continues to be addressed, yet continues to persist in our 21st century culture, racial inequalities. Since the inception of the United States, black men and women alike have been disenfranchised at the hands of the “white man” in America. Instead of continuing the conversation today, the issue is continually silenced referencing the successes and achievements of the Civil Rights Movement in the 20th century. Nonetheless, an unfortunate reality looms upon this great land; racially based systems and structures continue to exist in 2015 the in United States. This paper synthesizes three films focused on racial inequalities in different time periods. Separate but Equal (1991), Selma (2015), and Crash (2005) illustrate how influential the Civil War amendments are, while serving as an uncanny reminder of how the racial prejudices during the 20th century continue to exist in our great nation today. Needless to say our nation has made great strides, but still has a long way to go.
Therefore, the Vietnam War not only holds the basis of the film but also gives it its historical accuracy. (Appendix D) The comparison of the civil rights movement in the United States and the fight for indigenous Australian peoples equality help the movie flow. The use of these historical events allows the film to give itself credibility without the negative effect of
One of the major themes that are presented throughout the whole entire movie is the dysfunctional relationship between one of the characters and their fathers. The movie portrays father figures as problematic which then shape the actions and the characters themselves as the movie progresses. We can see all three dynamics of the father figure presented through Jim, Judy, and Plato. Through Jim, the father figure that he is presented with is a father who is weak allows himself to be walked on by Jim¡¯s mother and grandmother. Judy¡¯s father, on the other hand, is quite the opposite of Jim¡¯s father in that he is the overbearing, masculine, and insensitive. Lastly, we see the absence of a
The films, Remember The Titans and The Sapphires are both discovering significant social messages of racial conflict. With these messages and the techniques used in both films they have resulted in two powerful films that highlight racial discrimination. This essay will explore the relationship between the filmmaking and the social messages it is trying to highlight, as well as the similarities, differences and techniques shared between both films
Since the late 1940s, American cinema has been obsessed with the idea of the atomic bomb and what it stands for; whether that be destruction or absolute power depends on the film. This symbolism would then come to define the 1950s, and later on American cinema as well. This symbolism then must be addressed from the lenses of, both, history and socio-political commentary. Then the question must be posed why specifically these two lenses? The answer to this question, then, lies in the films of the 50s, and beyond. Whether this answer lies in the apocalyptic imagination present in the films or the politics of the time, McCarthyism would influence American culture far beyond the 50s, depends on the historian who is asked. The answer, then,
The United States has long been a country that has accepted that change is a necessity for prosperity and growth. However, each change within the nation's history was hard fought against those who resisted such change either through racism, bigotry, and blatant discrimination. African American cinema is enshrouded in history that depicts these themes of racism, struggle, and deprivation. Yet, this same cinema also shows scenes of hope, artistic spirit, intellectual greatness, and joy. Black actresses, actors, directors, producers, and writers have been fighting for recognition and respect since the great Paul Robeson. The civil rights movement of the 1950's and 60's was fueled by black cinema through films like A Raisin in the Sun.
According to Tukachinsky, Mastro, and Yarchi, prior to 1930, the role of Blacks on screen were seen involving mostly in criminality and idleness (540). That role still persists until the present, with Blacks usually have to withstand to “longstanding and unfavorable media stereotypes including sexually provocative females and aggressive male thugs” (Tukachinsky 540). 1970’s movies such as The Mack, Black Caesar and Coffy have reinforced this stereotypic image of the black community. The
A lot can happen in sixty years, and America is no exception to that statement. It is arguable that one of the biggest differences regarding America in the 1950s to modern America is culture. The movie “Pleasantville” reflects much of these cultural differences from 1950s to today in a creative and thoughtful way. It also provides much useful insight into the cultural conflicts America faced throughout the 1950s. The many differences between 1950s culture and modern day culture, my own opinion which time period I would personally choose to live in and cultural conflicts of the 1950s will be discussed throughout this essay.
The use of various camera techniques such as canted frames, low-angled, high-angled and close up shots, as well as camera distance, enhances the struggle between the characters. The use of such techniques not only allows the audience to get an extensive insight into the many different characters, but also helps us understand the relationships between them and how all of these factors contribute to the overarching theme of racism in the film. The use of these camera rapid movements
There are age related conflicts, cultural conflicts, religious conflicts and value based conflicts. This movie is a film highlighting many cultural conflicts. These conflicts continuously erupt in a working class Michigan neighborhood. We will first examine a scene with religious cultural conflict. In the same scene we will see age based cultural conflict as well. Next, we will examine a racial cultural conflict between the Hmong people and an American. After examining cultural conflicts, we will show two examples of popular culture in the film. Then, we will provide the conflict management styles we would have employed to bring the same result as the current ending without the bloodshed and a general opinion of the film.
In Blackboard Jungle the rock music was used to associate the school with the danger, aimed at an audience of people who believed rock music was the sound of crime and degenerate youth. The film I mentioned before, American Graffiti, uses the exact same track as Blackboard Jungle but is instead aimed at the now grown up youth from the 1950s to create a sense of nostalgia. American Graffiti can, of course, do this with confidence because it was made long after the release of the song and the era. Dazed and Confused performs the exact same task with music from the 1970s. Frith writes, “One of the most obvious consequences of music’s organization of our sense of time is that songs and tunes are often the key to our remembrance of things past” (Frith 142). The people watching the film who have lived through this time period are able to associate themselves with these songs, because
Development and adaptation of the western genre has occurred throughout the twentieth century in relation to the shift in context, this is still relevant. Stereotypes of a western genre and the context are determined by the time in which the film is being produced. The time in which they were produced determine how social construction, gender ideas, values and attitudes, the setting and SWAT codes are demonstrated. I have chosen to present this speech by looking at the film studied in class, and a film of my choice and how the difference in context has changed in the tie of these two films.
This essay is based on films of the same story, told in different ways, with emphasis, themes, meaning and interpretation shaped or shaded by the situation of the storyteller; the cinematic mise-en-scene. Based on the same story, the films reveal and reflect the film-maker’s social norms and views, emerging from their different national contexts. While exploring the two films, this essay will examine elements of film language or semiotics: color saturation (or black and white), sound, setting, type of camera angles used; repetition of visual motifs (Metz, 1985). The two films explored were made in the 1960s. Neither film is American, yet both reveal influences and reflections on American cinema and American power; the Western film, adherence or detracting from Hollywood Classical cinema tropes, i.e. close-ups, shot-reverse-shot, POV, depth of field (Bazin, 1985: 128-9). The two films are Kurasawa’s Yojimbo (1961) and Leone’s Fistful of Dollars (1964), from Japan and Italy, respectively. How are they different; how similar? Why do they use the same plot,
[1] Before I start this essay, I feel the need to remind the reader that I find slavery in all its forms to be an oppressive and terrible institution, and I firmly believe that for centuries (including this one) bigotry is one of the most terrible stains on our civilization. The views I intend to express in the following essay are in no way meant to condone the practices of slavery or racism; they are meant only to evaluate and interpret the construction of slavery in film.
From the very beginning of the early stages in American cinema, African Americans had a presence on the silver screen. The twentieth century created a new era of cinema that consisted of films produced for and targeted to an all-Black audience. “Race films” which existed in the United States for over thirty years (1913-1948), were films produced by African Americans that focused on Black themes and highlighted the talents of African American directors, producers, scriptwriters, and actors.