Reoccurring Themes In Lubitsch's Pre-Code Films

Ever since fourth grade, one of my best friends have been Taylor Elam. Over the years that we’ve been friends we’ve had some jokes. My mom loves Mexican food; Taylor used to not like mexican food very much. Whenever our families would go out to eat, my mom would suggest something mexican. Whenever mexican was suggested by my mom, Taylor would respond “of course Hope wants mexican,” and whenever someone would ask where we were going to eat Taylor would say, “Hope wants mexican!” which we would always laugh about.

The years surrounding the Great Depression and World War II were neither pleasant domestically nor internationally. During the Great Depression, businesses and industries fell rapidly, people became unemployed, and chaos ensued in trying to pick the global economy back up. Like every other industry, the movie industry, albeit a few years later than others, suffered a massive dip. Despite the conditions, however, many Americans still went to see movies, averaging around 60 to 80 million patrons every week. During this time, movies were not necessarily a means of escaping real world problems despite the fact that they did help to keep morale stable. Instead, movies that were produced in this era could be seen more as following a trend of realism, as we saw a rise in criminal, gangster, and scandal movies (Hollywood).

“Some of the features that are to become key elements of the genre are to be found in early silent Westerns from the late 1890s and early 1900s” (Westerns). Since this time, many of the famous films have become household names. For some people, the reason they have been introduced to this film genre is because of their grandparents or parents. For others, they may have a genuine interest to understand this culture that has transformed itself to fit with a new era of time. Although these films have been able to generate great amounts of revenue, they are full of underlying elements that show the cultural issues of that time period. Moreover, some of these elements may not be noticeable to everyone at first, but that is where the satire and parody come into play.

The audience, the industry, and the technology were all very different but what both films where aiming to achieve is very similar. They are trying to bring to life stories about America’s heart and soul using the best visual skill and capabilities they had available to them. They are also one of the stories of Film History. It is the historian’s contention that ‘understanding the past is useful in understanding the present’ (Allan and Gomery, 1985 p6). Indeed, It can be further argued that without the former it is very unlikely we would be enjoying the latter. They are so different visually but they are the same in their goals; depicting a great literal story, through the medium of film.

How does the film shown reflect the time in which it was made, and satirise American stereotypes, views, and society?

and its allies experienced some success in their campaigns. The messages that films portrayed at the time affected the public's viewpoints on war related topics. During the war years, book, theater and movie industries did record business regardless of the shortages in many consumer goods. Movies in this period provided people with an understanding of the war, whether they were about wartime struggles or heroic figures. They also however provided a way for people to get away from the harsh wartime atmosphere and escape the reality of the war. Films were also created to lifting people’s spirits during the war; for example, the films “Lassie Come Home” and “Miracle on 34th Street” were considered as heartwarming that people forget about their troubles. An article posted on AmericanFilmIndustry.com, films such as “Casablanca”, “Once upon a Honeymoon”, and “The Best Years of Our Lives” communicated, and connected American film viewers to the war that was physically distant, yet emotionally imbedded within them. Americans seemed to visit the theaters not to escape, but to connect themselves with the realities of

After reading the article, “The Culmination of Classic Hollywood: Casablanca” written by Robert Ray, it examines the film Casablanca and the way it demonstrates how Americans felt during World War II. The main issues that both the article and the film address are the issues of lifestyles, ambitions, and class divisiveness.

Society as a whole has lost their innocence during the events of the war and the tragedies that they had to endure, but the years following also have a significant impact. Fear, mistrust, despair, and paranoia are all common feelings of the time, due to the Cold War that broke out after World War Two ended, and the ever-present possible annihilation from atomic bombs (Dirks). During this time period, a film style, known as Film Noir, erupted in order to highlight the common moods and themes of the time period, with many of them showing societies current evils, which includes people who were violent, greedy, or misogynistic. True to the time of the post-war era, there was always the underlying theme of moral conflicts, a sense of justice, and purposelessness, which rarely resulted in a satisfying ending, much like the effect that the war had on the world population (Dirks). The decade of the 1940s is one of amazement, it began with a war, and ended with a booming economy and technological advances.

The Roaring Twenties was a time period in which an influx of leisure and individuality freedom ran rampant. Enjoying the fruits of their labor, Americans spent more on recreational activities like the theater, arts and especially the golden screen cinema. The rise of entertainment innovation and technology paved the way for the American film industry. As Hollywood influence proliferated on the global cinematic marketplace; conservative Americans feared the moral implications that movies would inflict on the younger generation. The primary source is of a teenage girl Mary, who shares her experiences of motion pictures as a frequent customer. The source is based on her outlook and beliefs which can be interpreted as bias.

Many films were produced in the World War II era showing how Americans lived during that time. Some of the greatest films were produced in this era, for example, Casablanca. Casablanca was released in 1942, and is one of the greatest war movies in American history. It depicts life during the early stages of the war in a neutral Africa. This film attempts to promote the war and succeeds as propaganda. Casablanca portrayed isolation, sacrifice, and the threat of fascism to American society.

America had just come out of World War I, one of the bloodiest and most violent episodes in this nation's history. After the horror and pain the previous war inflicted, societies were submerged in disillusionment, cultural experimentation, and hedonism. Many Americans came to enjoy the blessings of consumerism and excess. They felt entitled to pleasure and comfort in exchange for their deep emotional scars and the brutal carnage they had just faced.

When discussing American culture, the influence and interplay of film cannot be understated. We are a nation consumed with the media. Today, the movie business is one of the highest grossing businesses there is. We hold movie stars up as though they are super human. We closely watch their style, their dating lives, their party habits, and even their favorite restaurants, among many other things. We rely on movies to lift us up, teach us about other cultures and time periods, and even to teach us about our own culture. Often, movies reflect the time period they are filmed in and directly reflect the social tensions of that time and the film noir genre is no different. One of the most famous film noir movies out there, The Maltese Falcon,

Looking at the socially or culturally history of the United States, many historians use Hollywood films as a primary source. I also used many films such as Easy Rider (1969) or Dance, Girl, Dance (1941) to support my historical thesis paper and to make the topic more vivid by using the images of the film. Even though, some people think that films are accurate and authentic in its depiction, it is important to mention that films are still fictional. Directors and actors are responsible to make us believe their story, but this story does not have to be necessarily true. In that way, fictional films cannot be used as historical evidence in terms of how things looked like during that specific

Dr. Seuss was an amazing author and illustrator. He was also so much more. Dr. Seuss was born March 2, 1904 in Springfield, MA. His parents named him Theodor Seuss Giesel. His mother's name was Henrietta Seuss Giesel. His father's name was Theodor Rober Giesel. Dr. Seuss had one sibling, who was a sister. His sister's name was Marnie Giesel.

Genre is a reflection of society. Film noir is a genre that has a distinctive relationship with the American society from 1941 - 1958 because it reflects America’s fears and concerns from when they experienced major upheaval after The Great Depression and during World War I. In particular, the unstable atmosphere from the aftermath of World War 1 as Bruce Crowther, author of the book ‘Film Noir: Reflections in a Dark Mirror’, elaborates on how Film Noir films produce “a dark quality that derived as much from the character's depiction as from the cinematographer’s art.” These dark moods are transparent through the key features of the femme fatale, the film techniques and the impact of the Hay’s code on American film and American society.