The Struggle Of The World War II On The Film ' The Owl / Hollywood Vision '

It was estimated that by the late teens of the 20th century, Zukor held 75% of the best talent in the filmmaking business. I was baffled by this statistic when I read it. For one studio to hold ¾’s of the best talent in the industry is nearly a monopoly. Another thing I found interesting was that Fox worked on 70 mm wide-screen techniques. This was thought provoking to me because this summer I saw the film Dunkirk, and my friends and I saw it with the 70 mm wide-screen edition. I had never seen a movie with this wide-screen 70 mm and it was definitely different from a regular screen. Another thing that caught my attention was the connection between film and politics. I was interested to learn that MGM used a film to bring down Upton Sinclair as he was running for office. I was also shocked to read that Charlie Chaplin was not let into the United States because of his progressive political views. I was baffled that a man that was once called the “king of comedy” in the United States was denied entry because of his political

This paper was prepared for Introduction to Film History, Module 1 Homework Assignment, taught by Professor Stephanie Sandifer.

When America entered into the Second World War it made their friends from different region and everywhere in the world to unite and fight for freedom and also fight against fascism. Ronald Takaki, a famous historian finds out that the armed fight for democracy abroad was followed by disregard of America that everyone was made or created equal. There was racism of all kinds; segregation of African Americans and imprisonment of Japanese Americans and also denying to overall asylum to the Jewish refugees.

A great change came during WW1 and WW2. War images were not the only way war was portrayed, but motion pictures also came along. The motion pictures gave a whole new perspective on war to the American people. Thus, by seeing this influence, many powerful leaders saw an advantage. They saw, “the tremendous potential of movies for propaganda and

After World War II, the American psyche became permanently stained with new ideas. During this time period, the American government actively sought to change the way the American people thought. The support of the American public was crucial to the success of the war effort. Many ideas introduced during this point of time consisted of new roles of certain people groups in American society. Women and minority groups would prove themselves in the workplace, millions of citizens would be discriminated against, and social barriers would be broken and assembled. Even though World War II took place in Europe and the Pacific, it made lasting social changes that can still be seen in America.

The 1930s were a difficult time for most Americans. Faced with colossal economic hardships—unprecedented in American history—many Americans turned inward to focus on the worsening situation at home. The United States became increasingly insensitive to the obliteration of fellow democracies at the hands of brutal fascist leaders like Hitler and Mussolini. The U.S. was determined to stay out of war at all costs—even if its allies were in trouble; Americans believed that they were immune from Europe’s problems as long as they refused to get involved. However, as the “free” countries fell, one by one, to the Nazi war machine, Americans began to realize the folly of their foolish optimism and clamored for increasing involvement in foreign

The American home front during World War II is recalled warmly in popular memory and cultural myth as a time of unprecedented national unity, years in which Americans stuck together in common cause. World War II brought many new ideas and changes to American life. Even though World War II brought no physical destruction to the United States mainland, it did affect American society. Every aspect of American life was altered by U.S. involvement in the war including demographics, the labor force, economics and cultural trends.

In his book The Best War Ever: America and World War II, Michael Adams tries to dissolve the many misconceptions of World War II. As the title of the book implies, The United States left the war with a great optimistic view of the these “glorious” five years. The United States as a population had been tricked into believing in the, at times, fabricated conditions of its history that had been presented to people as some beautiful stories and myths where nations are viewed as being first-rate in union and morality. These so-called myths were created out of several factors. Because of Hollywood, the vast amounts of government propaganda, and far-reaching economic prosperity, Americans were, for the most part, hidden from the real truth of The Second World War. In this period of time, even, the generation of the Second World War is seen as being top-notch in morality and unity. There was a popular misconception held that there were no problems in terms of ethnicity or gender; it seemed that families were living contented lives and children excelled in school and read all kinds of books (115).

The first movie that I have selected for this assignment is Gallipoli. The story begins in Australia and revolves around a few young men who join the army and then find their way in the World War I battle at the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey. The second film selected by me is ‘Letters from Iwo Jima’. It is a story about men who were the part of the Japanese defence of island ‘Iwo Jima’ against the US attack in World War II. The stories are set decades apart at different times and in very different cultures and yet it can be argued that they have very inherently similar tales with strands glory, a bloody struggle and an end of many precious lives all intertwined to showcase the bitter reality of wars.

“Ads implied that if you bought a war bond your sacrifice was on par with that of the man in the front lines.” (74) The US government and industry played on Americans’ sense of patriotism in order to get them to support the war or buy their products. However, “Advertising had inherent problems as an educational tool. It is by nature emotional, rather than intellectual; it sells feelings rather than ideas.” (73) Government propaganda and business advertising were not the only factors in forming the inaccurate myth of the Second World War. Hollywood made films where “people get blown up with their clothes and fall gracefully to the ground” (100). Through the realism of motion pictures, such as 1998’s ‘Saving Private Ryan’ and 2001’s ‘Pearl Harbor’, Americans were falsely led to believe in a glorified war.

“Hostilities exist. There is no blinking at the fact that our people, our territory and our interests are in grave danger. With confidence in our armed forces, with the unbounding determination of our people, we will gain the inevitable triumph, so help us God.”(Bowen). World War II was a start to a new beginning of what America has become from the impact of the war. Chaos across countries brought hope to America, in the sense that the people of America are coming together in a situation of multiple countries fighting. World War Two brought many positive impacts to the lives of women, the economy, and the lives of African Americans.

World War II (WWII) had an immense effect on the United States; culturally, economically, and industrially. Although no battles were fought on American soil, the war affected all phases of American life. Among the infinite of changes experienced by Americans during this time, there was a big shift in the industrial complex, a re-imagining of the role of women in society, and economic boost. Social shifts began to shape a new national identity which would change the country forever.

The Second World War was one of the most terrifying events in the world’s history. The U.S.A fights back like never before against Italy, Japan and Germany. Previously the WWII by the 1930’s America was completely poor and lost. By entering in the War, The U.S. becomes a superpower in just four years. The disruption of World War II arouses the mobilization of American industrial and in the military section. The preparation for the battle and the mobilization of the War was a complete success; purpose and determination led the U.S.A to win the WWII.

“The effective war film is often the one in which the action begins after the war, when there is nothing but ruins and desolation everywhere…”

To fully comprehend why and how this cinematic motion took place, it is valuable here to establish the wider social climate of France at the time, and the active forces which heavily shaped New Wave cinema. Between the years of 1945 and 1975, France would undergo “thirty glorious years” of economic growth, urbanization, and a considerable baby boom, all of which came to expand and radically alter the parameters of French culture (Haine 33). Beneath the surface affluence however, France was in a state of deep self-evaluation and consciousness. Following WW11, the