Update

I forgot to update this last week. I'm really not the blogging type.

Last week I did a bunch of research and typed out any information that I thought might be the least bit helpful and put it in some coherent order and turned it in. I have yet to do a bit of research on the history of cinema, although, really, I know everything I just need to get dates and terms down. And I have to watch Singin' in the Rain again... probably a few times to do my Lester analysis. Then once all that's done, I'll be pretty close to done.

I wish I could find better sources that tell me exactly what I want to know. I have read every article pertaining to my topic that I could find online. And I found a lot of good information, but I wish it was easier and more exact to my case. Because as of now, I am looking for specific information to piece my paper together now that I have the general body.

So that's what's going on here...

Morality and the Production Code

I ILLd a very interesting book about Morality and Catholics.

It's got a lot of interesting information and has actually caught my attention, which is a rarity. I don't like forced reading, and this doesn't seem forced. So win win.

Black, Gregory D. "Restricting Entertainment: The Movies Censored." Hollywood Censored: Morality Codes, Catholics, and the Movies. Cambridge [England: Cambridge UP, 1996. 3-20. Print.

In the first chapter of Gregory Black’s book, the unease of the people as movies were introduced into society is discussed. He opened the chapter with the following quote from Rev. Wilbur Crafts: “‘Movies are schools of vice and crime... offering trips to hell for [a] nickle’” (3). Black discusses the ways that movies were forced to stay away from dealing frankly and honestly with life due to rigid state, local, and even studio censors. Making movies was a business, not an art, and if the people wanted censors, studios would have to adapt (5). After much struggling with Ohio’s censorship laws, the Mutual Film Corporation went to the Supreme Court trying to gain first amendment rights for films (15). However, the Supreme Court decided that movies were not protected under the first amendment, as they were a business - not an organ of public opinion - and could be used for evil (16). This decision would shape the way movies were made for the next four decades (20).

I feel a lot better about where my paper is going. I haven't read the comments on my last draft yet, because I can pretty much figure out what they're going to say. I wish I had more time to research before my next draft is due, but I guess I'll see what I can pull together. 

Post I Forgot About

Well I forgot to do my post last week since I turned in my annotated bibliography in early. It threw me off. But better late than never, I suppose.

Meerse, David E. "To Reassure a Nation: Hollywood Presents World War II." Film & History 6.4 (1976): 79-98. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 31 Mar. 2011.

This article discusses Hollywood’s involvement in creating war-themed movies during the second World War. Neese comments on the seven types of films that Hollywood produced, which include war information films, newsreels, training films, films for combat areas, United Nations films, Good Neighbor films, and staged “war” films (80). He also talks about what the public liked and disliked. Many were critical of Hollywood’s films that emphasized superhuman American soldiers and, at the same time, were also critical of Hollywood’s failure to portray the incredible feats that soldiers were achieving (83). Finally, audiences were dismayed that Hollywood could not create timely films. In response, Hollywood focused on creating timeless films that portrayed American soldiers on a more personal and ethical level (86). The war films portrayed Americans with strong character who could find time to celebrate Christmas in the midst of war, and ignored any negative, lasting changes in character (89). Meerse closes the article with the following quote from Judith Christ: “‘the films of World War II will tell us relatively little about that long-ago conflict. But they do tell us much concerning the beliefs of the American people about the impact of that event upon American society, and at Hollywood’s efforts to reassure the nation’” (90).

I read an article about war time films. The more and more that I read, I realize that there is a lot to look at in terms of audience perception of films. I still want to cap my paper off with analysis of musicals, but I think a lot of my research is going to have to be very generalized. I know that I want my paper to entail a rough history of movies and sound, how the studio system worked, audience perception and influence, the production code and morality issues, race, gender, and sex stereotypes, and an integrated musical analysis using Lester. So that's where this is going...