Hollywood Films And The Civil Rights Movement Essay

Contemporary American movies reflect on racial issues in American history and strive to present the latter as a negative experience of the nation. In this respect, Hollywood is a leading film studio that shoots films about racism prior to the Civil Rights Movement and after it. Both the manner in which most black characters are portrayed in Hollywood films and ideas conveyed by the latter suggest that Hollywood’s approach to racism is ultimately negative. However, Hollywood films shot in more recent times and Hollywood’s attitude to non-white actors speak about the film studios’ hypocritical approach to racism, as Hollywood’s activities indirectly promote racist ideologies spreading in the US film industry. Hollywood’s hypocritical approach to racism is proved by movie characters’ whitening, the white default option, the Oscars’ whitewashing, and films’ racist depiction of other races. Yet, in the second half of the 20th century when the Civil Rights Movement worked on the white majority’s reconsideration of racist perception of the black population, Hollywood shot films that vividly advocated for the end of racial prejudices in the US society. For example, Norman Jewison’s In the Heat of the Night is the 1967 movie that narrates the story of Virgil Tibbs, a black detective from Pennsylvania, who faces racial prejudices of the police colleagues in Sparta, Mississippi. In particular, Police Chief Bill Gillespie wants to arrest Virgil Tibbs to pin the murder of PhillipShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Blaxploitation Films : A New Step For The Hollywood Film Industry From 1968 Till1623 Words   |  7 Pagesconceptual incongruity in Blaxploitation films concerning the shaping and portrayal of the female character exemplified in the works of Pam Grier. A new step for the Hollywood film industry from 1968 till nowadays is the creation of the MPAA film rating system. Ever since the erasure of the production code of the Classic Hollywood era, and filmmakers’ realisation that they do not need the seal of approval, it has become possible to show or tell anything on screen. Film genres like horror for examples thrivedRead MoreThe Black And White Cultures1298 Words   |  6 Pagesnot â€Å"A list thespians or Emmy award winning talent† in white Hollywood like it is currently. Thus, for broadness, to get a real link with the aspects of Blacks in Hollywood sixty years ago, we have to get in depth with reasonable detail. Michael Roemer’s, film Nothing but Man, embarks on a true masterpiece that seizes the rage of African Americans mindfulness in the robust intolerance and prejudice in the rural south. At the time this film was produced and filmed there were numerous factors that eradicatedRead MoreAmerica s Social Climate : The Melting Pot1680 Words   |  7 Pageshas enlightened my view of conditions and how films discreetly reinforce the stereotypes and class structures to maintain a particular ideology. For this reason, I chose to view the movie The Help because it is considered to promote the ideology of empowering black women during the tumultuous and dangerous 1960s civil rights movement in a volatile Jackson, Mississippi. While the movie delivers a powerful and intriguing theme, the reality is that Hollywood has yet again provided the Eurocentric viewRead MoreRace As A Social Construct1057 Words   |  5 Pagesracial category. Shadism and Racism are both a large part in Hollywood and the casting process. There has been a recent concentration online on institutional racism in Hollywood; social media movements have brought attention towards, the casting process and the lack of diversity at the Oscars. The persistent snubbing of people of colour (POC) in Hollywood is being recognised. However, has this changed the representation of POC in films? The upcoming biography, drama, Nina (2016) has been the centreRead MoreEvolution Of Racist Portrayals Of Film And Television1644 Words   |  7 Pages Prof. Eye. EN 101B November 27, 2014 Evolution of Racist Portrayals in Film and Television. The most common, if not one of the most common methods the morals and perceptions of American society are shaped is through our own storytellers in Hollywood. Filmmakers, writers, and producers for both cinema and television make it their career to create works that tell a compelling story. On occasion, American Society will be reflected in these works, which raises the question: do the works influence societyRead MoreThe Effects Of Black Stereotypes On Mass Media1884 Words   |  8 Pagesin the filmmaking process that depicts this racial enigma. Black Stereotypes in film have always been rooted in films since cinema’s genesis but for this research, I will be focusing on Classical Hollywood era leading into Blaxploitation movement. 2 Thomas Cripps, author of Making Movies Black: The Hollywood Message Movie from World War II to the Civil Rights era, claims that trendy entertainments in addition to films facilitated conversion in our viewpoints concerning race within America. The massRead MorePerpetuating Values Of Racism : As Seen On The Silver Screen1319 Words   |  6 Pagesdollars in 2015 (Child). The Hollywood film industry is a highly lucrative business that seemingly offers something for everyone: romance, thriller, tragedy, fantasy, comedy, action, and so much more. However, the industry has an extensive history of favoring the white, straight male, which leaves minorities to feel wrongly represented. Hollywood films do integrate different races, but there remains to be one constant; the white race. While it may seem as if the film industry has come a long wayRead MoreTechnological Advancements And Its Impact On The Modern World1092 Words   |  5 Pagesdirectors making it big, a analysis of these directo rs will come across strikingly uniform. An overwhelming majority of these filmmakers are straight white men, which has been the industry norm in Hollywood since it’s inception of the film industry. In a way smaller bunch hanging out in the outskirts of Hollywood we find our black filmmakers. Exceptions to the norm from the past such as Oscar Micheaux, Melvin Van Peebles to more recent examples such as Spike Lee and Tyler Perry. These men worked longRead MoreThe Civil Rights Achievements Of The Famous African American Actor, Canada Lee1333 Words   |  6 Pages This autobiographical analysis will define the civil rights achievements of the famous African American actor, Canada Lee. Lee’s background as a jockey, boxer, and a musician would set the stage for a major acting career in theater and in Hollywood. More importantly, Lee would use his fame as an actor to promote racial equality through the support of Hollywood magnates, such as Orson Wells, and through the thea trical/literary guidance of Langston Hughes. Lee would be become known for his role inRead MoreExperimental Cinem The Experimental Film Movement1453 Words   |  6 Pagesbeginning of film filmmakers were using the platform to tell people stories, so that people could go be entertained and lose themselves in the experience of seeing the film. Though this form of filmmaking was entertaining for most people, some filmmakers wanted to break this tradition and expand filmmaking into a completely different way. Instead of making the same old narrative films, like classical Hollywood, they want to make more abstract and complex films, they wanted to make films as more of