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-   -   Movies that have changed socio-political stances of movies to come (http://cellar.org/showthread.php?t=4443)

HaywardNelson 11-24-2003 09:28 AM

Movies that have changed socio-political stances of movies to come
 
An opinion poll.

Taxi Driver- utter brilliance. I believe it to be the first of its kind to feature a blue-collar loner genius who gets pushed over the edge by the eff-ed up-ed-ness (new word?) of the NYC underbelly.

Pump Up the Volume- I enjoyed this movie as a teenager and will still watch it from time-to-time. Sewn together by influences by Rebel Without a Cause as well as a dable of Holden Caulfield, I believe it to be the first of its kind to feature a lonely teenage malcontent, leading a double life and reaching out to other teenager who are sick of it all.
Besides, it has the first kick-ass soundtrack I had ever heard.

dave 11-24-2003 09:36 AM

When I saw the thread title, I thought "Taxi Driver".

HaywardNelson 11-24-2003 09:41 AM

My, Dave. I do sense a future!

ALSO- Schindler's List. I think it paved the way for movies like the Pianist (which I also enjoyed uber-immensely).

Undertoad 11-24-2003 09:51 AM

And in the complete opposite vein, nobody will be able to address mid-life alienation in suburbia without echoing American Beauty.

HaywardNelson 11-24-2003 09:55 AM

Ooooooh, good one. I got that for Christmas two years ago. Care to discuss?
What did the red symbolize for you? We had a discussion on another msg board re: this.
To me I saw it as hope. Like the Birnham house has the red door and red roses and Mena Suvari's character always spew-ed rose petals while the Fitz house had no red symbolizing a sense of hopelessness.
What did you think?

wolf 11-24-2003 09:59 AM

You pups.

Movies do not change society, but society changes movies as well as any form of storytelling, whether the fire lights the speakers face in haunting ways, or shines through the celluloid to put the image on the screen.

Midnight Cowboy

To Sir, with Love

Blackboard Jungle

The Defiant Ones

I Want to Live

(and to get briefly more recent ... one of my favorites: Falling Down)

These are just a couple meager examples of older movies that really speak to societal change. In fact nearly every movie carries with it some aspect of this (yes, even those lame-ass costume dramas that get shown frequently on the Turner Classic Movies).

Undertoad 11-24-2003 10:04 AM

I'm not generally that visually oriented. But now that you mention it, the color scheme of the Fitz house was all dark and brooding... and the red repeats itself all over, right up until the end - can't miss that particular red.

dave 11-24-2003 10:11 AM

Er, wolf, she said "of movies to come". You know. Like. Opened new doors for future movies. :P

wolf 11-24-2003 10:19 AM

Oh. I see.

Well the list I posted STILL covers that aspect. Those are some groundbreaking movies there, that DID change moviemaking (and made films like Taxi Driver possible).

dave 11-24-2003 10:20 AM

I agree. Midnight Cowboy is on my list too. That, and "Dude, Where's My Car?"

HaywardNelson 11-24-2003 10:35 AM

We are not dudes. We are hot chicks with large breasts.

haha, couldn't resist.

Whit 11-24-2003 02:28 PM

      How 'bout "Blade Runner"? First dark future movie I remember being, well, filthy. Till then the future was always a clean place. Also, how many movies have had those jets of flame shooting up into the sky since?

      Hate to list two Harrison Ford movies but... Raiders of the Lost Ark. First hero without a clue. Indy never had a plan. Hell, a few years earlier even Luke Skywalker had a plan, all the time. Heros changed overnight. Now only leader types have plans, even then not always.

warch 11-24-2003 05:15 PM

Red has so many meanings: blood, rage, vitality, passion, heat, sex, life itself, that richness is whats so great. add the rose imagery: love, beauty, softness, sharpness, danger, pain, duality, and its very evocative.

"Welcome to the Dollhouse". some movies are a little too real.

greenian 11-24-2003 05:19 PM

this may be a bit obvious, but citizen kane. I'd say it was the start of a number of trends in social comment.

and I'd throw Dr. Strangelove in there as well

insoluble 11-24-2003 10:06 PM

what has come along as cool as Dr. Strangelove in the same vein since?

serial killer murder slasher stuff -
How about Dario Argento stuff - paved the way for the Scream - esque tripe that passes for horror these days.

Pump up the Volume rocked - it has one of the best kissing scenes I have ever seen - their first kiss at school with people walking by and the camera moving erratically - really brought across that nervous sorta first kiss feeling.

richlevy 11-24-2003 11:03 PM

Actually, the best socio-political movies were made in the 30's and 40's, before being a liberal in the movie business was a quick ticket to appear in front of a committee.

I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932)
Grapes of Wrath, The (1940)
Of Mice and Men (1939)

Aw heck, why not just list every movie based on a Steinbeck novel. There was also the "Dead End Kids", who played a gang of street kids to America's conscience before they took up slapstick as "The Bowery Boys". Their original movie was from a play by Lillian Hellman, who was a radical liberal.

I think the years after the Depression left a lot of people wondering what went wrong and how it could be fixed. Beside the pure entertainment were a lot of movies with a social conscience. I don't think any movie decade after WWII had these kinds of soul-searching movies about money, ambition, and social justice.

That might be the reason McCarthy was so afraid of them.

Elspode 11-24-2003 11:18 PM

Anything by Sam Peckenpah is the direct progenitor of any of Quentin Tarantino's works, and I would even deem Sam the grandpapa of the graphic slasher films of today. Once people like Wes Craven saw Sam's early splatter jobs, the door was opened for more and more of it. On the other hand, "Psycho" probably opened the door as well. Even though its horror was implied (although in an obvious way), it was still a step up from previous efforts of horror and suspense.

For my money, this wasn't a good thing at all, because I prefer my suspense to be, well, suspenseful.

wolf 11-25-2003 12:48 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Whit
      How 'bout "Blade Runner"? First dark future movie I remember being, well, filthy. Till then the future was always a clean place. Also, how many movies have had those jets of flame shooting up into the sky since?
Pretty much every movie made by Ridley Scott, actually. Watch Bladerunner. Then watch Black Rain. VERY similar cinematography.

And the gritty future thing kinda started, IMHO, with Soylent Green.

Beestie 11-25-2003 07:29 AM

I would add Clockwork Orange to the list.

A villain who's only motivation is the joy of being a villain.

Chewbaccus 11-25-2003 09:50 AM

American History X.

HOW this thread went two pages without AHX being mentioned frightens and confuses me. For shame.

HaywardNelson 11-25-2003 12:35 PM

I think Romper Stomper came before AHX though. I really enjoyed both.

HaywardNelson 11-25-2003 12:36 PM

Did Deliverance pave the way for male-on-male rape scenes a la Pulp Fiction?
Either way, both made me feel ill.

dave 11-25-2003 01:06 PM

Now let's you just drop them pants.

SouthOfNoNorth 11-25-2003 02:05 PM

Forbidden Planet.

from what i understand, that had a big impact on science fiction. a great movie, as well.

Elspode 11-25-2003 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Beestie
I would add Clockwork Orange to the list.

A villain who's only motivation is the joy of being a villain.

If you read the book, you tend to get more of the idea that Alex is actually the victim, rather than the villain.

dave 11-25-2003 06:05 PM

But that's really just making excuses for him.


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