POL-128 (Fall2024)

Final Exam Review

Definition of Superheroes

Peter Coogen Core Aspects: Mission, powers, identity

“The superhero is the protector of the weak and defender of truth, justice,
and righteousness and he shields the common man from the doers of evil.
The superhero is different from the common man.”

Story of heroes

First hero superman 1938

creation reflected era’s concerns the Great
Depression, the rise of fascism in Europe, and concerns about
social inequality

Fredric Jameson

(1981) posits that a 'political unconscious' underlie narrative
structures in this genre. Analysis reveals political contradictions at the discursive level, particularly in
the use of metaphor and metonymy.
• These contradictions are reflective of and related to contemporary political
issues in capitalism

Archetypes

Villains and heroes have a deep connection and have abilities beyond the normal human.

Joker

Created in 40s, meant to be a psycopath but commonaly associated with mental illnesses

Women Portrayal

sexualization of female characters over personality/story arcs

narrow range of roles/portrayed as victims and valued for thier appearance

Men Portrayal

Depicted as protectors, strong, resilient

Black Discrimination

Portrayed as aggressive/face societal acceptance

Roles dependent on white mc’s

HYDRA

German org. representing the fight against Nazi’s and the Red star as reference to the Cold War.

Names From Winter Soldier

Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanhoff, Nick Fury, Bucky Barnes, Alexander Pierce

Ideologeme

Single unit of an ideology

Contradictions between metaphors/metonymies

Ideologeme: Society

Social order, attain peace at a cost.

Ideologeme: Individual

Moral category, acheive freedom for themselves/society

Mr Smith Washington (Frank Capra)

Democracy in action, faith in one man smith an everyman, easily manipulated public faith

The Washington d.c. government is corrupt/self gain

Capras Message

“Problem caused by bad men, not the faults of the system/institutions, can be fixed by good men supported by the people”

1940s Films

Support the nation to motivate citizens in times of war

Citizen Kane

Showed the power of press/corruption, pursuit of power/control

MC, Charles Foster Kane threatened by Boss Jim Geddes (the machine” about his affairs, lost everything

Based on a Man named Hearst

Casablanca 4 Main Characters (1942, Michael Curtis)

The Captain, Renault - attempts to please Nazi Major

Victor Laslzo - Czech underground leader detained by Renault

Rick Blaine - exiles american freedom fighter runs Ricks Cafe

Ilsa - Ricks lover who they away together with the stolen transit letters

Frank Capra

1930s, Americas leading film maker

Films offered Hope

Rags to riches life

Propaganda

Manipulate/deceive the public of existing trends

Appeal to public desires, a symbol, repition of an exaggerated idea

Propoganda Misconeptions

1 - only a form of persuasion, it also pushes exiting beliefs/reinforces them

2 - only lies/falsehoods, it uses varying truths altering them from its original context

Propaganda Ministries

Nazi Germany - Ministry of Popular enlightenment and propaganda

Soviets - Propaganda committee of the communist party

Britain - Ministry of information

United States - Office of War

In peacetime Britain view = political hazard/moral impropriety

Triumph of the Will (Leni Riefenstahl, 1935)

Showcases Hitler and the fascism ideology, everything is massive and all praise Hitler

Richard Taylor

Nazi - innate racial superiority

Soviets - scientific analysis economic class conflict

“works of art and by the fact that
they have helped to shape the histories of
their respective countries and to carry the
image of those countries abroad” - basically meaning they used films to spread their belief systems

Propoganda Definitions

Driencourts - everything propaganda

Doobs - Controlled through suggestion

Mackenzie - Attempt to influence others beliefs

Qualter - control through instruments of communication

Propgandist - actor

Propgation - action

Propganda - influence

Weapons of Use

Words

Symbols

Broadsheet

Emotions

Non-controversial

Communication channels

Cinema Benefits

-medium of communication

-attract social classes

Hidden Elements

Origins/sources

Interests involved

Methods

Content Spread

Results

John Grierson National Film Board

White dominant

Shameless & Japanese Decent examples of discrimination to non-whites

Political Documentaries

Grierson Definition - “creative treatment of actuality” basically meaning the medium of which interpret creatively/social terms the life of the people as it exists in reality

Intro to Documentary (Bill Nichols)

Fiction - worlds to explore

Documentary - social representation

Ways to represent:

-likeness/familiarity

-representing

-interpretation

Film Maker Ethics

-dont know people but know situation, risk exploitation

-observe without intervene, risk tampering

-familiar to people, risk perspective/critique distance

Informed consent:

-inform risks to subjects

-inform depth/privacy/intentions to be revealed

Direct Cinema

recording events as how they are without intervention by the camera/film maker (observational)

camera simply follows with no intervention as it does not exist

Cinema Verite

combine stylized cinematic devices of editing/camerawork, stages, use of camera (provocative stance)

interacts

characters

cutting style

documentary of encounter

Michel Brault Quote

“We can't think we're creating truth with a camera. But what we can do is reveal something to viewers that allows them to discover their own truth”

Errol Morris

The thin blue line (1988)

-used traditional documentary interviews/staged scenes

-film led question the official story of murder

-the “official story” is not to be always trusted

Golden Age

1960s-1970s, tell stories to profit in entertaining ways

2011, 300+ were documentaries

Recent documentaries build narratives around investigations and topics mostly ignored

Manchurian Candidate (1962, John Frankenheimer)

-Major Bennett Korean war veteran mc

-Raymond Shaw programmed as an assassin activated to psychological triggers (Manchurian candidate)

-cold war anxieties/paranoia

-brainwashing as a political weapon hidden manipulation in American institutions (could be anyone)

-helped towards emergence of political thriller

-fear of authoritarianism, mother of Raymond shaw symbolized this control

Easy Rider (1969)

Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda

-live free in the united states

-individual identity and freedom

-reject conventional American styles

-critique consumer driven values

-use of drugs

-against the norm of locals

-destructive tendencies to the different

-Cold War critique freedom vs oppression

John F. Kennedy

youngest president of us

helped liberalize the nation/civil rights movement

Race and Racism

social change in 1960s, race subjects popular for films, blackpride movement helped bring these films back

Native Americans

1960s improved portrayals of natives, 1950s broken arrow, Cheyenne autumn helped too, etc.

Political Thriller

1960s, high political content but more to entertain than educate reflected current time issues

Dr. Strange Love

-portrays the cold war and nuclear arms race critique these drastic attitudes of dropping a bomb leading to a nuclear apocalypse, and the power of who actually in control

-poor military relations between Kennedy and Us air force

The Candidate (1972, Michael Ritchie)

Bill McKay has no interest in politics, they sell Mckays image to the public, depicted media manipulation and empty promises of candidates

“what do we do now?” now that he has won

Critics = satirical look at the political scene

Godfather

-Vito’s story and Michaels of protecting the Corleone family corrupted by pursuit to power

-murder takes place and the mob hides this in exchange for senators loyalty

-connections of the mob and corrupt government

Parallax View (1974, Alan J. Pakula)

-the reporters of a assassinated senator go missing (referenced jfk)

-conspiracy of the parallax corporation

-he invades the corporation to find the truth

-most paranoid film 1970s fear of being silenced

-portrayed cinema with modernistic architecture, dimly lit, and labyrinth interiors

-conditioned human violence through mc Frady’s test with disturbing images, implying films a medium in changing perceptions of the world

All the President’s Men (1976, Alan J. Pakula)

-infamous water gate scandal

-Nixon administration corruption to sabotage Democratic national committee during the election campaign

-Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein find the truth

-uncover government corruption

Movies and Political Trauma

1974 films notable showing malfeasance and corruption in high levels as well political assassination

Disillusionment

1970s disappointment with corrupt nature of politics

moods of the times through the films remind challenges faced by those in those times who wanted change

Post-Nixon

Despite resign of Nixon and Gerald Ford social injustices remained showing pervasive nature of these issues in society

Hollywood and Vietnam

After fall of Saigon in 1975 election Carter in 1976, shed light on issues of American involvement and things loss from war. The devastating trauma and impact of the Vietnam war on the US.

Typewriter Revealing the Truth

Ending scene of All presidents mens, guns salute Nixons inauguration but over sounded by the sound of typewriter reporting the convictions of the presidents men. Showing the truth exposed by two journalists and the power of the truth to take them down.