Movies and

Society
Society was local and
parochial
Society became more
homogenous
Movies reflect the
makers society
Early Days
Birth of a Nation - 1915
KKK in Wash., DC 1925
Mutual Film Corporation v.
Industrial Commission of
Ohio
236 U.S. 230 (1915)
State of Ohio passed a law forming a
censorship board to review and
approve all films
Supreme Court declared that movies
were a business, not an art, and thus
not protected by the First Amendment
Wrote They may be used for evil
Intolerance - 1916
Ben Hur
 1920s

Post-World War I
A period of cynicism and
breaking with traditions
following the great
upheavals in society
caused by World War I.
 Movies used more and
more of what put butts in
the seats
sex and violence
Manslaughter 1922
orgy scene
Battleship Potemkin
1925
Metropolis 1927
 1930s

The Great
Depression
 Movies created a sense of
community
People would go to the movies on a
regular basis, usually once a week
Movies catered to their regulars
Door prizes like a set of dishes
Sing-alongs

Community announcements
 A full evening of
entertainment
A cartoon
A newsreel
A short subject, like a travelogue or
a comedy short
A movie, sometimes two
Palaces of Entertainment
 Movies as morale
builders
Upbeat and
optimistic
musicals
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
1936
Wizard of Oz 1939
Frankenstein 1931
King Kong 1933
Gone with the Wind
1939
As a backlash against the
openness of the Roaring
Twenties, many people in
society insisted on
censorship
Look at these
costumes
Tarzan and His Mate -
1932
Look at these
costumes
Or lack thereof
 The Hays Office
Started in 1930
Run by Will H. Hays
Set standards for movies
Adopted from a list devised by Father
Daniel Lord, a Jesuit priest
Had no effective enforcement
 Hays 3 Principles
1. No picture shall be produced that
will lower the moral standards of
those who see it. Hence the
sympathy of the audience should
never be thrown to the side of crime,
wrongdoing, evil or sin
2. Correct standards of life, subject only
to the requirements of drama and
entertainment, shall be presented.
3. Law, natural or human, shall not be
ridiculed, nor shall sympathy be
created for its violation.

This was followed with specific

restrictions
 Restrictions
Nakedness and suggestive dances were
prohibited.
The ridicule of religion was forbidden, and
ministers of religion were not to be
represented as comic characters or
villains.
The depiction of illegal drug use was
forbidden, as well as the use of liquor,
"when not required by the plot or for
proper characterization."
 Methods of crime (e.g. safe-cracking,
arson, smuggling) were not to be explicitly
presented.
References to alleged sex perversion (such
as homosexuality) and venereal disease
were forbidden, as were depictions of
childbirth.
The language section banned various
words and phrases that were considered to
be offensive.
 Murder scenes had to be filmed in a way
that would discourage imitations in real
life, and brutal killings could not be shown
in detail. "Revenge in modern times" was
not to be justified.
The sanctity of marriage and the home had
to be upheld. "Pictures shall not imply that
low forms of sex relationship are the
accepted or common thing." Adultery and
illicit sex, although recognized as
sometimes necessary to the plot, could not
be explicit or justified and were not
supposed to be presented as an attractive
option.
 Portrayals of miscegenation were forbidden.
"Scenes of Passion" were not to be
introduced when not essential to the plot.
"Excessive and lustful kissing" was to be
avoided, along with any other treatment
that might "stimulate the lower and baser
element."
The flag of the United States was to be
treated respectfully, and the people and
history of other nations were to be
presented "fairly."
 The treatment of "Vulgarity," defined
as "low, disgusting, unpleasant,
though not necessarily evil, subjects"
must be "subject to the dictates of
good taste." Capital punishment,
third degree methods, cruelty to
children and animals, prostitution
and surgical operations were to be
handled with similar sensitivity.
Destry Rides Again
 Look at the Tarzan
costumes now after the
Hays Office got involved
Harold and Kumar
1940s
War Propaganda
Joseph Goebbels
Leni Riefenstahl with
Hitler
Triumph of the Will
Der Ewvige Jude
Der Ewige Jude
Wherever rats
appear they
bring ruin, by
destroying
mankind's
goods and
foodstuffs.
 They are cunning,
cowardly, and cruel,
and are found
mostly in large
packs. Among the
animals, they
represent the
rudiment of an
insidious and
underground
destruction -
-just like the
Jews among
human
beings.
War Cartoon
Wake Island 1942
Destination: Tokyo
1943
Wake Island final scene
Gung Ho 1943
Casablanca 1942
Mrs. Miniver 1942
Since You Went Away
1943
Its A Wonderful Life
1946
Best Years of Our Lives
1946
1950s
The Wild One 1953
Rebel Without a Cause
1955
The Blackboard Jungle
1955
12 Angry Men
Giant 1955
Day the Earth Stood Still
1951
Them - 1954
 Joseph Burstyn, Inc. vs.
Wilson, 1952
Supreme Court decision overturning
Mutual v. Ohio that allowed the
censorship of movies because they
were a business, not an art form, and
they could be used for evil.
This case determined that movies,
even if a business, are a form of
artistic expression and thus entitled
to First Amendment protection.
 Jacobellis v. Ohio, 1964
Ohio tried to ban the film The
Lovers for obscenity
Supreme Court ruled it wasnt
obscene
Only hard-core pornography was
obscene
Court couldnt define obscenity
Tarzan the Ape Man
1960s
To Kill a Mockingbird -
1962
In the Heat of the Night -
1967
Dr. Strangelove: or, How I
Learned to Stop Worrying
and Love the Bomb
The Graduate - 1967
Bob and Carol and Ted
and Alice
Easy Rider - 1969
1970s
All the Presidents Men
1976
The Godfather 1972
American Graffiti - 1973
Jaws 1975
Star Wars - 1977
1980s
16 Candles
A Nightmare on Elm
Street
 Die Hard /
Raiders of the Lost Ark
The Green Berets 1968
Platoon Full
Metal Jacket
Young Sherlock Holmes
1985
1990s
 Schindlers List /
Saving Private Ryan
Apollo 13
Dances with Wolves
JFK
Braveheart / Armageddon /
Jurassic Park
Titanic
Snow White and the Seven
Dwarfs
Beauty and the Beast
2000s
Lord of the Rings
Harry Potter
The Dark Knight /
Spiderman
Transformers
Pirates of the Caribbean
The Matrix