Historically, censorship policies have impacted the production of war imagery in films during explicit conflict, especially in the United States. It dictated the amount of films produced, how they were produced, and where the films were distributed. Not only did it affect film, but it also affected photography and information the press released to the public. These censorship policies in the United States, furthermore, affected the film industry during both the Second World War and the Vietnam War; however, their impact produced drastically different results. In one, censorship policies produced a polished war narrative in film—one which reflected an exaggerated version of the heroism of the American soldier and reassured the public that war
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Narrative war films are no different. The Second World War and the Vietnam War provide an interesting progression of narrative war film production, or lack of it going into the seventies. The Second World War still retains its notoriety as the—although now contested—“Last Good War” of the twentieth century, and the burgeoning film industry and its relationship to propaganda in film attests to this title. Films produced during the Second World War provided audiences with romanticized interpretations of the war efforts when depicting warfare imagery. In comparison, the Vietnam War held no such status with the public in the United States during the 1960s and 70s—the war proved widely unpopular as time dragged on, the death toll in regards to American soldiers climbing higher with each consecutive year. The stark differences between the public’s perceptions of the Second World War versus the Vietnam War do not stop there. Censorship policies also drastically differed, changing the game as the influx of information coming in from the front in Vietnam reached the United States. Interestingly enough, the lack of censorship policies during the Vietnam War did not, one would assume, lead to an increase in narrative war films—instead, Hollywood remained relatively …show more content…
Scholars such as George H. Roeder and Birgit Streich highlight the role of the government in relation to those images of warfare through photography and film respectively. They argue governmental regulation of warfare imagery in either medium helped improve public opinion about the Second World War. In particular, Roeder argues that censorship policies during World War II affected the public opinion of the war for those in favor of United States involvement, while Streich makes connections between Roosevelt administration and the United States’ production of over 400 films during wartime America. The control the government maintained over warfare imagery had a major impact on the way in which Hollywood produced films during World War II. Less clear, however, is the connection between the bodies of narrative war films produced during the Second World War and the subsequent lack of narrative war films produced during the Vietnam Era in United States
Narrative war films are no different. The Second World War and the Vietnam War provide an interesting progression of narrative war film production, or lack of it going into the seventies. The Second World War still retains its notoriety as the—although now contested—“Last Good War” of the twentieth century, and the burgeoning film industry and its relationship to propaganda in film attests to this title. Films produced during the Second World War provided audiences with romanticized interpretations of the war efforts when depicting warfare imagery. In comparison, the Vietnam War held no such status with the public in the United States during the 1960s and 70s—the war proved widely unpopular as time dragged on, the death toll in regards to American soldiers climbing higher with each consecutive year. The stark differences between the public’s perceptions of the Second World War versus the Vietnam War do not stop there. Censorship policies also drastically differed, changing the game as the influx of information coming in from the front in Vietnam reached the United States. Interestingly enough, the lack of censorship policies during the Vietnam War did not, one would assume, lead to an increase in narrative war films—instead, Hollywood remained relatively …show more content…
Scholars such as George H. Roeder and Birgit Streich highlight the role of the government in relation to those images of warfare through photography and film respectively. They argue governmental regulation of warfare imagery in either medium helped improve public opinion about the Second World War. In particular, Roeder argues that censorship policies during World War II affected the public opinion of the war for those in favor of United States involvement, while Streich makes connections between Roosevelt administration and the United States’ production of over 400 films during wartime America. The control the government maintained over warfare imagery had a major impact on the way in which Hollywood produced films during World War II. Less clear, however, is the connection between the bodies of narrative war films produced during the Second World War and the subsequent lack of narrative war films produced during the Vietnam Era in United States