Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove embodies the transition from classical to post classical cinema though its dark comedic portrayal of America’s biggest fear during the cold war: the bomb in a less than subtle or “PG” way, a feat not possible to even consider undergoing in classical Hollywood, and that’s without noting criticism of the US government. Though the dark comedic stylings of the film don’t fully describe the post classical transition on their own, it's the underlying lack of censorship following the Miracle decision very clearly embodied continually throughout the film in addition to the focus on the cold war as a subject both for the narrative as well as the heavy satire Dr. Strangelove is famous for. Above all of these factors
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What was new to the post classical period, however, was the range of subjects dark or black comedy became aloud to joke about or portray following less restriction on the content of films and the fall of the dominant family friendly Hollywood film that came with it. Dr. Strangelove is a satire centered around the cold war era US military and its fucking wild game of nuclear chicken with the Soviet Union following World War II. While satire or dark comedy on the fear of the bomb and other cold war isn’t particularly controversial it’s still not something classical Hollywood would touch with a ten-foot pole over fear of how the public would perceive such a film. Dr. Strangelove dials the controversy up a few notches as not only is it a dark comedy centered around the cold war using the bomb as its central satirical element, but it primarily makes fun of the US military in doing so among other sexual, Nazi, and political humor, this style of dark comedy or at least films displaying this sort of comedy that even made it to distribution are from what I can see exclusively found following the end of the classical period. It would be hard to argue against the statement that Dr. Strangelove is a dark comedy as not only is the cold war a very dark subject but John Belton …show more content…
The 1952 court case plays a huge part in influencing the rise of more adult oriented and less restricted films. Richard Randall offers a very strong explanation as to why this case prompted such a change in content of films “Before the Miracle case, a myriad of state and local boards of censors, invested with simple statutory authority to deny permits to films found offensive, had near life-and-death power over cinematic exhibition” Dr. Strangelove had it been made prior to the miracle case without question it would have been denied distribution. The focus on the US military as the core of the films satirical element over their Russian allies, even criticizing the United States to some extent portraying the top officials and the president as childlike alongside just making fun of the United States handling of the nuclear game of chicken with all the “there can’t be a ____ gap” and observing how easy it would be for something to go wrong. Classical Hollywood wasn’t big on anything that wasn’t patriotic, sure there were
What was new to the post classical period, however, was the range of subjects dark or black comedy became aloud to joke about or portray following less restriction on the content of films and the fall of the dominant family friendly Hollywood film that came with it. Dr. Strangelove is a satire centered around the cold war era US military and its fucking wild game of nuclear chicken with the Soviet Union following World War II. While satire or dark comedy on the fear of the bomb and other cold war isn’t particularly controversial it’s still not something classical Hollywood would touch with a ten-foot pole over fear of how the public would perceive such a film. Dr. Strangelove dials the controversy up a few notches as not only is it a dark comedy centered around the cold war using the bomb as its central satirical element, but it primarily makes fun of the US military in doing so among other sexual, Nazi, and political humor, this style of dark comedy or at least films displaying this sort of comedy that even made it to distribution are from what I can see exclusively found following the end of the classical period. It would be hard to argue against the statement that Dr. Strangelove is a dark comedy as not only is the cold war a very dark subject but John Belton …show more content…
The 1952 court case plays a huge part in influencing the rise of more adult oriented and less restricted films. Richard Randall offers a very strong explanation as to why this case prompted such a change in content of films “Before the Miracle case, a myriad of state and local boards of censors, invested with simple statutory authority to deny permits to films found offensive, had near life-and-death power over cinematic exhibition” Dr. Strangelove had it been made prior to the miracle case without question it would have been denied distribution. The focus on the US military as the core of the films satirical element over their Russian allies, even criticizing the United States to some extent portraying the top officials and the president as childlike alongside just making fun of the United States handling of the nuclear game of chicken with all the “there can’t be a ____ gap” and observing how easy it would be for something to go wrong. Classical Hollywood wasn’t big on anything that wasn’t patriotic, sure there were