Films Impact On American Culture Essay

From the beginning of film, movies have always had a large social impact on American society. When the Kinetoscope first came out it allowed viewers to see pictures in motion, soon those pictures were turned into silent black and white films. As movies progressed to sound and then color pictures, the culture changed as well. These changes were brought on by events, such as, the great depression, World War II, and civil rights movements. Finally, technology drove changes in the film industry with special effects and computer generated imagery (CGI). These new advances allowed directors to portray events that otherwise would be impossible or look unrealistic without modern technology. These advances in film have had a major impact on American culture allowing film to influence society thru the generation. What is seen and heard on screen effects large amounts of how we act, what we buy, and who we interact with.
Early films, such as, The Birth of a Nation (1915) by D. W. Griffith was considered ahead of its time using numerous camera shots and different editing techniques, such as, dissolves and fades. Although this film gathered great praise for its cinematic achievements, it was also banned in numerous northern …show more content…
Propaganda films were produced in many countries, Germany used these films to help get Adolf Hitler in power and cause a public fear of Judaism. The Eternal Jew (1940) by Fritz Hippler was used to create the image of Jews being an inferior race, this film was one of the many films used by the Nazi ministry of propaganda to spread fear and hate. In America, films were used both to create patriotism for the war effort and to dehumanize Nazi Germany and Japan. Confessions of a Nazi Spy (1939) was one of the first anti-Nazi films about Nazi spy rings in America. While films, such as, December 7th (1943) a reenactment of the bombing of pearl harbor used to reignite Americans passion to fight the