Cinema is a medium that can translate Ideas.
~David Lynch
History Through Film
President Woodrow Wilson walked out of the theater after seeing the 1915 film Birth of a Nation, stunned by what he saw. He said watching the Civil War drama was like watching history written with a lightning bolt. All films do not have the same impact on their viewers, but film is a powerful medium, nonetheless.
When a historical film is done well, it can bring a topic to the front of people’s minds, makes people think in a new way, or opens our eyes to an unknown topic. When a film is done badly, it gives wrong information, a skewed portrayal of events, or often, completely reinvents history. We can learn from both bad and good historical films. Good films are more enjoyable to watch, more skillfully made, and that can make seeing the mistakes more difficult. Bad films do not have the ability to draw you in as deeply, so the mistakes are easier to spot.
In this class we will view films with historical topics (some bad, some good) and analyze the films for their historical accuracy. We will research the history depicted, look for differences and hypothesize why the changes have been made. Sometimes changes are made for entertainment value, sometimes, propaganda or change of view over time, but analyzing the changes is always illuminating.
When a historical film is done well, it can bring a topic to the front of people’s minds, makes people think in a new way, or opens our eyes to an unknown topic. When a film is done badly, it gives wrong information, a skewed portrayal of events, or often, completely reinvents history. We can learn from both bad and good historical films. Good films are more enjoyable to watch, more skillfully made, and that can make seeing the mistakes more difficult. Bad films do not have the ability to draw you in as deeply, so the mistakes are easier to spot.
In this class we will view films with historical topics (some bad, some good) and analyze the films for their historical accuracy. We will research the history depicted, look for differences and hypothesize why the changes have been made. Sometimes changes are made for entertainment value, sometimes, propaganda or change of view over time, but analyzing the changes is always illuminating.