When did Hollywood become political?

S

sbryan

Well-known member
I'm not talking about political content in films, because that's been around since "Birth of a Nation." I'm talking about outspoken actors like George Clooney. It seems to me that a politically outspoken Hollywood is a modern development.

I need to find sources to back up the idea that Good Night, and Good luck is the result of this trend.

I have to use three of seven methodolgies to analyze the film: Film Language, Production, History, Political, Dramatic, Auteur, and Genre. I'm using Film Language, History (not the Murrow history, but the more recent history), and Political.
 
Hollywood has been political for a long time, brother. Once people are in the public eye, it is very easy for their opinions to be heard. When millions of people love you, and you know it, you have the power to sway opinion. Entertainment controls damn near everything.

However, film also allows us to throw stones at a structure we don't agree with. This, too has been around for a long time.

Both can be evil, one I think more than the other...that is why I side with group 2.
 
Can you cite specific examples of say, a speech at the Oscars?

I know the recent Clooney one -- that's in my grab-bag of goodies.
 
yeah, and there is a whole other kind of politics on the inside that people must deal with...not government type of poitics but hollywood politics...it can be weird.
 
Just do a little research and you'll dig up people from Paul Robeson, to Jane Fonda, to Vanessa Redgrave, to Lillian Hellman. It is NOT a new trend.
 
Rich Lee said:
yeah, and there is a whole other kind of politics on the inside that people must deal with...not government type of poitics but hollywood politics...it can be weird.
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What like ass-kissing? lol
 
sbryan said:
Can you cite specific examples of say, a speech at the Oscars?
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Sure, Marlon Brando won for "The Godfather" in the early 70s and sent a Native American woman to accept the award and give a political speech.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000008/awards

Do a search on Michael Moore at the Oscars too.

There have been a bunch.

But it's not just Hollywood. Remember Kanye West on the Hurricane Katrina fundraiser special? If you really want to go back into the politics of celebrity, check out Charles Lindbergh's speeches before WWII about the Nazis.

It is actually an interesting topic.

Don't forget that so-called "men of the cloth" have been espousing political viewpoints too.
 
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MONEY! it's all about the money and power, before actors were paid , they were owned by the muguls, then their were a few who had the nerve to speak out or maybe their careers were going down hill. then you had the others who sucked butt and put out movies like the green "berets" and other war movies and spoke out about peacenicks being panseies. yet some of those buttwipes never enlisted.
 
I consider actors trained monkeys.

I throw coins at them and they entertain me for a while.

Why would I consider a trained monkey's opinion on ANYTHING, much less the pertinent issues of the world we live in?

Most actors today have an overinflated view of thier own self-importance.
 
mcgeedigital said:
I consider actors trained monkeys.

I throw coins at them and they entertain me for a while.

Why would I consider a trained monkey's opinion on ANYTHING, much less the pertinent issues of the world we live in?

Most actors today have an overinflated view of thier own self-importance.
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Mcgee you took the words right out of my mouth!!
 
mcgeedigital said:
I consider actors trained monkeys.

I throw coins at them and they entertain me for a while.

Why would I consider a trained monkey's opinion on ANYTHING, much less the pertinent issues of the world we live in?

Most actors today have an overinflated view of thier own self-importance.
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As do most bloviating fools on the Internet.

Wow, trained monkeys you throw coins at? Who has the overinflated view of their own self-importance?
 
mcgeedigital said:
I consider actors trained monkeys.

I throw coins at them and they entertain me for a while.

Why would I consider a trained monkey's opinion on ANYTHING, much less the pertinent issues of the world we live in?

Most actors today have an overinflated view of thier own self-importance.
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i'm sure its very gratifying to belittle people that live a life with a higher profile than your own. but my experience has been that actors are the most insecure people i work with. i was fortunate enough to spend 30 days shooting behind the scenes footage on goodnight and good luck and can tell you clooney is one of the most self-deprecating "celebrities" i know. he doesn't take hiself seriously at all.

their value stems from their recognizability which can bring attention to an issue. if you had this so-called "power of celebrity", wouldn't you want to use it for what you perceived to be worthwhile causes? i would.
 
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Read Ronald Reagan's autiobiography...he talks about the politics of the "Communists" influencing Hollywood of the '40s and '50s. The whole HUAC thing with Tricky Dicky Nixon, too. (HUAC as House Un-American Committee---you remember, 'Are you a Communist, or have you ever been a Communists' fame?)
 
Man, I want to get into this one so bad...

I'll say this and get out. I wish some thing that would change us all for the better would come out of the Hollywood/Political thing. It's a fun wish, but I'm not going to hold my breath or anything.
 
Not really into politics movie thing which is why I love this site. The moderators do not let the political stuff get out of hand unlike some other boards. As to the actors being trained monkeys..... Even if you are using cg you cannot get away from "actors" on your movie as you will need voice actors. They are an integral part of the business as are the writers, camera operators, coffee maker and everyone else on the crew. Agreed some are ignorant but some are very smart. And the guy you posted after is one of this boards favorite actors if I am not mistaken.

(*I don't get my politics from even the smart ones though, it was developed over a lifetime of thought and choosing what I believe to be correct)
 
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I don't mind them having opinions, even voicing them.

But the ones who tick me off are the ones who wait to see which way the wind is blowing before opening their mouths. If you're gonna have an opinion, at elast have one of your own.

Then again, it's fun sometimes to see them screw up. Like Woody Harrelson at the start of the 1st Gulf War. Blah blah blah and he's against it. No prob. But it looked like he was expecting cheers from Leno's audience. Nope. I don't remember if he actually got booed off the stage or not.

Went from there to play Lou The Lamb in "Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme". Followed by a string of hits like White Men Can't Jump and a couple of Cheers rehashes. :)
 
GenJerDan said:
I don't mind them having opinions, even voicing them.

But the ones who tick me off are the ones who wait to see which way the wind is blowing before opening their mouths. If you're gonna have an opinion, at elast have one of your own.

Then again, it's fun sometimes to see them screw up. Like Woody Harrelson at the start of the 1st Gulf War. Blah blah blah and he's against it. No prob. But it looked like he was expecting cheers from Leno's audience. Nope. I don't remember if he actually got booed off the stage or not.
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i don't understand... you don't like when celebrities change there politics to follow the prevailing wind, but when they go against public opinion, they're screw-ups? huh?
 
cygnet74 said:
i'm sure its very gratifying to belittle people that live a life with a higher profile than your own. but my experience has been that actors are the most insecure people i work with. i was fortunate enough to spend 30 days shooting behind the scenes footage on goodnight and good luck and can tell you clooney is one of the most self-deprecating "celebrities" i know. he doesn't take hiself seriously at all.

their value stems from their recognizability which can bring attention to an issue. if you had this so-called "power of celebrity", wouldn't you want to use it for what you perceived to be worthwhile causes? i would.
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"Power of celebrity"?

WTF is that?

Do they have the power to save the life of someone like a surgeon?

No.

Do they have the power to find a cure for cancer?

No.

Do they have the power to make salt water drinkable?

No.

And as far as "worthwhile causes", MOST of the actors that find a cause celebre have no more than a superficial understanding of the issue. Period.
 
come back to reality for a second. like it or not, celebrities have power. no, no wait a second! think about it. what kind of power does a celebrity wield within our social fabric? hmmm, what kind of influence do they have? are you seeing it yet? michael j. fox can't cure parkinson's disease. but he can use his celebrity to increase funding for research. angelina jolie can't stop the crisis in darfur, but she can put it in the headlines by speaking about it. are you seeing how they can use their power politically? are you following? or just thinking up more hyperbole to reply with?
 
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