20th century history
A01=Chris Cagle
abstract society
academic disciplines' concern
Author_Chris Cagle
bringing attention
Category=ATFA
Category=ATFN
Category=JBCT
celebrities
celebrity
challenging points of view
changing societal expectations
cinema
concerning topics
controversy
crime
director
documentary
drug abuse
economic challenges
eq_art-fashion-photography
eq_bestseller
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
exploring distinctive cinematic aesthetics
film history
film industry
film influences
film production
Gentleman's Agreement
hollywood
identity
impact of movies
intellectual discussions
Intruder in the Dust
journalism
mental illness
middle class values
movie culture
movies
movies and society
policy debates
political aspirations
political film
politically fractious
pop psychology
popular Sociology
post WWII
postwar
power dynamics
prestige drama
progressive director
progressive screenwriters
racialized messages
racism
reflecting national self-image
reflecting social structures
shifts in society
social issues
social problems
social problems film
social progress
societal pressures
society
sociological aspirations
sociological theories
sociology
stars
tackling social issues
the American Dream
The Lost Weekend
unify American audience
war film
Product details
- ISBN 9780813576947
- Weight: 399g
- Dimensions: 152 x 229mm
- Publication Date: 28 Dec 2016
- Publisher: Rutgers University Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Hardback
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After World War II, Hollywood’s “social problem films”-tackling topical issues that included racism, crime, mental illness, and drug abuse-were hits with critics and general moviegoers alike. In an era of film famed for its reliance on pop psychology, these movies were a form of popular sociology, bringing the academic discipline’s concerns to a much broader audience. Sociology on Film examines how the postwar “problem film” translated contemporary policy debates and intellectual discussions into cinematic form in order to become one of the preeminent genres of prestige drama. Chris Cagle chronicles how these movies were often politically fractious, the work of progressive directors and screenwriters who drew scrutiny from the House Un-American Activities Committee. Yet he also proposes that the genre helped to construct an abstract discourse of “society” that served to unify a middlebrow American audience. As he considers the many forms of print media that served to inspire social problem films, including journalism, realist novels, and sociological texts, Cagle also explores their distinctive cinematic aesthetics. Through a close analysis of films like Gentleman’s Agreement, The Lost Weekend, and Intruder in the Dust, he presents a compelling case that the visual style of these films was intimately connected to their more expressly political and sociological aspirations. Sociology on Film demonstrates how the social problem picture both shaped and reflected the middle-class viewer’s national self-image, making a lasting impact on Hollywood’s aesthetic direction.
CHRIS CAGLE is an associate professor of film and media arts at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
