Hollywood v. Hard Core: How the Struggle Over Censorship Created the Modern Film Industry by Jon Lewis

Hollywood v. Hard Core: How the Struggle Over Censorship Created the Modern Film Industry



Download Hollywood v. Hard Core: How the Struggle Over Censorship Created the Modern Film Industry




Hollywood v. Hard Core: How the Struggle Over Censorship Created the Modern Film Industry Jon Lewis
Language: English
Page: 391
Format: pdf
ISBN: 0814751423, 9780814751428
Publisher: NYU Press

From Publishers Weekly

Lewis's exhaustive history of censorship in American motion pictures starts off with a bang as he traces how the fledgling Motion Picture Association of America allied itself in 1947 with the House Committee on Un-American Activities to increase its power. The truth of the Hollywood adage "when they tell you it's not about the money... it's about the money" is repeatedly confirmed as Lewis demonstrates how the MPAA, which is supposed to serve as a watchdog for parents, really functions to promote big Hollywood business and discourage upstart independents. Lewis's chronicle of prominent skirmishes with the MPAA censors begins in the '50s (with The Moon Is Blue, Baby Doll and Tea and Sympathy) and continues into the '60s, when an X rating didn't necessarily indicate pornographic material (Midnight Cowboy, A Clockwork Orange, The Killing of Sister George), before moving into the present day (Eyes Wide Shut, Showgirls). The MPAA doesn't come off as an evil censor so much as a money-driven business concernDunlike Ted Turner, who apparently sabotaged the release of his own company's Crash and Bastard Out of Carolina because of his distaste for the projects. Only a fraction of the book covers the few years in the early 1970s when Hollywood was actually threatened by the popularity of hardcore films like The Devil in Miss Jones and Deep Throat. If there's a problem with Lewis's investigative report, it's that it is exhaustively complete: there is no detail too small to trace back a century, making it an outstanding reference but too detailed for most general readers. Photos throughout. (Jan. 1) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Although censorship guidelines have existed since the early days of film, their most organized form was developed in fairly modern times more to ensure substantial economic returns for the studios than to protect the public. Lewis (English, Oregon State Univ.) presents a well-researched history of the subject and analyzes the social, political, and financial motives that drive the ratings system. He discusses general film content, disputed scenes, definitions of pornography and obscenity, boundaries of compromise, artistic intent, among other topics. From the development of the industry and the blacklist days to the threat of independently produced hardcore films and recent market trends, the author studies court rulings, pivotal events, studio philosophies, and public figures ranging from Fatty Arbuckle to Richard Nixon. Lewis concludes that the industry's regulations grew from an astute evaluation of criteria relating to potential box office appeal and the necessity of maintaining overall control. The bottom line, he argues, is about money not art. For scholars, students, and those who work in or are seriously interested in the film industry. Carol J. Binkowski, Bloomfield, NJ Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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