Cult Films and the 1950s :: essays research papers

1950sOver past nine weeks weve embarked on a journey spanning 7 decades of religious cult films and also received a brief education of our not so distant past. Weve seen the outrageous, the good, the bad and the ugly, the spiritually dramatic, and the just plain weird of the last seven decades of cult films and how in the end somehow flummox away to incorporate a piece of American culture at the time. However, by far the most intriguing decade to me would have to be the nineteen mid-fifties. There atomic number 18 many another(prenominal) reasons why I could theorize the fifties ranging from great sports moments to political milestones, which gave way to our society now. The nineteen fifties were a time when segregation was ending, people were daring to explore their sexuality, the racetrack to venture in to space, the Korean state of war, the birth of the New York Yankee Legacy, and Elvis. However, for my purposes in this paper and in relation to the cult film genre, there are three specific reasons why I chose the era of the fifties. The most central reason would be the taboos of the decade, namely the taboo and paranoia of communism and the Cold War with the then Soviet Union. Second, there were many excellent cult films to arise out of the period addressing the taboos of the time, two of which I would like to share. Third, the fifties brought us possibly "the worst director of all time" and "the ultimate cult director" Ed Wood, Jr. It is for these reasons that the 1950s are, to quote Prof. Allan Havis, "the quintes displaceial decade of films." debut the nineteen fifties the United States was getting past the bitter memories of human being War II only to a brand new threat, Communism. The venerate or taboo of communism was every where. Television programs and newspapers ran features on the newest giving medication official, entertainer, and even next door neighbors suspected of communism. Led by Senator conjuring tric k McCarthy citizens left and right stood trial for being a communist or aiding Russians in the "Cold War". Knowing that anyone who stood against McCarthy would be subject persecution themselves many Americans began to fall in to a mass hysteria accusing neighbors and friends of livelihood the communist threat and being spies for Russia. Many innocent people were sent to prison based purely on speculation. Also showing the increase fear of communism were the writers of movies and books, the two top forms of leisure during the decade.