How is the issue of race dealt with in contemporary American cinema
Speaker:
“Cinema tends to be dismissed as mere
entertainment, yet it has profound effects shaping our thinking and our
behavior.” (Item Fifteen) “Although
it would be nice to think that we have complete control over the shaping of our
identity, this cannot be the case when we live in such a media saturated world”
(Item thirteen) And so, it should be
the case that the messages and issues arising in film are that which will
reflect upon cultural opinions of the time. Theodor W. Adorno and Max
Horkheimer argued this, stating that film merely extends the ideology of
society. Therefore, what better thing to focus on, than the controversial issue
of race and how it is depicted within Hollywood cinema and therefore how
society reflects this issue today.
Hollywood mainstream films are those which can have the highest level of impact
within the society, due to the extent of their range across the world; and
therefore it is not necessarily incorrect to assume that Hollywood cinema uses
this advantage to explore such disputed issues in order to reflect societies
opinions and even question them. There is no doubt, that race has been a
controversial topic within society throughout the medias existence and even
previous, since the introduction of cinema in the late 19th century
there have been hundreds of films produced to deal with race as a topic. A more
dominant cultural issue within the 1960’s, and the civil rights era, racial
based narratives have become much more prominent within contemporary cinema for
reasons which I will discuss further.
Although it would be comforting to think that
the world is progressing in terms of accepting multiculturalism; with further
analysis into certain aspects of African American based cinema, it can easily
be argued that Hollywood (and therefore society) is unable to showcase this in
the open and diverse way which would be hoped for. In order to understand the
discussions which I will arise there must be an understanding into the history
behind civil rights.
Play : Civil Rights Speeches Video
Speaker:
Throughout American history the ideals of racial acceptance have always been
prominent, yet it wasn’t until the civil rights era of the 60's that this
became a much more dominant feature within American society. “the civil rights
movement grew in strength and impetus throughout the 1950’s and 60’s” (rejected item) this was the time which
brought to light all of the racial issues within American culture.
One of the most highly acclaimed films of this era, also said to be “the first
Hollywood film to deal honestly with racial issues” (item 4) is To Kill A Mockingbird. A film which delves into the
issue of racial inequality through the underlying narrative of Gregory Pecks
character Atticus Finch defending black male Tom Robinson against an unjust
accusation of rape. The focus throughout this film is on the selfless actions
on Atticus Finch and the problems they caused on him and his family; rather
than the tribulations faced by Robinson through this time. “So we have a white
film about racial injustice that winds up dealing with only white characters in
depth” (item 4) which is also the
case for the more contemporary films I intend to discuss further. Atticus Finch
is a character portrayed as an heroic prejudice free white man, even with the
problems he faces with the racists in the town he seems to be respected by all,
including the black community.
Play TKAM clip:
Speaker:
This clip shows the reaction of the black
community to the support Finch gave to Tom Robinson during his trial. The
standing ovation given by the black observers of the trial to Finch even after
Tom Robinson was convicted highlights the way in which the "white
lawyer" is represented throughout this film. Each of the black characters
within TKAM respect Atticus Finch for what he is dealing with for Tom Robinson,
they understand the hardships that he must be facing to be defending him during
this time. The fact that the segregated black community all stands up for
Atticus before he leaves, and one man tells Scout to stand while "her
fathers passing" shows the respect that they held for this man. Or more
so, the respect in which director Robert Mulligan felt the black community
should have for a white man. The idea of black inferiority comes into play here
(Item eighteen) as not
only is Tom Robinson convicted for the crime he did not commit due to the
unequal American justice system , this scene straight after proves just how
"superior" the white man supposedly is to the black community.
Race is pushed aside within this film, “so
intent of depicting human dignity, seems to overlook the indignities of is very
subject, racial prejudice.” (item four)
And so, can it actually be discussed as a film which shows any clear
representation of race at all? “A good way to evaluate the ideology of
mainstream film is to analyze the characters with whom the film asks the
audience to identify.” (item fifteen) and
so an the answer to that lies within
the depiction of the “anti-racist white lawyer,” (item nineteen) such as Atticus Finch, in comparison to the
depiction of the less dominant black characters. This is also a clear starting
point for the discussion of race within the other contemporary films I intend
to explore. If there was a film released in the post civil rights era which
showcased the racial views that To Kill A Mockingbird does, even if it was as
well made, I do not feel it would receive close to the recognition which TKAM
did. Although this could easily be said to show an advance in the racial
equality within American culture, it's not to say that just because a
contemporary film doesn't show a prominent racist theme towards it characters,
that there isn't one.
Each of my chosen films are courtroom dramas
concerning either a black man on trial (TKAM and ATTK) or in the case of Ghosts
of Mississippi, a white man on a reopened trial due to his murder of a civil
rights activist. Throughout all of these films, there is the prominent
protagonist of the white male lawyer. A character type and viewpoint that is
not altered along with the change in outcome or the 30 year gap between the
release of the films. Each of these films focus on the heroic actions of these
white male leads, with much of the screen time dedicated to the trials they
faced from the community instead of the black characters. “The white savior’s
viewpoint becomes the narrative focus, while the perspectives of African
American characters and their broader community are peripheral at best, if not
entirely absent.” (item eight) “Although
neither film was as widely acclaimed as TKAM they served as important forms of
cultural memory in highlighting the ways the anti-racist white hero genre
continued in the 1990s” (item nineteen)
1996 was the year set for the battle of racial
prejudice Hollywood films, both A Time to Kill and Ghost of Mississippi were
released in this year, which happened to also be the same year the California
proposition 209 was enforced “to prohibit public institutions from discriminating on the basis of race,
sex, or ethnicity” (item twenty)
making this time period, (very similar to that of TKAM in relation to the civil
rights era) a important feature in the reception and spectatorship of the films
and representations. “What these
films shared with this particular moment in the golden state was an
understanding that racial progress had been made” (item nineteen) not only had the new law been passed in the centre
of all things cinema, but now Hollywood was open to developing the stereotypes
of African Americans previously created. Or so it was thought.
Let’s take a look into my focus film of A Time to Kill, and its representation
of both the white and black characters. Showcasing the trial of Carl Lee Hailey
(Samuel L Jackson) after he violently gunned down the two white males
responsible for the rape and assault of his young daughter Tonya, in ATTK “some characters have been compressed” (item 5) inlcuidng that of the man
black character Hailey, with the film focusing on his attorney Mr Jack
Briggance. Played
by Matthew McConaughey, Briggance is portrayed to us as the heroic attorney who
faces relentless attacks by the racists from the town of Canton; yet is not
fazed by it. Unlike, lawyer Delaughter in Ghosts of Mississippi, Briggance
never questions his decision to take on the controversial case even when forced
to cope with the revival of the Canton KKK. This decision is only questioned by
Hailey himself when offered the opportunity to gain a free attorney from the
NAACP; but of course, he sticks with his decision to have a white attorney even
at the cost. The fact Hailey turns down this offer, seems to encourage the
connotation of black skin on screen used to highlight
white superiority, and self regarded as black inferiority (item eighteen) which is also the case for GOM when Ever’s wife
(Whoopi Goldburg) decides to stick with Delaughter even when she has the
opportunity for other lawyers.
Initially there seems to be a similar link with ATTK and TKAM In terms of the
way both lawyers are highly respected by the black community. This is shown in
ATTK when Hailey originally decides to use Briggance as his attorney because he
managed to acquit his brother the previous year; if Hailey did not respect
the work Briggance had done on this case, or the way he had treated
his brother due to his race he would not be the person Hailey would choose
to defend him.
Play ATTK clip:
Speaker:
Towards the end of the film, when Hailey's
trial is close in sight, this clip actually tells us the reasoning behind
Hailey’s choice of Briggance as his attorney throughout everything. Briggance
perceives in the way which the rest of the jury do, he has the mind of a
southern white man and is therefore "one of the bad guys" even though
he "doesn't mean to be" Hailey's view on keeping him as his lawyer
was that if this man is unable to convince a jury of his peers that he is
innocent, then no one would be able too. Although that throughout the rest of
the film it is believed by the viewer that Hailey has chosen Briggance as his
attorney because he respects the work he does and his ability (as an
intellectual white man) this twist in the plot begins to highlight a certain
friction between these characters which neither one seems to have been willing
to address previously. In ATTK the black community is represented solely by
Hailey's character though even his does not go into much depth, the knowledge
he gives us here emphasizes how at this time in society there is much more
resentment between the races than shown in TKAM.
When analysing different elements of this
film there seems to be different opinions represented in terms of race
throughout. Unlike TKAM the final verdict is in favour of Hailey, which is
supposedly supposed to showcase the change in the equality of the American justice
system over the thirty year gap between these films. Adding this to
the change in how much respect the white community gain from the
black public one would assume that this film has began to change alongside
society and portray Hollywood as more accepting of race. Yet with
knowledge of the common use of the "white male lawyer" within films
such as this, and the extent to which ATTK focuses on McConaughey's character.
It can also be argued that on the surface of this film there seems to be a more
positive representation of race, however there is also the underlying theme of
the prominent male character who the narrative should realistically not focus
on which begs the question, is Hollywood ready to delve into a character such
as Tom Robinson or Carl Lee Hailey, or are they still held up on the racial
aspect revolved around this?
In comparison to ATTK in fact showing
resentment between the black and white characters presumably due to the time it
was made, Ghosts of Mississippi, released at the same time shows the opposite.
Although Myrlie Evers does not initially hold faith with the Lawyer Delaughter
(played by Alec Baldwin) but as the film progresses she seems to respect him in
a much similar way to how Atticus Finch is respected in TKAM. Again, in order
to undeniably show the “change” in Hollywood’s representation of race, this
trial again ends with the conviction of Byron De La Beckwith for the murder of
Myrlie’s civil rights activist husband 25 years previous. However in an
incredibly similar way to ATTK, rather than focusing on Myrlie Evers and her
struggle to reopen the trial, GOM is focused on DeLaugther’s struggle to gain
any substantial evidence and keep his family together. This is therefore just
another “white film about racial injustice that winds up dealing with only
white characters in depth.” The representation of the black community comes
mainly from the way in which Myrlie is portrayed throughout the film, although
she is seen as a strong independent woman after the loss of her husband, director
Reiner, “limits Whoopi Goldberg's role as the widowed
Myrlie Evers to a glorified cameo appearance, and reduces the rest of Evers
family to mere extras.” (Item fourteen)
It is therefore difficult to argue any particular point as to how race
is represented within contemporary American cinema, because I’m not even sure
if Hollywood even knows the answer to that. This confusion between the
representations could be said to come from the directors. These films are all
shot through the eyes of white directors, this gives us the impression that
although there are examples of changes in the representation of race in
relation to the time periods; the underlying character of the white male lawyer
who is represented throughout these genre of films as “the black man’s saviour”
could be argued as an obstacle in the way of an entirely positive view of race
within a film. Untill this character type is questioned and defeated, and
Hollywood can get to grips with the idea of a heroic black character I find it difficult
to believe there will be any films produced with a positive portrayal of blacks
in the same way that is expected of the white characters. But for now Hollywood strives with the view that “White people must
occupy the centre, leaving black people with only one choice – to exist in
relation to whiteness” (item seventeen)
Diana
