Film and Culture - Star Wars - Essay Example

The idea of culture often brings to mind many different ideas, all different faces of a person’s identity, personhood, and uniqueness. Culture usually binds these terms together, bringing a blanket of terms that are unique to a certain place, region, group, or lineage. Culture is more than just that however. A person’s culture contains everything about that person, where they live, why they live there, their family, their customs, their beliefs, how they live, and why they live that way. All these various things make up a person’s culture; culture does not have to be limited to simply a person’s customs and beliefs. Culture is the force behind every variable aspect of a person’s life, including language, race, traditions, art work, and even movies. Culture can vary from within a group of people to, however people with similar traditions and life styles are often put together in similar cultural groups. Culture can also highly influence the beliefs and life styles of a group of people. Different beliefs can be based on the effects of a person’s culture on those beliefs. Cultures can also change or shift, depending on trends and the ideologies of people of that time. Some cultures fade or die away with time, well other main stream cultures, or their ideas directly effected by them, may stay around for many years. While culture may seem like an overwhelming idea and ideology set, in simplifying it we must not forgot to include all aspects of a person’s life that may affect their culture, or to be effected by it. Culture is an important aspect of who we are, and why we are like that. One of the most unique aspects of culture is the art forms that various different people come to deeply connect with their culture. As far back as the Native Americans, different art mediums have become deeply ingrained within a people’s culture, and have also grew to define who a people are. This can no more be true in modern times than in the ways film and culture have become so deeply ingrained with each other. In today’s fast paced world, the connection between films and culture may not be seen at a first glance. However, just as it has been sense the dawning of Hollywood, the myriad of ways that film and culture connect with each other is almost uncountable. Film and culture have become almost inseparable in places, and there is such a deep running connection between the two that it is often times hard to see the difference between them. Film critic John Frame said these words on the deep connection between film and culture “As I see it, both emphases are true. The relation between film and culture is a chicken-and-egg relationship. Film is of course a product of culture, for the makers of films are people of their own time. On the other hand, within their own culture, filmmakers are often atypical. They tend to be more liberal politically, less inclined to practice religion, more open to radical social attitudes and movements, than the general population. Thus their films tend more often than not to support radicalism and to subvert traditional, especially Christian, values. When those filmmakers answer criticisms of the content of their films by saying "we are only reflecting the broader culture," they are either being naive or dishonest. In the broader culture, there is far more interest in religion, far more family integrity, far more clean language and honest work than one would ever guess from films”(Frame). His words ring very true, that the ideals and visions of directors often do shed light into the different culture that is expressed at any given time. One can even look back at the different stages of development of the cinema to see a difference in the culture, and movies of the time. Even today there are set movies that come out that ignite a cultural following, or “cult following”, and these movies do so because they often found a way to connect with the culture and feelings of the time. One of the most successful movie series of all time, the legendary Star Wars was one of these movies that gripped its audience, and held a strong grasp on the imaginations and cultural development for generations to come, as well as setting and raising the benchmark for fantasy films for years to come. It is not a long shot to call Star Wars “one of the biggest cultural benchmarks of the past thirty years”(Cultural). Perhaps more than any other film series, these movies have defined culture almost more than culture has ever defined them. Star Wars is one of those unique instances where a movie truly captures the entirety of the audience available to them, and it just keeps on going with its fan base. Star Wars has affected culture possibly more than any other movie, and it definitely carries the most impact of any movie in recent memory in this generation. Star Wars changed the face of movies as we know it. Not only launching the science fiction genre of movies into a huge wave of cultural phenomena, Star Wars more than any other movie has made a deep and lasting cultural connection on the world. Beside its other accomplishments, Star Wars “fundamentally changed the aesthetics and narratives of Hollywood movies as well as changing the Hollywood film industry in fundamental ways. Before Star Wars, special effects in movies had not appreciably advanced since the 1950s Star Wars was also important in the movement towards the use of computer initiated imagery in movies. The commercial success of Star Wars created a boom in state-of-the-art special effects in the late 1970s. There was increased investment in special effects. Companies like Industrial Light and Magic and Digital Productions were created to provide them. The 1977 Star Wars pioneered the genre pastiche, where several classical movie genres are combined in one movie. In Star Wars the genres were science fiction, the Western, the war film, and the quasi-mystical epic. Along with Jaws, Star Wars started the tradition of the summer blockbuster movie in the entertainment industry, where movies open on a lot of screens at the same time and profitable franchises are important. It created the model for the major movie trilogy and showed that merchandising rights on a movie could generate more money than the movie itself did” (Cultural). The far reach of the impact of Star Wars is so great in fact, then even CNN did a special on the impact that Star Wars has had over the years. While naming the box office success of the movie, as well as its media and movie merchandising tidal wave it developed, CNN made special mention of the impact Star Wars has had on culture: “But perhaps its most lasting impact has been on society. Vader, Obi-Wan, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and the like are embedded in our minds. Lovers swoon, telling their partner theyre as cute as a Wookie. And who can resist taking in Vader-like gasps and mimicking the baritone bad guy? The movie was so far-reaching that during the 1980s President Ronald Reagans Strategic Defense Initiative -- the high-tech defense plan to fend off the Evil Empires of the Cold War -- was dubbed Star Wars. It also prompted a Mel Brooks parody, "Spaceballs," forever remembered for its pepperoni-faced Pizza the Hut. Even NBC sitcom "Friends" was pulled into the "Star Wars" saga as if it were the Millennium Falcon caught in the Death Stars magnetic trap. In a recent episode, Ross fantasized about Princess Leia decked out in her shimmering gold two-piece outfit, her hair in curls” (CNN). CNN however is not the only place who has done research into the gigantic effect that Star Wars has had on the cultural development of our generation. Anwers.com came up with quite a list of the many ways that Star Wars has leaked into our culture: “George Lucas six-film Star Wars saga has had a significant impact on modern global pop culture. References to the main characters and themes of Star Wars are casually made in American society with the well-qualified assumption that others will understand the reference, without the speaker feeling the need to explain — similar to the use of unelaborated references to the Bible and Greek mythology. Also, science fiction since the original 1977 Star Wars, particularly in film, has often been influenced by and compared to Star Wars. Sounds, visuals, and even the music from the films have become part of the tapestry of American society. The film also helped launch the science fiction boom of the late 70s and early 80s. One example is John Williams score for the films, especially the recurring theme "The Imperial March," which has become part of the musical repertoire. "The Imperial March" and other Star Wars symphonic themes are often used as fanfares at sporting events. Another example is U.S. President Ronald Reagans labeling the Soviet Union as an "evil empire." This reference assumed — correctly — that the fictional Galactic Empire of Star Wars had entered the American lexicon” (Cultural). Star Wars is also noted in the book The Movies that Changed Us by Nick Clooney. In the book, Clooney states that “"Isnt that something that we have to re-learn not only every generation but maybe every year? It affects us in a way that I never really understood myself. I spent 30 years in (the news business)... and I really never understood how important a reflection and a catalyst pop culture was and could be” (NPR). The impact that movies, visual art forms, like Star Wars have had on people is immeasurable, and is so deeply imbedded into cultural that it is rightly so. The lasting impact that Star Wars has had is one that is sure to be felt for years to come. Star Wars has many credits to its name, but none of them go as far as how much Star Wars changed the cultural face of movies for every generation sense, and has left a long lasting imprint at the way that we watch movies. Chancing the face of American culture for generations to come, no movie sense Star Wars has made such a huge and lasting effect on the culture of those who watched it. The cultural impact of movies is not something that is only felt here in American as well. As the Changing cultures of the American people deviate, so do the movies that come out of Hollywood. And as these movies change to adapt to the ever changing cultural needs of the people, so do the impact these movies have on the culture of the world outside of America. However, this cultural diffusion of ideas may not always be a positive thing. According to a recent survey: “Fifty-nine percent (59%) of Americans worry that Hollywood movies are "lowering the moral standards in this country."  A Rasmussen Reports survey found that 22% are not very worried about the impact of movies on the nations moral standards. Another 17% are not worried at all. Sixty-five percent (65%) of married Americans fear that movies are lowering moral standards along with 47% of unmarried Americans. During Election 2004, Married Americans were far more likely than Unmarried Americans to vote for President George W. Bush” (Hollywood). And while the politics of it may not be hugely important, it seems the cultural divide on how people feel about movies is also a part of their culture. There seems to be a divide between people who feel that Hollywood is corrupting the nation, and on the other hand plenty of people seem to see it as a pure form of artwork and entertainment. This divide can also be seen across culture lines. While movies and cinema may often thought to be an all encompassing idea of culture, there have been just as many movies that have divided culture and popular opinion as those that have united it. One such movie is the ultra controversial movie, South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut. Perhaps one of the most offensive movies ever made, the South Park movie holds the world record for the most offense gestures and words in an animated film, and although I am sure it rivals the one for a non-animated film as well. South Park has left a huge mark on current pup culture, ever sense it landed on the “pop culture landscape like a dirty bomb in 1997, and the 13 episodes that comprise the groundbreaking first season have lost none of their subversive impact. If Seinfeld was a show about nothing, then South Park is a show about everything, from important moral lessons in compassion and tolerance to good old-fashioned animated character assassination (Kathie Lee Gifford in "Weight Gain 4000" and Barbra Streisand in "Mecha-Streisand"). Like an After School Special gone quite mad, profanity-spewing third-graders Stan, Kyle, Cartman, and the ill-fated Kenny navigate childhood in their mountain town. Nothing in South Park is sacred, and each episode has something to offend, from "Big Gay Als Big Gay Boat Ride" (featuring George Clooney as the voice of Sparky, the homosexual dog), to the Halloween episode "Pink Eye," in which Cartman dresses up as Adolph Hitler. Best not to even get started on Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Pooh, or the season finale cliffhanger, "Cartmans Mom Is a Dirty Slut” (south PARK). The impact felt by the South Park movie has been just as great as the television show. One review stated that “South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut will undoubtedly draw the ire of many a political group as being a sterling example of the "impure" state of popular entertainment today. Is the film inappropriate for children? YES; they dont come much more adults-only than this one. Is it offensive? Indeed it is. But peel away the profuse profanity and go-for-broke comic abandon, and the film ironically reveals a message as wholesome and constructive as any G-rated film could offer: take responsibility for your children, in what they do and in especially what they watch--certain films are designated as being for adults for a reason. The even greater irony is that a lot of parents looking for a film "for the family" are certain to pay less attention to Bigger, Longer & Uncuts R rating than to the fact that it is "a cartoon”(movie). The controversy that sprang up around the movie when it came out was a wildfire of condemnation and accusations; all aimed at the movies creators. However, the sharp parodies of the real problems with the American movie industry showed in the South Park movie show that not only can culture change and have dividing ideals, but it also can take shots at it, and at times can even sit back and laugh at how it has developed over the years. But the makers of the movie knew that, and even made fun of the outrage that would spring from the movie: “I enjoyed the way they intertwined the potential impact of their film into the movie itself. The main four kids, along with every other kid in the neighborhood, went to see a new movie by their Canadian TV heroes, “Terrence and Philip.” The movie is filled with profanities, causing the kids to swear and get in so much trouble that war is declared on Terrence and Philip’s home country of Canada. The Terrence and Philip movie represented “South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut.” Both movies were full of profanity. The kids in South Park represented kids in real life, learning from a movie (Terrence and Philip and South Park, respectively) to swear. Trey and Matt foresaw parents complaining about the newly-acquired curse words in the vocabularies of their children, and worked it into the film. It was hilarious. But since it’s been around for 8 years now, you probably already knew that” (Houdini). The South Park movie is a prime example of how a movie was able to tap into a certain aspect of pop culture, while also being ingrained into it. There are not many people today who have not at the very least heard of South Park, and the show has grown into one of the most watched shows on television. All because it managed to connect with a part of culture that has not been tapped into, all because it at the same time manages to reflect the culture of many people in the world today. The irony behind all of this? South Park takes it biggest hits on the pop culture of the time. So while it is sitting there and making fun of the rest of the pop culture in today’s world, is has also became an all encompassing part of pop culture itself. Well, except for those people to offended by it to watch it. Culture is such an all encompassing word. It basically includes everything that makes us who we are. It includes everything that describes how we think and why we think it, and how come we got to be in the place where we were thinking. Culture also includes all of the different pieces of society, be it art work, literature, or what is currently popular. Movies are a great medium which help reflect the current culture of the time. Culture also includes the things we often think about, or think strongly about. Things such are our ideals, morals, and guide lines for living are all included as part of our culture. Movies and the cinema are also a very important part of culture, and has widely affected various cultures through out history, and all over the world. While we may not think of culture as important, culture may be one of the most defining accepts of our lives. It includes everything about us, and it is often passed down from generation to generation. This may make one think if their culture is something they want their kids to live through, though often generations will take and adapt to new changed in society to expand, or shrink the ideas of a culture. Either way, it makes up everything that we are, and it completely in every part of our life. Works Cited: http://www.frame-poythress.org/frame_books/TATM/chapter2.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_impact_of_Star_Wars http://www.cnn.com/EVENTS/1997/star.wars.anniversary/culture/index.html http://www.answers.com/topic/cultural-impact-of-star-wars?cat=biz-fin http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=865008 http://legacy.rasmussenreports.com/2005/Hollwood%20and%20Culture.htm http://www.lycos.com/info/south-park.html http://mrbrownmovies.com/movierpt51.html http://magicmovieticket.blogspot.com/2007/10/south-park-bigger-longer-uncut.html Read More