The American Presidents: one of the principal targets of cinematographic censorship

Résumé du document

With the prominence of the U.S. president and the presidency, the executive office and its occupant have naturally found their way into numerous film expressions. Since 1903, presidents have been featured in no less than 400 commercial films. Ranging from respectful, biographical presentations to comic caricatures, the ways in which presidents are depicted on film reflects a great deal about contemporary perception of the office. Our research centers on the relationship between American Politics and Hollywood cinema, especially the depiction of real and imaginary American Presidents in films. We intended to base our thesis around a structure of case studies looking at presentations of particular Presidents. Ronald Reagan is certainly the best example (!) of the link between film and politics. Nonetheless, intriguingly his Presidency in the 1980's marks a lull in the genre of the American political films, but more precisely, behind the representation of American Presidents on the screen, there is a matter that concerns all of us. In the framework of this course, we will discuss the subtle censorship and propaganda in these American films.

Extraits

[...] Clinton appears like a seducer whose sincerity is dubious This film is an excellent political satire but, in fact, really complex. I think that Clinton haters can take the film as proof of the president's dishonesty, and Clinton lovers can read it as an affirmation of his flawed humanity. The President has to be an intelligent person but not too much (the anti- intellectual trend). During the sixties, underground cinema vehicles a negative image of the presidency. The presidents are simply depicted as fool persons! There can be no doubt that the presidential admiration is declining. [...]

[...] In fact, it was a period of high tension due to the Great Depression (America's economic decline) and a particular context of International crises. We are more precisely thinking about: Young Mister Lincoln by John Ford (1939). It is an account of the American president, Abraham Lincoln, as he faces his first case as a young lawyer. The early career of Abe Lincoln is beautifully presented by John Ford. Lincoln, played by Henri Fonda (who, even with a false nose, gives a myth-making performance) is continually presented as a conciliator, unifier and saviour. [...]

[...] For instance, in A Ladder to Heaven (season 6 episode 11) George Bush is seen making plans to attack Saddam Hussein, who is building bombs in Heaven. The episode Two days before the day after tomorrow is a parody of Bush government's policy and bad management during the tragic event of hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. In the episode, Mystery of the Urinal Deuce, George Bush attempts to kill Kyle and Stan for discovering the government's role in the 9-11 terrorist attacks. In the episode About last night, we can see that Obama's election was not as transparent as he claimed. [...]

[...] The image of an American-patriotic president in the nineties: when the self-censorship attends on the national identity In the nineties, a lot of American movies introduce the president of US as the main character of their plot. There is a real inflation of films in which the American president is a protagonist. What is important to say is that these films are not censored in the classical sense of the term (an authority prevents the broadcasting of some values, ideas or doctrines), but it exists a kind of “self-censorship”, dictated by Hollywood directors themselves. [...]

[...] Nixon is represented as an isolated former leader. This film is a complex look at a misunderstood and, ultimately, quite pathetic figure. In the nineties, Bill Clinton largely influenced scriptwriters and contributed to modify the presidential image on the screen. We can quote The American President (1995), a romantic drama movie directed by Bob Reimer in which the president (Michael Douglas is Bill Clinton) falls in love with an environmental lobbyist. The central subject of this film is private life and not political crisis. [...]