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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 5 page research paper that examines the significance of two 1940s films by Director Vincente Minnelli, 'Cabin in the Sky' (1942) and 'Stormy Weather' (1943) and their significance for Black cinema. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Page Count:
5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: KE9_99blfilm.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
was "necessary for racist Americas fight" against Black advancement (Diawara 3). Griffith included in that first film the template for what would become the standard representation of Black experience?i.e., an
obsession with miscegenation, and a "fixing" of Blacks within certain prescribed spaces?such as kitchens?and supporting roles, such as criminals (Diawara 3). The "radical conflict" that was depicted in
"The Birth of a Nation" became the only way that Hollywood had for talking about Black people (Diawara 3). In the decades that followed Griffiths film, there were Whites
who protested against the use of stereotypes. One such person was the Italian film director, Vincente Minnelli, who produced two films in the early 1940s that?presumably?broke out of the standard
mold and presented African Americans in realistic terms. These films were "Cabin in the Sky" (1942) and "Stormy Weather" (1943). There has been considerable controversy as to whether or
not these films achieved their goal. White critics have tended toward seeing the films as presenting Blacks in a more favorable light then the typical Hollywood fare, Black media
has agreed that these movies were better than the usual film-fare, but felt that these movies still fell considerably short of avoiding stereotypes. For example, one review, that is
typical of those produced by white critics, described the typical Hollywood musical of the 1930s and 1940s as depicting Blacks in ways that were stereotypic, condescending, and ridiculous (Anonymous PG).
However, this reviewer thought that M-G-Ms "Cabin in the Sky" was an exception to this rule, stating that the roles in this film were "indeed roles, not stereotypic walk-ons often
given black actors in other Hollywood films" (Anonymous PG). In the standard Hollywood film, black characters were liable to burst into song and dance at the drop of a
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