| (1)
All the President's Men |
|
This is the story
of the role of the press and Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein
in the Watergate scandal. The accuracy of the film approaches that of a documentary.
Why cover
Watergate when there are so many other choices available? For one thing, Watergate
must be regarded as an important turning point in American history—never
again will Americans naively regard their political leaders as highly. So, the
scandal in a sense destroyed much of our innocence, and pointed out the value
of freedom of the press.
|
|
(2)
Patton |
| The
classical portrayal of Patton by George C. Scott. He was one of the most interesting
figures of the World War II era and was instrumental in the victory of the United
States. victory. |
| (3)
The Right Stuff |
This
movie shows the recruitment, training, and space flights of the first U.S. astronauts.
Although the specific dialogue and some minor events have been fictionalized,
most incidents reported in the film occurred as shown. The movie is based on Tom
Wolfe's excellent non-fiction book of the same name.
|
| (4)
Glory |
| The
Civil War movie that chronicles the 54th Regiment of Massachusetts. This African
American unit fought bravely in an effort to win freedom for themselves and all
slaves. The final battle is heroic and poignant. |
|
(5)
Dances with Wolves |
| Dances
With Wolves" is a tale of a white soldier's gradual adoption by a tribe of
Indians. Left alone to guard a deserted outpost, the soldier quickly comes to
realize his only support in the wilderness is the Native Americans surrounding
him. He soon adopts their ways and becomes a key member of the tribe. Knowing
it is hopeless, he returns to his people to help them see the Indians not as enemies
but people with a valuable way of life. This movie is a tribute to the cause of
diversity. |
| (6)
Forrest Gump |
| The
story follows the life of low Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks) and his meeting with the
love of his life Jenny. The film chronicles his accidental experiences with some
of the most important people and events in America from the late 1950's through
the 1970's including a meeting with Elvis Presley, JFK, Lyndon Johnson, Richard
Nixon, fighting in Vietnam, etc. The problem is that he doesn't realize the significance
of his actions. Forrest becomes representative of the baby boomer generation having
walked through life blindly. |
|
(7)
The Grapes of Wrath |
Driven
off their Oklahoma farm during the dust bowl days of the Great Depression, the
Joad family loads its belongings into a truck and joins thousands of other dispossessed
farmers in the trek to California.
|
|
(8)
Twelve Angry Men |
| This
movie depicts jury deliberations in a murder trial. They show the dynamics of
jury deliberations: the anger, the false starts, the personality conflicts, the
joint effort and the functioning of several minds together to ferret out the truth.
In this case, the first vote is 11 to 1 to convict but it wouldn't stay that way!
|
|
(9) To Kill a Mockingbird |
| Atticus
Finch, lawyer and single parent, is trying to raise his family in a small Southern
town during the Great Depression. Appointed by the local judge to defend a black
man accused of raping a white woman, he surprises the town by mounting a vigorous
defense. Finch is probably the best male role model on film, loving and nurturing
his children and treating all those around him with respect and consideration |
| (10)
Tuskegee Airman |
| This
film tells the story of WW II's "Tuskegee Airmen," the African-American
332nd Fighter Group of the Army Air Corps. The film accurately portrays the destruction
of the racist myth that blacks could not fly complex modern fighters. We are shown
Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the U.S. and champion of the rights of minorities,
supporting the experiment with black pilots.
|
| (11)
Judgement at Nuremberg |
This
movie is a fictionalized account of the war crimes trial of judges and prosecutors
who served the Nazis. "Judgment at Nuremberg" depicts a watershed event:
the first trials, based on principles of justice and international law, of the
leaders of a country that waged aggressive war and committed crimes against humanity.
The film is a gripping, searching and provocative look at the moral issues surrounding
both the actions of the accused and the process of bringing them to justice. The
film also explores the issue of whether ordinary Germans bore responsibility for
the Holocaust.
|
|
(12)
Ghosts of Mississippi |
This
film recounts the retrial and conviction of the assassin of civil rights leader
Medgar Evers, some 30 years after the murder. Both his widow, Myrlie Evers, and
Bobby DeLaughter, the prosecutor, served as consultants for the film. With a few
exceptions discussed in the Learning Guide, the film is reasonably accurate. The
film also shows Mississippi's change to a state with a functioning justice system.
The movie describes the workings of the legal system, a widow's perseverance and
crusade for justice, as well as a prosecutor's commitment to righting an old wrong.
|
| (13)
Amistad |
In
1839 slaves held captive aboard the ship La Amistad revolted, took control of
the vessel, and tried to sail it back to Africa. The ship was seized by an American
frigate and taken to the U.S., setting off a controversy that pitted the courts
against the President (Marin Van Buren) and raised the consciousness of the North
about the evils of slavery. The La Amistad incident was a milestone in the development
of the abolitionist movement.
|
|
(14)
Truman (HBO film) |
| Harry
S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States. He presided over the final
victory of the Allies in World War II, the beginning of the Cold War, the conversion
from a war economy to a peacetime economy, and most of the Korean War.
|
| (15)
The Crucible |
| These
films present Arthur Miller's play about the Salem witchcraft trials. The play
and the films capture the sense of the late 1600s as well as the hysteria and
injustice of the red scare of 1947 - 1956. They raise several important questions,
including: 1) when a society feels threatened, how far should it go in imposing
tests of loyalty and requiring proofs of faith in commonly held beliefs; 2) how
does a society ensure justice and fairness when it believes that its fundamental
beliefs are under attack; and 3) should a person, in order to avoid an undeserved
punishment, admit to something he didn't do and cooperate in an unjust investigation
in which innocent people will be hurt |
|
(16)
The Patriot |
| A
compilation of true historical figures formed the basis for Mel Gibson's character
in this film set during the American Revolution. It shows that not all colonists
were committed to the war on ideological grounds. |
|
(17)
The Red Badge of Courage |
| This
adaptation of Stephen Crane's classic novel follows the experience of a raw recruit
to the Union Army through his first two days of battle. |
| (18)
To Hell and Back |
| The
true W.W.II story of Audie Murphy, the most decorated soldier in U.S. history.
Based on the autobiography of Audie Murphy who stars as himself in the film. |
| (19)
Apollo 13 |
| True
story of the moon-bound mission that developed severe trouble and the men that
rescued it with skill and dedication. |
|
(20)
Knute Rockne All American |
| This
is a romanticized Hollywood biography of Knute Rockne, possibly the most creative
football coach of all time. Knute Rockne's Notre Dame football teams were the
first in the nation to use the forward pass as a major offensive weapon. He also
pioneered coordinated backfield movements, called "the shift," which
are used to maximize the chance for large gains on running plays. "Knute
Rockne All American" will acquaint children with this innovative man and
the view that college sports are a game subordinate to the important work of education:
e.g., Knute Rockne never intervened with a teacher to get a higher grade for one
of his players; if a player's grades were not good enough, he was off the team.
|
| (21)
Tora! Tora! Tora! |
| "Tora!
Tora! Tora!" describes the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941,
from both the Japanese and American points of view. Historical
accuracy stands as the biggest strength of Tora, Tora, Tora. Copious research
went into the writing, and the ambitious project used two separate film crews
to give both the American and the Japanese points of view for Pearl Harbor. If
you suspect certain lines of dialogue don’t sound theatrical, there’s
a good chance that those lines are kept in because they are historically accurate.
In fact, when Martin Balsam balked at the “death wish” line his Admiral
Kimmel character makes, director Richard Fleischer informed him that the dialogue
would remain intact because the Admiral actually did describe a spent bullet by
saying “Would have been merciful had it killed me.” While
there are some intriguing characters, this film focuses on presenting historical
drama in an even-handed way, even switching us back and forth between the American
and Japanese perspectives.
|
|
(22)
Warm Springs (HBO film) |
| This
film describes Franklin Roosevelt's struggle against the effects of polio and
his leadership in the development of a convalescent community at Warm Springs,
Georgia. It shows an important stage in the development of his character. The
movie highlights the innovations, mostly psychological, in treatment for the disabled
that Roosevelt pioneered at Warm Springs. "Warm
Springs" will: (1) acquaint students with the most important U.S. President
of the 20th century; (2) demonstrate how FDR's disability helped strengthen his
character and gave him empathy for the suffering of others; and (3) enhance learning
about Roosevelt's policies to combat the Great Depression by suggesting interesting
parallels between the New Deal and the therapeutic community that Roosevelt helped
construct at Warm Springs. The film is well researched and in many respects historically
accurate. Like all historical fiction it takes dramatic liberties by telescoping
many events into one or mixing up the time sequence. However, with the two exceptions
described below, the movie is a reasonably accurate portrayal of the events that
occurred from 1921 to 1928. It shows how FDR tried and failed to regain the ability
to walk but discovered something more valuable within himself.
|
| (23)
Gettysburg |
| The
Union victory at Gettysburg is considered by many historians to be the turning
point in the Civil War. This film is a recreation of the battle. The film makers
consciously attempted to recreate events as they occurred and also to describe
the tragedy of the Civil War. The film is based on the historical novel, The Killer
Angels, by Michael Shaara. Almost
everything shown in this film conforms to the historical record, including Colonel
Chamberlain's bayonet charge, Longstreet's objections to Lee's tactics, Lee's
statement accepting blame for the defeat, etc.
|
| (24)
Midway |
| World
War II, Pacific Theater: the Japanese follow their stunning victory at Pearl Harbor
with a massive assault on Midway Island, a strategic U.S. outpost in the Pacific.
But the U.S. Navy is ready ... and looking for revenge. |
| (25)
Thirteen days |
This
movie tells the story of the Cuban Missile Crisis from inside the White House.
"Thirteen Days" captures the sense and tension of the times and shows
the wise leadership of President John F. Kennedy.
|
| (26)
Tucker - The Man and his Dream |
After
the Second World War, Preston Tucker tried to start a car company to challenge
the big Detroit auto makers. His prototypes were impressive. Sleek cars with engineering
innovations such as seat belts long before they were mandated by the Government,
Tucker's cars generated a waive of excitement. However, the political muscle of
the Big Four Automakers (General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, and American Motors)
doomed his project. This film is the story of Tucker's efforts and ultimate failure.
|
| (27)
High Noon |
| In
this Western an outlaw recently released from jail is on his way back to the town
he had once terrorized. His gang has reassembled, waiting for him to arrive on
the noon train. Will the people in the town band together to resist? Will the
marshal, recently retired and scheduled to leave town that very day, resume his
duties or keep to his plans to depart? If the marshal stays, who will back him?
This film
teaches the meaning of courage, loyalty, leadership, and the responsibilities
of friends and married couples to each other. By showing an example of a man who
stood up to outlaws, the film criticizes those who gave the names of people with
left-wing political views to the McCarthyites and the House Un-American Activities
Committee during the red scare of the late 1940s and early 1950s. "High Noon"
is one of the few Hollywood movies in which the film makers, fearing government
persecution, disguised the political implications of the movie.
|
| (28)
The Last of the Mohicans |
|
Daniel Day Lewis
must be type cast as the American colonial guy (he also stars in The Crucible).
But here he heroically represents the idealized American frontiersman in Michael
Mann’s excellent adaptation of James Fenimore Cooper’s immortal novel,
set during the French and Indian War in upstate New York. Michael
Mann’s lyrical adaptation of James Fenimore Cooper’s novel actually
presents a good picture of what the French and Indian War was like, and foreshadows
the coming American Revolution. Mann’s cinematic landscapes are always pretty
to look at, and the battle scenes here are choreographed brutally and as realistically
as the romanticized Cooper work can allow.
|
|
(29)
Nixon |
| Although
he's one of the most chronicled public figures of the 20th century, Richard Milhous
Nixon remains an enigma to many, his decisions, motives and behavior often shrouded
in mystery. With the ill-fated 1972 Watergate break-in and its tragic aftermath--culminating
in the President's 1974 resignation--as its focus, NIXON examines its subject's
complex life, including his difficult youth in Southern California and often troubled
relationship with wife Pat. We also see Nixon's incredible political life, during
which he held the offices of Congressman at age 33, Senator at 37, and Vice-President
at 39, before losing the Presidential election in 1960 and the California gubernatorial
race in 1962, making his startling comeback six years later to win two terms as
President. With the inevitability of classical tragedy, Nixon's political career
finally crumbles beneath the weight of his past, his ambitions, and his blindness
to events just outside his often remarkable range of vision |
| (30)
Sergeant York |
This
stirring biography of World War I hero Alvin York features Gary Cooper's Oscar-winning
performance in the title role. Once a brawler in backwoods Tennessee, York finds
religion thanks to a literal bolt from the blue; when America enters the war and
York gets drafted, he puts aside his pacifism to defend democracy. His expert
marksmanship and battlefield exploits turn him into the war's most decorated soldier.
|
| (31)
The Spirit of St. Louis |
| Biography
of Charles Lindburgh from his days of precarious mail runs in aviation's infancy
to his design of a small transatlantic plane and the vicissitudes of its takeoff
and epochal flight from New York to Paris in 1927. |
| (32)
Quiz Show |
This
film is a true story based on the rise and fall of an intellectual, Charles Van
Doren, who became a celebrity in a rigged game show.
|
| (33)
The Wizard of OZ |
| "The
Wizard of Oz" is a classic musical, beloved by children and their parents
for generations. The film is perennially popular because it teaches several basic
values and deals with many of the issues and fears that children must confront
as they mature: The
movie is an excellent example of the literary device of allegory. In addition,
the book (and with a few corrections the movie) can be used to spice up classes
covering the debate over U.S. monetary policy in the late 1800s. (Dorothy is misled
to take the yellow brick road (the gold standard) but is taken home by the silver
shoes (the ruby slippers are silver in the book); the cowardly lion is William
Jennings Brian ... and there is more). |
