International Review of Educational Cinematography (Jan-Dec 1931)

Record Details:

Something wrong or inaccurate about this page? Let us Know!

Thanks for helping us continually improve the quality of the Lantern search engine for all of our users! We have millions of scanned pages, so user reports are incredibly helpful for us to identify places where we can improve and update the metadata.

Please describe the issue below, and click "Submit" to send your comments to our team! If you'd prefer, you can also send us an email to mhdl@commarts.wisc.edu with your comments.




We use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) during our scanning and processing workflow to make the content of each page searchable. You can view the automatically generated text below as well as copy and paste individual pieces of text to quote in your own work.

Text recognition is never 100% accurate. Many parts of the scanned page may not be reflected in the OCR text output, including: images, page layout, certain fonts or handwriting.

— 173 — continue to tour the provinces undisturbed, doing the maximum of harm and giving an utterly distorted picture of life. 6 and 7. Next come two kinds of film, which may also be suspected of having a demoralising and corrupting effect upon the young. These are police and detective films, which suggest or encourage crime and those intensely dramatic films, which reveal to children and adolescents tragic aspects of life which, even if they are true, are not the only aspects and are perhaps the least easily confirmed and in any case should be kept from children for as long as possible. The replies to the Institute's questionnaires show that detective films and films reproducing crime or exalting criminals excite children's minds and feelings, rouse violent and mostly unhealthy emotions, because they prompt a desire to imitate such acts. As regards, more especially, the ultra-dramatic or passionate film, we read the following: " I am moved by the story of two hearts, two human beings who want each other "; " The film grips me so tight that I share all the sufferings of the hero or heroine "; " Very dramatic or voluptuous scenes make a deep impression on me ". The erotic element in such dramas and scenes of passion cannot possibly contribute to form a healthy view of life. Not many replies complain of films on this ground, owing, mainly, to control by the censors and local authorities (the Chief of Police at Imperia has recently issued a circular forbidding the exhibition of detective films). Moreover, a new mentality has gradually developed among audiences, who want more inspiring and wholesome fare and, by keeping away from the cinema, have instituted an indirect censorship of their own, which is perhaps more effective than the official system, since it compels filmmakers and film-renters, in the interests of their pockets, to gratify the public taste and improve the quality of their films. 8 and 9. Next we come to films that inspire terror or reproduce murders and acts of violence. Only about ten of the answers draw attention to this class of film, and these give no exact reason or explanation of the mental depression or fatigue experienced. The children in question merely mention the evil effect of unpleasant scenes of bloodshed " in which there is nothing ennobling ", though it must be admitted that there is not much scope for nobility in the reproduction of these " newspaper " crimes. 10. A few children, whose still small voices deserve our ear, complain of the absence of cultural elements in the ordinary entertainment film or, anyhow, of the subordination of such elements to dramatic, passionate and other features. These children go to the cinema to be amused, but also want to see something new and interesting. " We are not keen on street crimes and backstair tragedies. In the long run such films are irritating. We want to see the more educational and elevating aspects of life ".